# Newbie to trailer maintenance: Floor question



## egrogan (Jun 1, 2011)

I got a new-to-me trailer earlier this summer, and have used it a couple of times since for short trips (20 minutes). I’m getting ready to close it up for the winter, and have a couple of maintenance questions.

First, the floor. After starting to give it a good cleaning inside, I noticed a spot where there is a “bubble” making the seam between two mats bulge. I assume I need to get under there to clean out whatever’s accumulated under the seam and pushing up the mats.








That said, I’m confused about how to get the mats out when the divider poles run down through them. Surely there must be a way, I just don’t know what it is!








Next, can I power wash the entirety of the inside? Do I do that with the mats out? I am nervous about water pooling and accumulating in nooks and crannies and not thoroughly drying. In general I am nervous about maintaining the integrity of the floor, but we had a trusted mechanic inspect the whole floor and frame before purchase, and it passed state inspection. I just want to do the appropriate maintenance now before it sits for the winter.

These probably seem like basic questions, but this is all new to me. So thank you for your advice!


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Congratulations on the trailer acquisition..  

_So, under the mats is it wood, aluminum or rumbar flooring?

Does your center divider fully remove or slide easily or is it bolted in place?_
Does your floor mat meet the wall mat or is it underneath you need to carefully look at cause one is a easy to remove, the other is going to take some extra effort....
Your trailer appears to only have a middle of trailer seam so large mats to roll slightly and pull going out the rear door..

You can wash with a scrub-brush and mop the walls if you are nervous of power-washing the entire interior, but getting under the mats to wash the flooring is important.

To fully clean yes you remove the mats and take them out, power wash them both sides and let them fully air dry.
{Vice grips are your friend to grabbing and having something to grasp when pulling trailer mats or any mats of size and bulk}
Yes you can power-wash the trailer inside where the horses stand and we do so yearly ourselves.
As long as none of your "bumper padded" pieces have slits in them then wash it....wiping down the butt bumper after every use will also prolong it and remove the caked on poop it can hold...
Taking down and off the caustic of urine and feces will prolong the useful time your trailer will last for you.
There should be "weep" holes so urine or washing water/chemicals can fully drain no matter the flooring.... make sure they are not plugged up. A screwdriver opens those clogs easily.

My floor is wood plank and mat overlay.
In the winter we pull mats and keep them out of the trailer lying flat in our garage so they not curl.
When the trailer is in weekly use, we carefully sweep mats, flip them and all around the edges any and all ick is removed, if urine or damp they get yanked, floor cleaned but _especially_ fully dried and then mats either laid down or put back in.
Our trailer has cut-outs in it for going around floor steel welded in supports for our slam gate so our mats must be laid a particular way and all seams tight to each other.  {I wrote on the trailer mats of another we owned where they got placed with a silver sharpie marker on the side never touched by a hoof...lasted many years}  Found putting them back in place kept the spaces minimal.
🐴........


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## dustyk (Nov 14, 2020)

Small tip. The easiest way to get a handle on those mats is to use a pair of vice grips, they're tough to handle by hand. Other than that hlg gave you good advice!


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## egrogan (Jun 1, 2011)

Thanks HLG! I appreciate the detailed list, and this clarifies for me I’ll want this to be a project where I have good chunks of time throughout the weekend to tackle it.

I’m embarrassed to say I don’t know if my divider is bolted down or removable. 😬 How do I figure that out?


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Does the back slide to either side or is it stationary?

The front part near the chest bars would have slide bolts, one at the ceiling and another at the floor to secure it in place.
If it is permanent and "fixed" you will see a flat plate and screws/bolts into the actual ceiling..
Today most trailers have a removable center divider....
You may also have a spring action divider, where it would with great effort pull down to release it, and it would snap back into place and lock it in...

What year & brand is your trailer and I'll do some poking around on that companies website if you don't mind sharing...
Send me a PM if you rather.... I love to dig for information.  
🐴...


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## My Salty Pony (Jan 1, 2022)

Since the floors were inspected the mat's should have came out for the inspection, call the mechanic and ask him how he pulled the mat's. Those mat's look really thin so they should be easy to pull. I do what @dustyk well hubby does we use vice grips to pull mat's, super easy that way, my mat's are really thick and heavy.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Me too....we moved 15 mats today working in the barn...
If it wasn't for _vice grips_ we would still have about 12 to move...
Sadly, my hand strength just is not what it was.... and I miss it dearly.
My hands work just fine but have lost strength so everything needing a bit of grunt needs assistance lately.  
🐴...


