They will corrode due to the urine seeping under the mats so you will need to pull the mats up every so often and wash them down. My mom has had her trailer (a Barrett) for about 8 years and she said that there are 1 or 2 teeny tiny holes in her floor. She probably washes it down 2 or 3 times a year. We are thinking about eventually getting someone to put that spray-in bed liner in it so we don't have to worry about it (and putting the mats back on top of course). I think this is what Sundowner does to its trailers or its something very similar.
From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx on behalf of Beth Walker Sent: Mon 2008-03-10 16:12 To: Ridecamp Subject: Re: [RC] aluminum floor
This is just hearsay, as I haven't had personal experience. However:
-- lighter than wood floors
-- I have heard that they do not insulate as well, so you would need something more than just thin rubber mats, or the floor will transmit heat from the road more than wood.
-- They don't rot like wood, but aluminum will still corrode, so you still need to check the floor. One man in my local club had to replace the aluminum floor of his trailer, as it corroded through. I have no idea what the care of the trailer had been, or how old it was, so I can't compare it to a wooden floor.
I would guess that most of these things vary depending on the design of the trailer, design of the mats, how the trailer is stored and maintained, etc.
I am looking at a prolite trailer...it has an aluminum floor with the rubber mats over that. I am not familiar with aluminum floors...I would be interested in the pro's and con's...thanks!
