Raising the front deck

[BassCat73]

I am planning to recarpet my bass boat this spring. Right now, I have two storage compartments at the beginning of the front deck. The compartments have lids that sit about two inches about the deck surface. I'd like to remodel this, so everything the flush-mounted like more modern bass boats. My plan is to buy some marine wood and cut it into the shape of the deck area in front of these compartments. This would raise the height of the deck, so it is flush with the compartment lids. My question is, how should I go about securing this large flat piece of wood to the fiberglass of the front deck. I was hoping to glue the carpet to the wood and then install it on the front deck, but I'm not sure how I would secure it in place. Maybe I need to install the piece of wood and then glue the carpet down?? Any suggestions? Thanks in advance!

 

[prockvoan]

Re: Raising the front deck

Why not lower the hatch covers?You could by cutting the lip of the deck were the hatch covers are,install some 1/4"x21/2" alumnnun flat bar around it,secure it with s/s nuts and bolts.From there,make new covers out of starboard.To help keep them water tight,add a piece of weather stripping.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

It'll be much easier for me to just raise the front deck. I'm just not sure my options are for securing the piece of wood to the fiberglass deck. I also want to make sure I can stand on all parts of the deck including the hatches.

 

[Clamboni]

Re: Raising the front deck

How much do you need to raise it?? I did a deck on an aluminum boat and didn't fasten anything to the hull itself. I suggest strips of sealed wood thick enough to make up the difference. Just put them right on top of the existing deck. You just have to place some close enough to the fiberglass edge to eliminate any flex. I used aluminum as a frame under the deck I built on my boat. Just had to make sure one of the braces went along the edge. Can't tell the difference, plus no new visible holes.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

Well, there's already a raised casting deck on the front. I only need to raise the level of that deck 2" to make it level with the hatches. So, that's why I just want to put a wood panel on it with carpet. If I don't secure it, I think there's a good chance it could pop off during a high speed run. I need to make a hole in the center of the board to make room for swivel butt seat. I'm thinking about drilling screw holes around that hole and then screwing the board to the fiber glass deck. Does that make sense? Is there anything I should be concerned about when drilling holes into the fiberglass?

 

[Clamboni]

Re: Raising the front deck

You would fasten the deck and the spacer strips to the old deck, just not the side. You shouldn't have a problem with drilling into the glass, just make sure you seal the screws as you're putting them in. You could either use a sealant or a small amount of resin, just a couple drops on top of the holes then put the screws in before it hardens. <br /><br />For the pedestal mount, you can just take the one that's already there off and put it back on the new deck. Just drill new holes, but make sure you seal them with resin too.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

Thanks. Good idea about the pedestal mount and sealent. What are the spacer strips?

 

[Boatdrinks]

Re: Raising the front deck

Could you just countersink and screw the spacer strips to the original deck and then screw the new deck to the spacers?

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

I'm still not sure what the spacer strips are?? I don't know that I have any on the existing front deck.

 

[Realgun]

Re: Raising the front deck

If I had a picture I could help you a lot. You will want to mount the new wood to the fiberglass first then carpet the wood. Personally I would seal the wood on all sides with epoxy. If its a deck that stays on the boat use epoxy. If it is removable like a hatch lid then two coats of exterior paint will do.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

Thanks. I figured that I would probably need to carpet after I install it. I'll definitely seal the wood first. If I can figure out how to upload pictures, I will put some on here to make it easier to see what I'm trying to do.

 

[Clamboni]

Re: Raising the front deck

If you could even find 2" plywood, it would probably be $150 a sheet and 80 lbs. By spacer strips, I mean just cut a few strips of wood yourself to make up the difference. You need to raise the deck 2" for it to be even with the hatch lids, so if you used 1/2 ply, you'd cut the strips to 1 1/2". Also, when you glue the carpet, make sure you don't get a water based glue. I was VERY happy with the way my decks turned out, until I fished in the rainand found the glue to be water based. The carpet started lifting and sliding all over the place. Looked good until then.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

Ah, I see what you mean Clampino. I thought about it a little more and I think what I want to do is to use 3/4 marine wood for the front deck and then use the same marine wood to make one new hatch to replace the two existing hatches. Then, everything would be flush. I can attach the hinges on the new hatch to the back of the new deck. Thoughts? Anyhow, I am going to try and post a link to a yahoo photo album I set up. Hopefully, it will work, so you can see exactly what I'm talking about. the new carpeting will be tan to match the hull color.<br /><br /> http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mattwahmhoff/album?.dir=/7778&.src=ph&.tok=ph.3YzCBsPi3NqJ.

 

[Clamboni]

Re: Raising the front deck

Not sure I would use 3/4". Heavy stuff. Mine's 1/2". If you're worried about flex, use 5/8. I notice people on here when giving advice saying 1/2 is too thin and flexes too much. I don't know how big your boat is, I'm sure weight isn't as big of a deal as on my 14' alum. When I redid my deck, I remembered how heavy the 5/8 was. I thought about it, and remembered that I'm gonna be on water when I'm standing on the deck and every step I take is going to make the boat rock. I used 1/2", and while the boat's on the trailer, honestly there is a little flex, but on the water, you can't tell at all, even if you're trying to feel it. As long as your supports are close enough together, it should be fine. Also, to save a little money, you don't need marine grade for a deck. Marine grade is only necessary for a hull. Use ac, and seal it well, you'll be fine.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

Well, I'm planning to buy the sheet of plywood tonight. I think I need to go with 3/4" because I'm also replacing the rear fishing deck, which acts as a cover to my battery compartment and gas tank. That's a 4ft. x 2ft opening, so I think I need the extra support of 3/4". I'm very concerned about the wood warping over time. Will marine grade wood be stronger and not warp as easily compared to exterior grade? Is it worth the money or not?

 

[Clamboni]

Re: Raising the front deck

You need to seal the wood with fiberglass resin before you install it or glue the carpet down. You should be fine with polyester resin since you're carpeting it. The grade of the wood doesn't matter as far as warping. if it gets wet, it will warp unless it's screwed down. That means hatches will warp. You don't need marine grade, use exterior grade. It's not constantly going to be wet so you don't need marine grade.

 

[BassCat73]

Re: Raising the front deck

That's what I was afraid of (warping) concerning the hatches. Is there anything i can do to prevent that from happening?? I'm pretty much set on all the other aspects of everything.