trailer flooring

[Part Timer]

What does everybody use to replace the flooring in their livestock trailers? The guy at the local trailer dealer said it would cost $200-$300 to do a 24ft trailer(seems a little pricey). Is there something special about their wood or can I just go to the lumber yard and get some treated pine?

 

[Davis Shorthorns]

for me it depends on how long you are going to be keeping the trailer.  If you don't plan on keeping it very long (few years max) then I would go with some treated 2x6's.  If you want that to last a little longer I would go and have it lined with a truck bed liner.  I have seen some really good results.  If you plan on keeping it till you are dead or the thing falls apart around it I would look into some of the new synthetic boards they are using for decks now days.  They are more expensive, but I think they will stand up to some of the worst conditions out there. 

 

[Jill]

One of the first lessons we learned was your trailer flooring is the most important part of the trailer.  About 2 months into our show career we had a heifer fall through the new floor in our trailer while we were driving, it was enough to prompt us to purchase an aluminum trailer.  I wouldn't skimp on the flooring!

 

[justintime]

I agree with Jill. IMO, the floor is the most important part of the trailer. I will never forget the sick feeling I had when I opened the back door of my trailer and saw two of the planks were completely gone. I was only hauling a bull to the pasture and the trailer was relatively new. It just had  2X10 in the floor ( cross ways). The bull was IDS Duke of Dublin and we had just paid $25,000 for him. He was standing with his front feet about 6 inches from the edge , and when I saw this, I almost got faint. When I got home, I took the entire floor out, added a bunch of addition angle iron supports every two feet under the floor and then hand picked the best lumber I could find to replace the floor, and added thick rubber mats as well. One thing I would strongly recommend if you have rubber mats in your trailer is to remove then a couple times a year and let the floor dry completely out. It is a pain in the butt, but it insures that no rotting will take place.

 

[Cowfarmer65]

By the time you buy the PT lumber and hardware, consider the time and frustration...........that $ 300 dollars won't seem so bad. The synthetic lumber is durable although I question how slippery it will get even with rubber mats on it. If you are going to do it yourself, I'd pay heed to JIT, hand pick it and make sure you have ample support and crossers.

 

[OH Breeder]

What does everybody use to replace the flooring in their livestock trailers? The guy at the local trailer dealer said it would cost $200-$300 to do a 24ft trailer(seems a little pricey). Is there something special about their wood or can I just go to the lumber yard and get some treated pine?

When I was a teenager back in the 80's I traveled with a big Simmi operation. They would haul 20 head or so to a show. We had a cow leg go through the floor (on interstate and we didn't know it til we stopped)and needless to say she had to be euthanized it was horrible. That was in the day of step ladder cattle. I from that point going forward would never never skim on flooring.
Like JIT I have also added additional supports in the past to flooring if concerned. I have always used best lumber. On top of lumber we get textured rubber matts about 1" and half to 2 " thick.I keep cedar chips on top of that. We clean and disinfect frequently as well as keep a good sealant on the wood. There is a place locally that does a "rhino liner" that is texturized to prevent slipping and seals the boards.

 

[Shady Lane]

If somebody will replace the floor of a 24' trailer for $200-$300 I would say that is a BARGAIN.


Having replaced a few trailer floors over the years, I know that it can be a tedious and time consuming job.

I think the llast time Ibought lumber (which was a few years ago now) to replace the floor of a 16' flatbed trailer it was around $200 for good quality lumber. By the time you figure the hardware and cutting and fitting all those planks, I would gladly pay somebody that sort of money for the job!

What sort of lumber were they going to replace it with?

 

[Part Timer]

I didnt ask them what kind of lumber they had. At that time I hadn't even bought the trailer yet, I was just stopping in to price a gooseneck hitch. I am getting ready to head that way now. I am definitely not going to skimp on the flooring and am getting 8 extra peaces of angle iron to put in. I traded a decent 16ft bumper pull for this trailer I hope I didnt make a mistake.

 

[jason]

The synthetic lumber does have some issues, it seems the stuff sold at Home Depot and Lowes is not as good as grade as you get at a independent hardware store.  I was thinking about redoing our deck in it and decided to go with treated lumber instead.

 

[vc]

Not to hijack the thread but you have to watch when working with the synthetic stuff it will expand and contract with the heat. On a deck if you start working with it in the cool of the morning and work into the heat of the day it all look evenly space and your gapping will be uniform, but look at it the next morning and you might thank you where drinking when installed it. you will want to keep it in the shade so it stays relatively uniform in size as you work with it.

You would be better off getting the same lumber that they use on the flat bed semi's it is not pine or doug-fir. I'm not sure what is called but it will handle the elements better and is usually thicker than a store bought 2x ( it is either 2 inches or 1 3/4 inches instead of 1.5 inches)

Talked to our mechanic it is "Apitong" wood very strong and durable

 

[kanshow]

We put a new synthetic floor (RUMBER) in one of the semi cattle trailers - thinking it was in the ground load but might have been the floor trailer.  The part I do know about is that it was expensive.  My husband ordered it from one of the trailer factorys in Waterville, KS.  I can't remember if it was Titan or Travelong or one of the other ones.    The flooring has kind of a raised pattern cleat but could still be a little slick - but not at all like that stuff from home depot.  He said that if he ever has to replace the floor in a stock trailer, he'd use it again but we would have to be sure to have mats on it.

 

[Part Timer]

I talked to the dealer and he said his lumber is better than the department store lumber but not much of a difference other than the treating process. I didnt get any because he didnt want to move his steel out of the way. I dont really blame him because he had a load of steel coming any minute but he just turned away a couple hundred bucks. So i just spent the night putting in the gooseneck hitch.

 

[COd]

Had a trailer that had expanded metal under the boards.  Have heard that Rumber is really good.  Believe it is made from recycled tires.  They have their own web site.

 

[blackcows]

If somebody will replace the floor of a 24' trailer for $200-$300 I would say that is a BARGAIN.

+1.....if that includes labor and material I don't know how you could do it yourself for much less..