first complete fiberglass floor transom help needed

[neversinksmith]

hey guys, Bradford here.
so ive got an 84 Ozark 16" fishing boat. ive had it about 3 yrs. before I got it it had spent 8 yrs outside w no cover. after I removed the ecosystem that had developed in the boat I realized the floor was toast as I expected. I finally got around to getting it going last yr and I figured id just through down some pt ply, some fresh carpet, and enjoy for the season.
shes a great boat but up on the st Laurence those rough waters can be felt throughout the boat and its time for the complete tear down and rebuild. ive got quite a bit of experience w fiberglass and have been going through countless videos and forum threads.
im ready and totally excited to get started. spent the day out in the rain moving the boat into the garage.

so here are the first of many questions: when i remove the cap im wondering about the section of the boat directly behind the seats. this part was not originally a platform. i installed hinged cover so i could fish off it. the "horseshoe" part, is that part of the cap, or the hull?
im also wondering if there is supposed to be a drain, or vents in the floor that will allow wet swimmers dripping to exit the boat?

thanks in advance. i will continue to post progress!

 

[neversinksmith]

http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/neversinksmith/boarbefore003_zpsde894bfb.jpg
http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/neversinksmith/boarbefore004_zps8d7517ab.jpg
http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/neversinksmith/boarbefore002_zps7f1c4679.jpg
http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/neversinksmith/boarbefore001_zpsab0ba8a9.jpg

 

[neversinksmith]

No Title

 

[Woodonglass]

Everything has to come out. Port to starboard, top to bottom. Doesn't matter. Just start removing it all. Take plenty of preliminary measurements so you'll know what it was when you're ready to go back new. Start researching and reading a LOT on the forum so you'll know what others have done. It's all pretty much the same regardless of the style of boat. This will get you started...Fabricating Decks, Stringers, and Transoms

This member does some great work...http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat.../8127378-83-lund-sirius-total-gut-and-rebuild

 

[neversinksmith]

im guttin her this week!

 

[nurseman]

Like Wood said, lots of measurements, and it is good to take lots of pics as well. When you are in your photobucket, if you click on the pic you want to post, then click on the IMG code to the right, it will copy it and you can paste it to your post. You will see the code text until you post, then you will get full sized pics, like this



Looking forward to seeing your progress! The folks on this site provide the absolute best advice, so don't worry about gettin in too deep. Post lots of pics and ask questions!

 

[neversinksmith]

with this style boat would there have been a gap under the rear platform so that any water that got on deck would flow to the rear and into the bilge?

 

[Woodonglass]

Do you see one?? Or any weep holes? In some cases...Yes..Others NO!!!

 

[nurseman]

If you think that having a gap under the platform would be a good idea, then put one in when you put her back together! That's the beauty of redoing a boat, you get to put it back together as you see fit!

 

[neversinksmith]

that's the beauty of it.... big smile here!

 

[neversinksmith]

so far so good! carpets out and cap is sepperated from hull. so it looks like there was no gap under platform. front wall of platform is toast. if I were to nix the platform completely, would this compromise the structural integrity of the boat?

 

[sphelps]

Was the platform there from the factory ? Almost looks like it may have been added on at some point ..How is it attached to the sides of the hull ...I'm just guessing but I think you could remove it without compromising the structure ..Maybe addd some kind if stiffeners to the gunwales ...

 

[neversinksmith]

No Title

its an Ozark brand model 162. built in 1985

Was the platform there from the factory ? Almost looks like it may have been added on at some point ..How is it attached to the sides of the hull ...I'm just guessing but I think you could remove it without compromising the structure ..Maybe addd some kind if stiffeners to the gunwales ...

i don't know if it was factory installed. heres the thing, when I look down through the 3" whole for the seat pedestal, I can see 3 layers of 3/4" plywood. now the top layer is the one that I put in for a temp floor, but I now notice that the floor in the rear "add-on" is on the same level as plywood number 2. so perhaps it is an add on

cap is off and 8' up in the air

 

[neversinksmith]

im also wondering about drainage. this question may sound foolish but the foot wide bildge area at the back. how far up toward the bow should that channel go if at all. and then what about venting that area of the floor. cant find much info on floor venting. thanks

 

[jigngrub]

I like a deck drain into an active bilge for ventilation:

Storing your boat outside and covered with the bilge drain plug out and a grated deck drain will give the bilge some ventilation.

You can buy the drain covers right here at the iboats store:
http://www.iboats.com/Deck-Drain-Se...089571--session_id.981078015--view_id.1184253

They also have smaller locker vent covers you can install throughout your boat:
http://www.iboats.com/Drain-Cover-S...089571--session_id.981078015--view_id.1182761

Providing good ventilation in a boat is often overlooked by a lot of project boat builders and is key for reducing moisture build-up and the mold/mildew it breeds.

 

[neversinksmith]

so that circled vent marks the end of your bilge space?

I guess my question is, does the bilge space ever run the length of the boat?

I don't want to put any unneeded holes in a sealed area

 

[jigngrub]

From what I can see by your pics, you don't have a bilge area/drain.

The area I've outlined in red is a deck drain/deck well:

The area in red is to drain all the water off of your deck without letting any go into the bilge.

The bilge is the area from the inside of your hull up to the bottom of your deck. Is there another hole in the outside of your transom below the deck drain hole? Some boats have the bilge area sealed off with only a deck drain to get rid of water that gets inside of the boat, other boats will have a deck and bilge drain.

Here's a couple pics from my current project to help you better understand:

 

[neversinksmith]

the bottom of my deck drain is the bottom of my boat

 

[jigngrub]

the bottom of my deck drain is the bottom of my boat

Can you take a pic of the outside of your transom and post it?

The elevation of that drain hole on your transom will tell you if you have bilge area below. You'll need to know this for removing your transom. To me it looks like you have a sub-deck that needs to be removed so you can get to your transom and stringers properly.

 

[neversinksmith]

the drain hole in my deck drain is <1" from the bottom of my transom.
so I guess im confused about the bilge area. isn't the objective of a sealed deck to keep water from entering the hull? ruined stringers, foam, and other wood can only be caused by water getting in.
the subdeck is coming out this week