Rear floor wood coating?

[kev2809]

hey guys. was wondering if anyone knew if the wood floors that came original had come with some type of protective coating to stave off rot? I'm making sort of a custom flooring on mine with a steel square tube frame and going with 2x6s on top. I stained them all around and put 2 coats of lacquer clear and looks nice. but I'm wondering if I should coat the bottom side too or not? the original floors seemed to have lasted a long time the way they were, however they were done

[CG]

I feel like whatever the pick-up fellas do on their wood beds underneath would be a good idea for your burb. Maybe do a search on wood bed installs on the truck side?

Never researched what they did on burbs. Ive had several and a panel, wood was fine on all of them, metal not so much =)

[68panelman]

Panels and burbs used a marine grade wolmanized 1" sheet

[CG]

Good info, thanks. Never heard of the wolmanized process so I looked it up. Here is a site that has good info that didnt go over my head haha.

https://woodthrive.com/wolmanized/

[kev2809]

wow, that's how they last so damn long lol.

[richard2717]

Originally Posted by 68panelman

Panels and burbs used a marine grade wolmanized 1" sheet

gotta get new glasses I guess. I had to go to the link trying to figure out the womanized process

[68panelman]

I tend too speed read myself Richard, they say woman are on a man's mind every 8? seconds? 😉

[HO455]

Originally Posted by kev2809

hey guys. was wondering if anyone knew if the wood floors that came original had come with some type of protective coating to stave off rot? I'm making sort of a custom flooring on mine with a steel square tube frame and going with 2x6s on top. I stained them all around and put 2 coats of lacquer clear and looks nice. but I'm wondering if I should coat the bottom side too or not? the original floors seemed to have lasted a long time the way they were, however they were done

Is the truck going to be used as a year round driver? A weekend cruiser?
What kind of wood are you planning on using?
Are the 2x6's tongue and groove?
How are you going to seal the edges from dust and moisture getting between each plank?
Almost all DIY wood preservatives have a limited life span. This may not be a problem for the limited miles a weekend cruiser would see and the lack of UV exposure. It may be worthwhile to think about future renewal of whatever wood finish you use. Making provisions for removing the wood later might be more work now but should pay dividends down the road.

[kev2809]

thanks for the suggestion. I went with regular old 2x6 's from lowes. stained them and applied 2 coats of urethane on top, 1 coat on the underside. they are fastened to my square tube frame I made, with rivnuts so I can remove them later to make it easier to work on the truck... and of course if they rot. this truck will just be a fun weekend cruiser, not every day driver.

[HO455]

You've probably already thought about this but, I would recommend using some foam backer rod between the planks at a minimum and maybe caulking the seams too. That will help keep the dust and noise out as the planks expand and contract with the weather.

[mtdave2]

not to revive an old post, but the original question was never answered and that's what I'm looking for.

what was the original covering for the suburban rear wood floor? Stained, painted?

[HO455]

As far as I know the plywood was delivered to GM pre-sized and "Wolmanized" by the vendor and ready for installation. No other finish was applied by GM. I have seen ones with painted floors but they are so rare I doubt they left the factory that way.

If your looking to match the as new look it may take a combination of a light stain and a clear top coat depending on the sheen desired. I can't help with the factory look as I've never actually seen a restored or highly preserved original factory floor.

You might reach out to member Vectorit as he has one of the most original Suburbans around and should be able to help with your search for information.

[BAD1916]

My 71 gmc has a painted floor. This was underneath the original green rubber mat when I got it

[BAD1916]

Forgot to attach the pics

[mtdave2]

very interesting. does anyone else have a non-painted floor?