Trailer floor wood...plain pine, treated or oak?

[attorney_barnabas_collins]

What have you guys experienced and pros & cons? My car trailer needs new wood...the pine floor lasted 6 or 7 years but has really rotted out this year. I hate to just go plain pine again unless the alternatives are worse. Oak would probably be best, but its a lot heavier, and probably pretty darned high. Thinking of trying the local lumber mill and seeing if I can buy some rough cut, but will it work without being dried first? (and can I even pick it up to move it?) Its a 16ft trailer and has 1 piece wood now. Would like to use 1 piece 16 footers again, but I might be ok with welding in a cross plate & member and using 2 pieces which would also save me from having to cut the angle iron off the end they must have welded in to get that wood under there.

Just wondering what others have done when that time came besides just selling it and buying another one.

[Upper5Percent]

YELLOW PINE and treated...

[Grateful11]

I refloored my Dad's trailer several years ago and used Pressured Treated Pine. The thing was it was wet PT pine and I didn't let it dry out before using it and you can't believe how much those boards opened up. So if you're keeping it in the dry make sure whatever you use is dry before putting it down.

[JD2030]

I replaced mine 2 years ago with treated lumber. I jammed the boards together as tight as I could and after it set outside a couple of years there is nice 1/4 inch gap or more between the boards. I try to give it a good coat of used motor oil every year.
If I could have aforded it I would have replaced the old wooden floor with a metal floor. Would last a lot longer and would take a lot more punishment.

[Magnum RT]

I would use pressure treated. I replaced 2 pine boards 2 years ago with PT and will have to finish the job this spring.

[attorney_barnabas_collins]

Well, I hadn't thought about metal, but the wood is probably a lot quieter, plus anything but diamondplate would be pretty slick wouldn't it?

I drag a lot of smaller tractors with or without tires up onto it and I guess that wouldn't be a bad thing come to think of it.

[JD2030]

Diamond plate is what I wanted to use but like I said out of my price range at that time. The next time hopefully I will be able to afford it.

[wvbuzzmaster]

treated 2x8 boards 16 foot long. Dad's trailer has treated 2x8's on it and its boards lasted over a decade out in the elements and used several times a year.

[Jim Hayes]

NOOOOOoooooo!!!

Don't use motor oil or transmission fluid. this softens the wood, and it will gouge easier making places for water to stand and rot. BTDT

I will recommend Thompson's water seal sprayed on with garden sprayer on treated wood once a year.

[Ken in NJ]

Find a local mill and get some rough cut White Oak 2x material. My trailer is over 10 years old and shows NO signs of rot .

I have a heavy duty Towmaster tilt trailer which has a steel pan, with 2" white oak boards screwed to it.

http://www.towmaster.com/model_t-5t.asp

[jeepersmitty]

Mine has a metal floor coated with bed liner. No problems with traction.

[Dude11]

Metal is great but slick(little oil,little water=WOW!!) Pt.wood is my pick;After a couple years,that old motor oil mixed with a little mineral spirits thru a bug sprayer works like a charm.Kinda soaks in.Trick to keeping pt.wood from rotting is not to let it competely dry out.Fence posts come to mind.

[Magnum RT]

Originally Posted by Dude11

Metal is great but slick(little oil,little water=WOW!!) Pt.wood is my pick;After a couple years,that old motor oil mixed with a little mineral spirits thru a bug sprayer works like a charm.Kinda soaks in.Trick to keeping pt.wood from rotting is not to let it competely dry out.Fence posts come to mind.

I have a full diamond plate floor on my 18 ft and have absolutely NO traction problems! I have had more traction trouble with my 10 ft wooden deck tilt trailer! It REALLY get slick when it is wet!

[bontai Joe]

As to getting the 16 footers under that end angle on your trailer. You can insert one end, And probably pull the center up like a bow (bow and arrow type bow) which should shorten the length enough to get the other end in. I'd either use treated wood or prime and paint all 6 sides of each board before installing it. After painting them, the only side that will wear off the paint is the top side, and you can roll on a coat of paint on the top in 1/2 an hour when needed.

[bblalocksr]

I don't know if you can find it there, but here in the south you can buy rough cut oak made just for trailer floors. It will last about ten years in the weather with no protection. The boards are about 1 1/4 thick. 8" wide and 16' to 18' long. Reasonably cheap.