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## My Salty Pony (Jan 1, 2022)

horselovinguy said:


> Me too....we moved 15 mats today working in the barn...
> If it wasn't for _vice grips_ we would still have about 12 to move...
> Sadly, my hand strength just is not what it was.... and I miss it dearly.
> My hands work just fine but have lost strength so everything needing a bit of grunt needs assistance lately.
> 🐴...


Same here HLG the strength in my hands to beable to move thick trailer mat's are not there any more, those mat's are dead weight and hard to move, the Vice grips are a wonderful tool to have in a barn are trailer, I have about 3 pairs in different areas, but of course when I go to use them they are never there in the spot I think they should be in, I get so mad at my self for not putting them back in the spot they are suppose to be in..


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## Knave (Dec 16, 2015)

I don’t know how you get it out, but there has got to be a way.

Our trailer has a wood floor under the mats. Many of them on our place do. So, yearly, all of the mats are pulled out (with the vice grips), they are power washed, and once thoroughly dry we linseed oil the floors. That sits for a time and then the mats are placed back in.


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## carshon (Apr 7, 2015)

We take plastic saw horses and lay a few 2 x 4's over them and lay our mats on them inside of the trailer. That way they are up off the floor boards of the trailer and can lay flat. We used to lay them on the shed floor but they can get oil etc on them on our floor. You can pressure wash the inside of your trailer but make sure it dries fully. I use a bucket of warm water and a sponge with a pad to help scrub off the fly marks. I also make sure to oil the hinges of my windows and the escape door and back door before I store it for the winter. Then we place our cover on it and it sits in the shed when needed. We also make sure to have the tires aired up 
We have had to pull it out in the middle of winter for an emergency visit to an equine hospital and it was easy to get everything back on the floor and off we went.


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## egrogan (Jun 1, 2011)

So many great suggestions, I really appreciate it!

I forgot to answer, yes, the floor is wood under the mats. I need to go poke and prod at the center divider to see what my options are. I think it will probably be a couple of weekends from now before I really have the time to start pulling things apart, but I will have all this advice to guide me


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## lb27312 (Aug 25, 2018)

I'm thinking those poles should be able to be pulled straight up? I have a hole in my mat where the divider for the tack area has a hook that drops down to stabilize it.... Let us know how you get them out! Yes vice grips are the way to go...


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## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

If it was me doing it and I didn’t want to mess with the ‘bolted’ poles, I would lift up a mat from the furthest corner of the pole, using the aforementioned vice grip and tie the mat up (through vice grip to bar, tie ring, window grid, etc) then do a tidy and maybe a spot wash if required. It would be a bit more time consuming but you avoid having to go through the task of uninstalling and reinstalling the piles.

I strongly suspect your bulge is just accumulated dirt. Your trailer looks pretty clean right now btw😁


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## My Salty Pony (Jan 1, 2022)

Did you call the man that did the inspection on the trailer and floor? If this was my trailer I would have been pulling mat's in between hauls I'm always checking the floor in my trailer and cleaning the floors to make sure theres no pitting started on my aluminum trailer floor same for wood floors check often to make sure the pee and water dont sit to where the wood start's going bad/rot, Take the trailer to a dealer ship and have them pull the mat's for you. I just dont understand why they made this trailer to where its hard to pull the mat's. 
What brand is this trailer?


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

@My Salty Pony ....she doesn't know if the mats are hard to pull...
They could be really easy.
Newer trailers were made to come apart to be cleaned.
I guess I gave the thought of "challenging" and it may well _not be. _

From the picture displayed it is one large mat, full-width and half the horse area...so vice grips shall be needed once you get a corner up to grab.
My "is this going to be hard" was looking at the front of her center divider. She will either have pins to release or the spring loaded pull-down from the top and a pole support depression on the floor to set the bar into place and hold it firmly.
I've pulled spring loaded dividers out of ceilings on big horse transport trucks to configure different than narrow ship stalls many times.
The trailer inside looks like it was and is very well cared for and I suspect whatever device is in place for removal will work easily and well.

