Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

[jcminnesota]

Hi...I am buying a new Alumacraft Classic 165 CS. I have the option of all carpet or all vinyl or a combination. I plan to use the boat for both fishing and cruising/family watersports. The dealer says that vinyl is easier to clean but hot in the sun. He recommends vinyl in the cockpit only and carpet on the forward deck and elsewhere.

What are your opinions? Carpet or Vinyl? And where?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

Ayuh,... Ya Don't want carpet, Anywhere that might become Fishy...

 

[jcminnesota]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

Ayuh,... Ya Don't want carpet, Anywhere that might become Fishy...

Thanks for the opinion. That would mean the front deck and cockpit...with carpet on the vertical surfaces possibly. I know the wife would not like an all vinyl interior so that could be a good compromise. But I would ask will ANY carpet become mildewed and ratty after a few years? I do take very good care of my boats but I would think that carpet on a horizontal surface would retain some moisture and not dry quickly....and therefore get musty/mildew. I did own a Glastron Fish and Ski....and the front deck was carpet and it always looked dirty. If I go with vinyl flooring I could get a custom pad made for the the front deck for my wife and kids to lounge on.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

You don't want carpet anywhere IMO, carpet holds moisture and breeds mildew. Your boat will stay much drier with all vinyl, a dry boat is a long lived boat.

You'll be happier without carpet.

 

[spoilsofwar]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

No carpet! There are better alternatives.

I recommend Seadek, highly The wife will like it too... At least mine does.

 

[frantically relaxing]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

Do they offer snap-in carpet? I LOVE carpet, but I love being able to take it out too...

 

[theBrownskull]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I would go with vinyl. Carpet will start to smell.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

Do you want to spend your time boating and fishing, or vacuuming carpet? Or making sure it gets dried out?

Have had both, no more carpet.

Light colored vinyl is not much warmer than carpet, and then only if barefoot.

The vinyl actually adds an extra layer of waterproof protection to the wood.

Small portable carpet pad, made from marine grade carpet, sounds like a great idea.


I'm glad manufacturers started offering vinyl again. Back in the 60's and 70's, vinyl was the norm on small boats.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I'd find a boat that is self bailing without either. I mean seriously, when are boat builders going to learn that carpet is for homes, cheap homes at that,lol No offense to any of you that have carpet in your home or boats.

But seriously, I don't have carpet in my home and surely would never have it on a boat.

Go with the vinyl, if the wife wants carpet, buy here a throw rug

 

[tazrig]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

NO CARPET! It retains moisture, mildew, smells, stains, did I say smells and oh yah... it smells. With all vinyl you just hose down the boat at the end of the day and your done. With carpet you have to scrub with soap and then rinse it all out and wait for it to dry. There are a lot of really nice choices of marine vinyl out there too. If you do it right it looks real nice.

 

[bonz_d]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

All of those above are correct in their opinion and the reasons they state yet I myself still like carpet on the deck.

Have it in my Lund and will be putting it back in the Alumacraft I'm doing now. I fish barefoot most of the time and in my opinion it's cooler and easier on the feet. It also acts as a good sound barrier in Aluminum boats. I have yet to experience any of the smell that everyone keeps talking of, though I also do not experience people getting in and out of the water from Skiing, tubing or swimming. The whole idea being is that you keep the lake in the lake and not in the boat. Even during those time when I've been caught out in a rain storm the boat has dried out very quickly.

I often wonder if these same folks that feel carpet doesn't belong in boats also rip it out of their cars and trucks? The carpet in my truck gets much dirtier and smelly than the carpet in my boat ever does even with mats!

 

[southkogs]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I have vinyl (original 1972 stuff) and still REALLY like it. I'm in TN and the deck can get hot down here, but not as often as you'd think. The SeaDeck stuff is pretty nice too.

I'd vote for something other than carpet, though snap in would be okay.

 

[WIMUSKY]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

But I would ask will ANY carpet become mildewed and ratty after a few years? I do take very good care of my boats but I would think that carpet on a horizontal surface would retain some moisture and not dry quickly....and therefore get musty/mildew.

No. It would take quite a few years. Especially if you take care of your boat. That means properly covering it, or better yet, keep it stored inside. When mine gets dirty I've used a pressure washer to clean it out. I do it on a hot sunny day. Dries very well. Yes, you will need to vacuum it periodically.

