What are white ‘beads’ on RV bathroom floor?

Dear Dave,
We have a 2022 Gulf Stream Vista Cruiser 19CSK. After a few hours of travel we have noticed what appear to be tiny bits of Styrofoam on the floor of the trailer between the shower and the wall. I suspect it’s coming from the wall, but I’m not sure. —Dewayne, 2022 Gulf Stream Vista Cruiser 19CSK

Dear Dewayne,
The photo is a little dark and it is hard to see; however, as you mentioned, it does looks like small white beads which have collected on your bathroom floor. This could be from one of three issues.

Residual trash from manufacturing

It is not uncommon for pieces of Styrofoam, wood, or metal filings to rattle out of cabinets and even air conditioning ductwork. Most RVs are line-built with many of the openings for outlets and other components routed out while the unit goes down the line. Because of this, you will find this type of debris in cabinets and on the floor.

As the opening is routed, the sawdust and filings fly all over the place and even a good cleaning will not get into the cracks and crevices found in furnishings. Then, as the unit bounces down the road, the debris dislodges and falls to the bottom of the cabinet or floor.

Typically you won’t see much of that after a year. Since your rig is four years old, it might be something else.

Squirrels

We had a local owner who stored his trailer for the winter with a good cover and thought it was buttoned up for the winter. In the spring, he fired up the roof air conditioner and it started “snowing” inside the rig. He found a squirrel had gnawed through the cover and nested inside the evaporator insulation of his roof air conditioner. The squirrel spent all winter chewing on the bead foam and kept nice and warm all winter.

The owner had to replace the evaporator insulation. He thereafter stored his unit in a new storage facility without trees.

Mice in RVs

One of the toughest rodents to keep out of RVs or get rid of are mice. A mouse can wiggle through a hole the size of a dime or smaller, so it is important to inspect the bottom of your rig for any signs of a gap or hole and get it covered.

Since the debris is white, I would suspect it is the bead foam of the ceiling insulation or could even be the sidewall. Interior walls typically do not have any insulation, rather, paneling sandwiched with a wood frame and hollow inside. Even overhead cabinetry does not have insulation.

A mouse could have burrowed in the roof insulation and gnawed it to create the debris you are seeing. Inspect the roof and pull any trim off roof vents or skylights to see if there is any sign of something eating at the insulation.

 You might also enjoy these posts from Dave 

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Dave Solberg is a leading expert in the RV industry and the author of the “RV Handbook.”

Read more from Dave here. 

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