Decking

[mxfever]

My party barge is going to need a new deck put on it this winter. The carpet is just trashed and there are some nasty soft spots in the floor. I was thinking and hear me out.....instead of using marine grade wood, what about composite decking? I could run 20 foot planks length wise on the boat and would catch all of the existing cross supports. Water would run off easily through the small gaps and since we go swimming off of the toon on a regular basis and the floor is constantly wet. Has anyone ever tried it?

 

[nate1220]

Re: Decking

I have only seen it once on a deck boat and it worked great, some more experienced members will chime in and give thier 2 cents, they won't let you down. ho and make sure you use SS hardware if you do decide to do this.

 

[EricJRW]

Re: Decking

I was thinking about the water splashing up, but then recalled the Water Glide thread (http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=195359) and the idea of the "performance sheeting" that goes under the boat. Sounds to me like these two things together might make for a very nice upgrade.

 

[jeeperman]

Re: Decking

I would seriously consider it.
But some of the composite deck boards made of recycled plastics and wood fibers is not as stiff and will sag unlike regular treated 5/4's wood deck boards.
But there are quite a few alternatives to plywood.
Regular pressure treated 5/4's x 6 real wood.
The full composite deck boards both solid and the hollow extruded types.
The composite and wood fiber deck boards both solid and the hollow extruded types.
The composite types can be quite heavy.

I would look into using extruded vinyl or aluminum deck boards myself.

Check out this thread about alternative decking.
http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=365811&highlight=deck

 

[acad]

Re: Decking

I'm in the process of replacing my deck now. My research pushed me to aluminum. Lighter, for one thing, but if you read the write-ups from people who used composite for their porches, etc., they were not pleased with it. Mildew was a big complaint and generally folks said the decks looked bad within a year. One of the aluminum providers I've been in touch with is www.wahoodecks.com. You can see photos of their product being used on a toon. Cost is a factor - 2 1/2 times the cost of plywood alone. No carpet cost, though.

 

[jeeperman]

Re: Decking

I'm in the process of replacing my deck now. My research pushed me to aluminum. Lighter, for one thing, but if you read the write-ups from people who used composite for their porches, etc., they were not pleased with it. Mildew was a big complaint and generally folks said the decks looked bad within a year. One of the aluminum providers I've been in touch with is www.wahoodecks.com. You can see photos of their product being used on a toon. Cost is a factor - 2 1/2 times the cost of plywood alone. No carpet cost, though.

2.5 times more expensive. BUT
It will be the last time the deck needs to be replaced.