Roof rack flooring...

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FJBen

FJBen

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Alright, I've got a 4x6' conferr rack I picked up. I'm looking at flooring options for it.
here's some thoughts...what are yours?

Expanded metal: is nice...but makes it heavy, can rattle
Metal planks: still more weight
Wood floor: plywood flooring, have to seal
Cedar planks: interests me the most at the moment. weather resistant, light

The other "odd" thing I've found is how I'm going to attach the wood planks/or metal/aluminum if I go that route. There is 46.5" between the rails. there are 11 small holes down the 3 rails. They are 4" apart, and the end ones around 3"ish from the sides.

what have you guys done for floors?

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Expanded aluminium would be the lightest option.

You night look at Trex as a low maint. alternative to natural wood.
 
I have two of those racks, one of them uses 3" x 1" oak strips spaced approximately 5" apart, for a minimal floor. One the other one i used 6" poplar with 1" spacing in between for more solid coverage. Poplar was recommended because it's supposedly strong and lightweight, and very durable. However, the poplar warped pretty badly from sitting in the sun, even with 5 coats of polyurathane. I have pics of both of them somewhere, gotta find them.

If you're going to use wood, I wouldn't use a solid sheet or wide boards, unless you have small items to carry. It'll hold water, and with wider boards the warping is more evident. The narrow boards also make it easier to strap things down, because I can get my hand underneath to pass straps through.
 
rusty_tlc said:
Expanded aluminium would be the lightest option.

You night look at Trex as a low maint. alternative to natural wood.
Click to expand...

I was thinking about the aluminum expanded, but wondered on cost. Trex might be pretty cool, but I imagine could get pricey too.

ducktapeguy said:
I have two of those racks, one of them uses 3" x 1" oak strips spaced approximately 5" apart, for a minimal floor. One the other one i used 6" poplar with 1" spacing in between for more solid coverage. Poplar was recommended because it's supposedly strong and lightweight, and very durable. However, the poplar warped pretty badly from sitting in the sun, even with 5 coats of polyurathane. I have pics of both of them somewhere, gotta find them.

If you're going to use wood, I wouldn't use a solid sheet or wide boards, unless you have small items to carry. It'll hold water, and with wider boards the warping is more evident. The narrow boards also make it easier to strap things down, because I can get my hand underneath to pass straps through.
Click to expand...

cool if you could get pics, that would be awesome. Did you bolt them down I assume with stainless to keep from rotting.
 
FJBen said:
I was thinking about the aluminum expanded, but wondered on cost. Trex might be pretty cool, but I imagine could get pricey too.



cool if you could get pics, that would be awesome. Did you bolt them down I assume with stainless to keep from rotting.
Click to expand...
The Trex wouldn't need a sealer and would last longer so the cost might be a wash.
 
i had good success with marine-grade plywood. it was some kind of mahogany. i didn't have to seal it and it lasted for several years (although where i live we don't get much weather, and the truck is usually garaged). i had a different style roof rack with 3/4" square tube cross bars, but I used conduit clips around the square tube secured to the plywood with carriage bolts and nuts. Another idea for securing flooring to the rack is to drill and install rivet nuts into the rack supports then bolt through the flooring onto the support.

Pound for pound and dollar for dollar it's hard to beat plywood...
 
Last edited:
X2 on the chicken coop flooring...works great...I first used commercial zip ties to fasten floor to rack... but the sun deteriorates them...used c clamps and that has worked great for me....The floor squares are also pretty light compared to metal....and the elements wont work the material like metal...
 
Here's pics of the poplar covering. I think it's 2" spacing in between boards, not 1" like I said, and stainless screws from underneath. I don't have pics of the oak flooring in digital format. Ignore the dog in front, she just like to get in front of everything. The chicken coop flooring looks pretty cool, if I knew about that I might have used that instead. I'm guessing you could use some bolts and washers to bolt it down?
roof.webp
 
ducktapeguy said:
Here's pics of the poplar covering. I think it's 2" spacing in between boards, not 1" like I said, and stainless screws from underneath. I don't have pics of the oak flooring in digital format. Ignore the dog in front, she just like to get in front of everything. The chicken coop flooring looks pretty cool, if I knew about that I might have used that instead. I'm guessing you could use some bolts and washers to bolt it down?
Click to expand...


Nice, that looks like it works well. I'm off to the store to check out their prices on chickencoop floor :D
 
I used a sheet of OSB (waferboard), sealed with a couple of coats of exterior latex paint. Added a few pairs of holes with flat webbing loops in the middle for tie downs.
The advantage of the solid sheet is it keeps sun off the roof. It makes a big difference keeping the interior cool here in the desert (sort of like the double roof on old Land Rovers).
 
ducktape: 'K9 is for scale', that's what you can say next time she wants to be in the picture.
 
I've been looking to replace the 3/4" steel tubing floor on my Garvin rack. That is the one thing I cannot stand about the rack. Who came up with a floor kit that doesn't even cover the "floor area"?

I'm looking into aluminum t-track channel, but it's hard to find cheap. There is a ladder I've seen that has sweet aluminum steps that would be perfect for a roof rack floor, if I can find it in 8 foot sections.

This is a pic of what I'm looking for (the pic is only 12" sections of the channel). I've seen it available in 2" and 4" wide sections, all the way up to 98" long, but it's pricey. The bonus is, you can use the tie downs up and down the entire length of floor. I like the idea of putting anchor points wherever I want them.
ttpackb.webp
 
The chicken coup flooring is great. If it'll stand up to chicken sh*t its gotta be good.

DBS,

How 'bout this stuff for your tie-downs?

S TRACK 60 INCH

Anodized S Track 4'

I don't know how it compares price wise with the T track but it's stout and offers the adjustability you're looking for.
 
IBCRUSN said:
The chicken coup flooring is great. If it'll stand up to chicken sh*t its gotta be good.

DBS,

How 'bout this stuff for your tie-downs?

S TRACK 60 INCH

Anodized S Track 4'

I don't know how it compares price wise with the T track but it's stout and offers the adjustability you're looking for.
Click to expand...

I really like the S Track, the only problem I see is in the width. If I used only that as the flooring, I would need A LOT. I've found the T track in widths up to 4" which is nice when used as a floor.
 
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