Re: fiberglass floor
The floor in my '85 center console is soft towards the transom side of the boat. Several screws that attach the center console are loose as well. The boat needs a new floor. From a few topics I have read, it is advised to take out existing wood and replace with new, but I dont have any wood. The floor is simply fiberglass and it attaches to the sidewalls. I have alot of ?'s, but to start with, do I rip out and replace with wood or do i put something over existing floor? Any advice is appreciated.
Charles
Sounds similar to my 1974 chrysler.
My center console has a glass floor over foam , soft spots were due to areas of 3/4 inch plywood which was cored into the floor.
Glass will not go soft by itself.
My console had the same trouble with loose screws, water probably got in thru the screwholes.
I cut the deck around the perimeter from the console back, leaving 3 inches of deck in place to glass back onto. Pulled the deck out and flipped it on the garden where I'll recore the old plywood areas with homemade composite material. The foam can stay another 30 yrs for all I care. Transom and stringers have been replaced, when its done I'll slide the console back and do the front half of the deck.
Console will have to be bedded properly or I might consider glassing it to the deck from inside the console.
Another option is pull the cap and lift the (deck) liner out and gut the whole thing. It all depends if you have the wherewithal and finances to replace everything, it gets expensive.
You may read a lot of pro and con re' foam in the hull, I know the first time out I forgot the plug and were it not for the foam the boat would have sunk because it was filled with water but I managed to get it pumped out, water was within 1 inch of coming over the transom and foundering the hull. I got the point with foam.
