mobilehomerepair.com

I am in the process of remodeling a 1973 double wide. Part of the remodel will be replacing the carpet and padding. Over the years, things have been spilled and soaked through to the wooden sub-floor and its smells a little musty but there is no mold or mildew.
My question is: Can i seal the floor under the carpet padding to reduce the musty smell as well as protect it form future spills? If so, what product would be recomended. Should I also seal/caulk the marriage line while the carpet is gone?

Usually the best way to seal stains and odors is with Kilz original oil based. It's what the companies that reapir houses after fires use to seal the odor. You can get it in spray cans too but I have not found it at every store that sells Kilz. Don't know a thing about marriage lines.

I agree with Arlo. Kilz original should work well to seal in odors. You might want a couple of coats. Kilz original was made as a replacement for shellac sealers, which is what seals the surface. Zinsser B-I-N primer is a shellac primer and should also work well.

If you are going over the marriage joint with carpet, I like to nail down heavy non-corrugated cardboard about 12" wide over the marriage joint. The cardboard is there to keep the edges of the marriage joint from eating away at the carpet pad. I would only caulk it if there is a gap large enough to allow air to pass through. A gap that big is actually another repair problem, but the cost of a true repair is usually much greater than the benefit.

JMO
JD