Welcome back to our RV interior upgrade project. We are one-fourth of the way finished, with our MCD American Duo day-night roller shades installed. Today, we are installing new Infinity luxury woven vinyl flooring in our project fifth wheel trailer. Then in upcoming episodes, we will install new RecPro furniture.

If you missed it, in a previous episode, we prepped the floor for the new Infinity luxury woven vinyl flooring. Now, we can install it.  You might remember when we installed new flooring in our motorhome. When it was time to select a new floor covering, we wanted something that was rated for commercial traffic and something that looks good too. We decided on Infinity luxury woven vinyl.

In fact, we liked the product so much that we put it in our patio room at the beach. And today, we’re installing it in the fifth wheel kitchen and living room. Infinity luxury woven vinyl is an anti-microbial, soil, and stain resistant, fade resistant, and easy to clean.

It has a dense cushion backing you can see right here. And it is pet-friendly, which is great for us. Infinity offers numerous collections of luxury woven vinyl products to choose from. We decided on the seagrass number eight because it highlights some of the RV’s interior treatments and the new furniture we selected from RecPro.

To cut the new flooring, we needed a good flat surface to work on, so we brought the old flooring home and did the work in our driveway. We used the original carpet as a template, along with laminate floor underlayment for a template where there wasn’t any carpet in the RV. Now, we can lay the carpet and templates on the woven vinyl product and start making our cuts. You can lay pieces of wood under the fabric to make your cuts when using a razor knife. Always cut the product from the face side of the fabric, and use a new razor blade or a sharp pair of scissors to make the cuts. Dull blades can damage the product or produce rough edges. Clean cuts look much better. I made my cuts slightly larger than the template so I can do any final trimming in the RV.

I want to offer a few installation tips for those of you who decide to use luxury woven vinyl products in your project. It’s important to note when you work with this product, it must be rolled face out with the cushion in. Do not crease the fabric at all. The warranty is voided if the product is rolled improperly, creased, or if the product was cut, fitted, or installed.

In the last episode, we prepped the floor for the installation, so we will give the floor one final cleaning and start the installation. The LWV product has a vinyl backing, and it must be installed using a solvent-free latex resin adhesive that works with vinyl. The adhesive should also be non-flammable and freeze-thaw stable. For additional security, luxury woven vinyl can also be stapled down to wooden surfaces, applying the staples along the edges.

The adhesive in woven vinyl must be acclimated on-site. The minimum temperature should be no less than 65 degrees Fahrenheit for 24 hours before, during, and after the installation. The product should be spread flat and laid open for up to 30 minutes before applying it to the floor. This method ensures best adhesive transfer. A 100% transfer of adhesive onto the foam backing must be obtained.

When we installed the LWV product in our motorhome, we applied the adhesive on one half of the floor. And after the fabric was placed on that side, we did the opposite side. That method worked so well that we decided to do it again in the fifth wheel, starting with the slide out. We decided to install the flooring on the slide out first. This slide out is deeper than most modern-day slide outs, and it’s raised above the floor as opposed
to a flush floor slide out.

Apply the adhesive directly to the floor using a trowel. The proper trowel notch will achieve 100% transfer of wet adhesive to the fabric. Recommended trowel specs are 1/8 by 1/8 by 1/8 V notch. Allow time for the adhesive to get tacky before placing the woven vinyl. This can take 10 to 15 minutes depending on circumstances. Do not allow the adhesive to dry or develop a skin. Working time is approximately one hour.

You’ll probably see those repairs on a future how-to episode on our YouTube channel, so stay tuned. Now, you can apply adhesive to the opposite side of the slide out floor. We also applied adhesive to the 90 degree bend on the front of the slide out. Let it sit until it’s tacky, and roll the LWV product on top of the adhesive.

We placed thin metal strips over the 90 degree bend to assist in securing the luxury woven vinyl until the adhesive dries. I secured it with a few staples that can easily be removed. Use scissors or a sharp razor knife to trim around the perimeter of the slide out. Now, it’s time to install the luxury woven vinyl in the living room. We are doing it the same way as a slide out, starting with the final cleaning.

Next, we fold the product in half and spread the adhesive. When it gets tacky, fold the flooring over the adhesive and work any air bubbles to the sides. You can use a paint roller or similar tool to remove any air bubbles, and to make sure the fabric makes good contact with the floor. Repeat this process on the opposite side. Trim around the perimeter of the flooring and cut the heat vents out. The only piece left to do is the steps.

We used the old carpet from the steps as a template for the new flooring, so all we need to is adhere it to the steps and trim the edges. You can clean up any wet adhesive with soapy water and a soft bristle brush. Blot the area dry with a clean towel and wash any other surfaces clean of the adhesive. Depending on how well the flooring was trimmed around all of the edges, it might be necessary to install some type of trim like this where the flooring meets the walls. This is a stick-on vinyl product that comes in a couple different sizes.

To get more information on Infinity luxury woven vinyl and to look at some of the collections and colors available, visit www.infinitylwv.com and when you want to learn more about using and maintaining your RV, visit rvonlinetraining.com.
Happy camping.