I also advocate you *do* remove, not just flip the mats so you not miss a edge or couple of inches that may need attention.
The extra effort and time spent is nothing compared to the cost in time, inconvenience and materials if you get a spongy floor for the safety of your horses, or you that could of been corrected easily when small. When you pull mats the meeting of wall to trailer side is often exposed where the real dangers of issues often starts.
🐴... _jmo..._


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## egrogan (Jun 1, 2011)

Thanks for the further details! I haven't called the mechanic- while he's great at high quality work on the project in front of him, how should I say this...he's not really a "call and chat" kind of guy and I am not sure he would be much help 😉 

I do have a good sense of what I'm going to do next, but sadly I'm going to have to wait until I have the time to really get in there and see what the situation is with the divider. HLG is right that we're talking about two wide mats with that one middle seam. I don't know if they will be hard to pull- it may be that the divider does come out easily, it's just not something I've checked. I don't haul out often and this is my first trailer, so like I said, it may actually be really obvious to someone more experienced; I've only used the trailer 4 times so far, with each trip ~20 minutes.

The trailer is a Sundowner 777 Sunlite from the end of the "problem production years" that had one previous owner who was meticulous with maintenance and always stored it inside, generally using it for local trips only. But because it is a Sundowner, I am paranoid about the floors as it is and don't want to risk something festering under there all winter. It wouldn't have been my first choice brand to purchase, but given the craziness in the trailer market over the past 18 months, it was what I was able to find locally.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

When and if you need ideas...








Removing dividers in Sunlite Stampede


I feel sort of stupid admitting this, but my husband and I can find no easy way to remove the dividers in our little 3 horse Sundowner Stampede trailer. We would like to be able to use it to haul hay during the winter months, and the dividers make it awkward. *Is* there an easy way to remove the...



horsetrailerworld.com


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## My Salty Pony (Jan 1, 2022)

Call Sundowner and ask them this question about how to get the dividers out of this model so you can remove the flood mats and maybe send them the pictures you posted here, I bet they will be more then happy to help you on this situation.


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## lb27312 (Aug 25, 2018)

I looked again at your mats and they do not look very thick... you might want to think about thicker mats? I know a bigger pain but I read that your girl doesn't like trailering a whole lot(might change with more rides)... I think thicker mats might make it a more quieter and a more comfortable ride... there is no way anything is getting under the mats in my trailer that would cause it to rise like that... just a thought... 

Good idea on calling Sundowner or even a Sundowner dealer... Good Luck!!


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Just beware if you change mat thickness your wall coverings may not allow them to slip under easily....
This trailer is fit together by evidence of how it looks.
Any changes to the "amenities" such as mat thickness will alter the fit and possibly ability to fit tight to the actual wall and could effect how that center divider post also fits....

I _like_ the idea of less vibration felt with a thicker mat but....when referring to changing on a already built trailer there may be outcomes from changes...be aware and careful you allow for any changes when you consider doing that kind of alterations.
Being it is a older trailer and those mats look to be in great condition....not sure the expense and aggravation to make the change is worth it. _Thinking more the horse can adjust in time can't it?_
🐴....


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## egrogan (Jun 1, 2011)

HLG- she is a work in progress. She is a nervous traveler. Even on our short trips, she is trembling and drenched in sweat when we unload. But last year, she would barely even get on a trailer at all. Having our own has at least allowed me to get her solidly loading and unloading, which was not the case when I purchased her in 2018. Our next frontier is easing her anxiety during the ride. My husband has been driving, and he gives her a careful, smooth drive. She actually seems to like this trailer more than she liked the smaller trailer I borrowed from a friend a few times last year. But we're working on it.


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## cantersvary (6 mo ago)

Granted I was kinda skimming the answers, and it surprised me no one has mentioned the EZ Grip Mat pullers. Someone had suggested the vice grips, however they are still hard on my hands. These mat pullers have a real handle you can truly wrap your hand around and make moving mats easy! Also watched a youtube video showing how use a leaf blower to make it a true breeze!!(Pardon the pun). Harder on a dirt floor in the barn due to the dust, but on a hard surface, WOW, piece of cake! Even for a 68 year old woman!! You just levitate them to where you want them.


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## SmokeyC (Nov 4, 2021)

dustyk said:


> Small tip. The easiest way to get a handle on those mats is to use a pair of vice grips, they're tough to handle by hand. Other than that hlg gave you good advice!


I cannot believe we have never thought of this before.. I feel so stupid now. This is the best advice, thank you for sharing!


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