Replacing cab carpet? February 08, 2010, 07:36:14 pm Yahoo Message Number: 109866We purchased a new to us 2006 26.5 MB - our first ever RV. The day we put a deposit on it, it seemed OK. I was in it for at least 30 minutes. The day we picked it up there was a slight odor to it - and by the time he got it the 3.5 hours home, I could barely stand in it more than 15 or 20 minutes. Few days later when windows were open the smell was evident just walking by it. (The bathroom smells fine though.) I am sensitive to chemicals and allergic to dust mites, so odors or not, we pulled out valances, bed and sofa upholstery and the rear carpet - and that stuff stunk so bad it was unbearable on the drive home to the dumpster even with it in heavy garbage bags. We thought the foam might be OK, but took it home and shortly it stunk up the area immediately around it. Bye bye sofa foam, too. They had those chemical dry bags in there, and flea color pieces in some of the window tracks, and I honestly think that created some of the smell, but even airing out a week, and then half days a few times when we could get to it, the very next time we would open it up, it overwhelmed. I am pretty sure they put chemicals in the black tank, but we have no access yet to a place to dump it and start it over with no chemicals. Wouldn't the bathroom smell if that was part of the cause - walking in there, though, is like a breath of fresh air. We've only been able to air it out for about 5 days once on a really windy week, then a couple of hours each a few other times. We have another 7 days to air it out this week - and this time we are running the fans to pull even more air through, since some of it is off gassing still. The worst of the smell now is in the cab carpet and those seats and noticeable in the shades, so they are all going, too. We are ordering new seats tomorrow and ripping out the last of the carpet in the cab. I found pesticide and chemical free wool carpet I can order to put in the cab area, but the auto upholsterer recommended insists the cab carpet going up the sides and across the front behind the visors has to be glued with toxic glue. The small part we removed was just screwed and stapled. I argued the point, but lost. On the hunt for another auto upholster. Any suggestions of another material to use instead of carpet?Question 2 to follow. And, thank you.
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #1 – February 08, 2010, 09:41:25 pm Yahoo Message Number: 109877Marcia, I'm sorry to hear about your problems with your lazy Daze. It would help if you were more specific about the nature of the smells you encountered. For what it's worth, I think it's extremely unlikely that a four-year-old rig would be emitting odors from glue, foam cushions, or carpeting. My guess is that you're dealing with odors from the previous owners. A thorough steam-cleaning would be a good place to start in reducing those lingering odors; I'd do that before I started ripping up carpet. When it comes to removing odors, many people have reported good results with Febreze, so that might be worth a try (assuming of course that you're not allergic to it).Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #2 – February 08, 2010, 11:31:27 pm Yahoo Message Number: 109882QuoteWhen it comes to removing odors, many people have reported good results with Febreze, so that might be worth a try (assuming of course that you're not allergic to it). Yes, be very careful about Febreze. I have had to stop using them in the dryer, and have discovered that there is a lot of info out there about Febreze allergies. Google it, and you'll find tons of stuff about this.David
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #3 – February 09, 2010, 09:58:22 am Yahoo Message Number: 109887Another idea - white vinegar. I cooked shrimp and scallops in my new popup. I thought the odor would stay forever and the popup was ruined. A friend suggested that I put several very small bowls of white vinegar in the rig, close the doors and windows and the odor would be gone. When we sold the popup a couple of years later, it was still odor fee.It might be a cheap fix.Dorothy 07 MB - Koko SE 21
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #4 – February 09, 2010, 10:40:26 am Yahoo Message Number: 109891Thank you, Dorothy. That is the very first thing we tried. I always use vinegar to clean. We sprayed it all over, wiped down the walls and outside of cabinets, put it out in bowls, put baking soda boxes everywhere. Had them in for month or more and re sprayed it when we could get to it, even put one large plant that eats formaldehyde in there. I read that fresh air and heat are two of the best ways to rid formaldehyde. We have it this week opened up and the fan pulling air through. Today more of that one smell has gone since we got the rest of the foam out yesterday. Now it is mostly off gassing, I smell. It is a 2006 that picked up at factory in early 2007, I don't think it was used full time. We are testing a SafeCoat sealer to see if it will stick to the panels, the manufacturer is not sure it will, but it will seal the plywood, at least. There is a company that does a heat treatment in yachts and homes to make them off gas quickly (and also kills mold and bed bugs - not that we found that) - but they said they may not be able to do an RV because the thin panels and glued items in them may not survive the high heat intact.
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #5 – February 09, 2010, 10:46:30 am Yahoo Message Number: 109892I can't deal with any perfumed products, I tried that at home once, but thanks, y'all, some people can handle it and swear by it.
Re: Replacing cab carpet? Reply #6 – February 09, 2010, 11:41:33 am Yahoo Message Number: 109895"Andy" wrote: A thorough steam-cleaning would be a good place to start in reducing those lingering odors; I'd do that before I started ripping up carpet. --- Yes; a less drastic approach before gutting the "stinky" thing seems to be a good idea! ;-) Perhaps contacting local carpet and upholstery cleaning businesses to see if they are able to "detail" the interior of an RV with steam/non-toxic/non-odorous cleaning solutions? I hope that the OP is able to resolve the problem; a smelly rig would surely be a frustrating situation! :-(Joan
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Topic: Replacing cab carpet? (Read 13 times)
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