Reinforced Walls - Good Idea?

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

Doesn’t Escape advertise itself as a builder of high quality , custom trailers.?

Yes, that's why they offer to reinforce walls. Don't know of another company that does. Our Lance walls were so thin I was scared to screw anything in, but did use Command Hooks. We knew hooks for heavy coats and a hand rail was going to be installed on the bathroom wall in our 5.0, so we had that wall reinforced. We had no other walls reinforced and after 200 nights in our camper that was the right choice for us.

Enjoy,

Perry

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Perryb67

Yes, that's why they offer to reinforce walls. Don't know of another company that does. Our Lance walls were so thin I was scared to screw anything in, but did use Command Hooks. We knew hooks for heavy coats and a hand rail was going to be installed on the bathroom wall in our 5.0, so we had that wall reinforced. We had no other walls reinforced and after 200 nights in our camper that was the right choice for us.



Enjoy,



Perry

Perry, we do the same in our trailer and did in our 19. No need for extra reinforcing though, as there is a framing member across from the top of the bath door to the right wall to hold the hooks.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Perry, we do the same in our trailer and did in our 19. No need for extra reinforcing though, as there is a framing member across from the top of the bath door to the right wall to hold the hooks.

I agree, as long as that is where you want your hooks, plus there is no framing to hold our hand rail installed where we want it, at an angle.

Enjoy,

Perry

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Perryb67

I agree, as long as that is where you want your hooks, plus there is no framing to hold our hand rail installed where we want it, at an angle.

Enjoy,

Perry

I have looked at a grab bar should we need one, and it would be easy to install on the corner. If you put it vertically there, it is more out of the way. Up top it is about the only option anyway.

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by Ronn

Think of your home, I'm not sure how thick the sheet rock is in my home, but we wouldn't think of having plywood reinforcement throughout the house. We can't just hang anything on the walls at home either.

My home was built to Texas windstorm standards to meet requirements for 130 mph winds. It has plywood reinforced walls through most of the house.

It makes it hard to find studs - a studfinder thinks the whole wall is a stud.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

I have looked at a grab bar should we need one, and it would be easy to install on the corner. If you put it vertically there, it is more out of the way. Up top it is about the only option anyway.

The grab bar was one of the first items installed. Didn't want it vertically, and like where it ended up at an angle. YMMV.

Enjoy,

Perry

[cpaharley2008]

One can always mount a nice piece of wood on the panel side for reinforcement, it just takes some effort to find such a piece of wood and finish and install, but it can be done.

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Ronn

Think of your home, I'm not sure how thick the sheet rock is in my home, but we wouldn't think of having plywood reinforcement throughout the house. We can't just hang anything on the walls at home either.

After the 1994 earthquake , we had a Geo Technical -Structural Engineer go over our home damage and make a report . Turns out our city also used them .
Our home after foundation was fixed is encased in 3/8 in ply , called sheer walls . Real ply not chip board . The whole entire house after all stucco was removed first . Other things too such as Simpson brackets attaching walls to new foundations. Pat

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by tdf-texas

My home was built to Texas windstorm standards to meet requirements for 130 mph winds. It has plywood reinforced walls through most of the house.

It makes it hard to find studs - a studfinder thinks the whole wall is a stud.

To be able to withstand a earthquake kind of what our home looks like too , Tom . Pat

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Patandlinda

To be able to withstand a earthquake kind of what our home looks like too , Tom . Pat

I would also add the sheer panels are screwed to wall studs every 6 in . As per engineer’s directions . Pat

[MikeS]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

Years back I worked on high end custom homes . The builders put blocking in the walls for hanging cabinets , hand rails , draperies , kitchen & bath fixtures , wall mounted TV’s / appliances , hanging large pieces of art or wall decorations, ETC , ETC , ETC
Figuring out where to place blocking is not rocket science nor do you need to be clairvoyant , it just takes a little common sense and a builder ,carpenters who care.

Doesn’t Escape advertise itself as a builder of high quality , custom trailers.?

,

I'm not sure what you mean by the last sentence. Our newish home does have blocking in the walls but the builder didn't do it without sharing where he was doing it. I have no concerns about extra weight in the house & blocking makes a lot of sense, but I sure would prefer to be able to determine which walls in my weight restricted RV gets reinforced...just like ETI does now. I don't want 200 lbs of blocking because someone someday might want to hang something somewhere.

[steve dunham]

We live in an area not subject to hurricanes or earth quakes . Our biggest concern is straight line winds and snow load and the building code reflect that
Our cabin was built with 2x6 walls — 16” OC with metal wind bracing and 1/2 plywood sheathing that was glued and screwed to the framing
The roof has 2x10 rafters 16” OC with hurricane clips and sheathed with 5/8” plywood with plywood clips and anchored with galvanized ring shank nails
It has withstood straight line winds of close to 100 MPH and snow loads of over 3ft

Considering the age of the average Escape owner , I would think that a reinforced wall in the bathroom so safety grab bars could be installed would be standard equipment .
I am not advocating that every wall in an Escape be reinforced but there are certain locations
that just seem to be common sense IMHO

[Dave Walter]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

...Considering the age of the average Escape owner , I would think that reinforced wall in the bathroom so safety grab bars could be installed would be standard equipment .
I am not advocating that every wall in an Escape be reinforced but there are certain locations
that just seem to be common sense IMHO

I have sometimes thought that given the age of many Escape owners, ETI should consider an "oldtimer" option package that would include:
- provision of grab handles in the bathroom, up the stairs of a 5.0, and at the front entry door.
- entry steps that are more conducive to old knees (lower rise, wider)
- front power jack
- Other?

I am not quite at that stage yet, but could see myself needing those items at some point in my future.

[Michael.Chadwick]

We have the 5.0TA.........we got the reinforced walls, well worth it

[tburt]

I have sometimes thought that given the age of many Escape owners, ETI should consider an "oldtimer" option package that would include:
- provision of grab handles in the bathroom, up the stairs of a 5.0, and at the front entry door.
- entry steps that are more conducive to old knees (lower rise, wider)
- front power jack
- Other?

I am not quite at that stage yet, but could see myself needing those items at some point in my future.

If there was a "Like" button, I would hit it!

[Upfisk]

Originally Posted by tdf-texas

My home was built to Texas windstorm standards to meet requirements for 130 mph winds. It has plywood reinforced walls through most of the house.

It makes it hard to find studs - a studfinder thinks the whole wall is a stud.

I hate to tell you but that is not plywood. That is oriented strand board, or OSB. In AZ custom homes are built with real plywood, spec homes are built with OSB.

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Upfisk

I hate to tell you but that is not plywood. That is oriented strand board, or OSB. In AZ custom homes are built with real plywood, spec homes are built with OSB.

Yup you are right on that . Our home is specified real wood ply . I think the point Tom was making his home has sheer walls which makes the walls a lot stronger ! Pat

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Patandlinda

Yup you are right on that . Our home is specified real wood ply . I think the point Tom was making his home has sheer walls which makes the walls a lot stronger ! Pat

While OSB has twice the shear strength of plywood, and thus it's use in stuff like the web in engineered joists and lots of beam material, plywood has better fastener holding ability, thus it's use advantage for sheer walls.

Almost all wall sheathing here uses OSB, with it being stronger and a bit cheaper, and we have no environmental concerns like earthquakes or strong winds.

[Patandlinda]

Thanks Jim for the explanation . I have been out of the loop since that , now 25 years . But I did learn the hard way about sheer walls etc. Pat

[cpaharley2008]

I do not think I have any plywood in my walls as my home was built before plywood.......