In our neck of the woods, Mn/WI, 90% + of the fishing boats(like ours) I've seen are carpeted. Same with the ones in the dealerships. I would think about resale. What would most people want?

I have yet to experience any of the smell that everyone keeps talking of, though I also do not experience people getting in and out of the water from Skiing, tubing or swimming. The whole idea being is that you keep the lake in the lake and not in the boat. Even during those time when I've been caught out in a rain storm the boat has dried out very quickly.

I often wonder if these same folks that feel carpet doesn't belong in boats also rip it out of their cars and trucks? The carpet in my truck gets much dirtier and smelly than the carpet in my boat ever does even with mats!

Agree. I've never had a boat smell either. If they do, it probably wasn't very well cared for...... I wonder if vinyl in a boat is more common in the south? Although, I bet most bass boats are carpeted. Up north, carpet is still king........

 

[babbot]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I HATE carpet in a boat. So difficult to keep clean especially with kids. The year after I boat my boat they switched to snap in, figures.. I have been thinking of putting in something non carpet and then using velcro instead of snap in. the velcro that is both sides plastic, very strong stuff. This will keep the carpet taught since I can pull it out and re velcro tighter. The snaps are always the same tightness/looseness and will have wrinkles when it gets wet.
It will make it much easier to clean when removed and I can also keep it out when fishing or take it out after it get soaked to dry out.

 

[jestor68]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I'll have to vote for carpet(snap in). Our family boat has the snap in carpet in 5 sections. Whenever I take it out, the other half complains that it makes the boat look "cheap"; plus we both dislike the hot deck on our bare feet.

The snap in carpet sections makes cleaning up a particular piece easy. For example; somebody spills a drink on one section. No problem; grab that piece and dunk it in the lake. No stain, clean section ready to put back down(after drying for 30 min).

Here in GA it would very unusual to see a boat(any boat) without carpet, accept those intended for saltwater fishing. Even some of those have snap in sections.

 

[sublauxation]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I've got carpet too, and after 6 years it doesn't stink despite the slimy fish I've laid across it. My boat stays outside and I don't have a problem with mildew. Hose it down on a sunny day and all stays well.

As Bonz_d said, I also fish barefoot. and you can't beat the comfort of carpet.

 

[sublauxation]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

sorry, double post.

 

[Grandad]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

Moisture clings to any surface. Carpet has a huge surface area if you consider all of the strands. Vinyl (or any flat surface) has the least surface area to trap moisture. Your decision depends upon whether you'll keep the boat dry and if it gets wet, just how long it stays wet. If the boat is stored on a trailer under a well ventilated canopy, you might be OK with carpet. If you keep the boat outdoors or in the water with or without a confining waterproof top, you're going to get mildew. It'll be much worse with carpet (even indoor/outdoor) than with vinyl. Remember that the mildew will form even on your vinyl seats if they are trapped inside a humid environment as provided by wet carpet. - Grandad

 

[jigngrub]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I often wonder if these same folks that feel carpet doesn't belong in boats also rip it out of their cars and trucks? The carpet in my truck gets much dirtier and smelly than the carpet in my boat ever does even with mats!

Yeah, I'd get the vinyl floor pan liner in my truck instead of carpet if I could get the other options I wanted too, bet when you get to a certain trim level/options the vinyl floor panliner isn't available.

The carpet in my truck never has had a live or dead fish on it and it doesn't get wet, therefore it never smells.

the other half complains that it makes the boat look "cheap"; plus we both dislike the hot deck on our bare feet.

The average woman does not know what is best for a boat.

Everyone that sees my "cheap looking" vinyl for the first time thinks it's carpet, or says it looks like carpet and they all have to touch it to see what it feels like.

I get a lot of compliments on the way my boat looks with vinyl, at the ramp and on the water:

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Carpet or Vinyl on New Boat?

I tend to agree with the pro-carpet crowd. You won't find many $60K tournament bass rigs that don't have carpet on all of the deck surfaces. It's quieter, softer, and cooler on the feet on those triple-digit days. I will qualify all of that with, "it depends" on what you are using the boat for. I can see that if you were fishing the large varieties where getting a fish into the boat can be a challenge, having carpet/etc could be a nightmare for cleaning/odors. However, with an inland lake boat, catching bass/walleye/crappie/etc that will be thrown in the livewell right after retrieval should not pose much issue to the carpet. Most all of the boats have the deck/structure as composite these days (and aluminum in the OP's case), so spraying off the deck and letting it air dry shouldn't be a problem.