fixing deck rot

[RobDar]

I have a 1989 Bass Tracker with a small rot hole starting on the front fishing deck (about the size of your foot)from a leaky cover. I am going to just replace and recarpet the whole front deck. I have some hardware underneath it (the mounting tabs for the deck have stripped out) that need replacing anyway.<br />Should I use marine ply or can I use pressure treated ply? <br />Any other new products anyone knows of?

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

I just used pressure treated ply to do my deck it will last 30 years. Marine ply I think, is over rated, and over priced for what you have to do. The only difference in marine ply is that there are no "voids" between plys, and it will rot just as fast as regular plywood. And the cost of marine ply is almost 3 times the cost of pressure treated. I also would shy away from carpet. Even though its made for boats, lodgicly it seems to retain moisture for longer periods of time. I would go with a marine vinyl flooring especially if you fish alot. (fish guts and blood) With vinyl, you can just hose her down,and will dry in no time. Unlike carpet that will take alot longer to dry out. If you're interested, you can goto "Conniesiliven@aol.com" they sell the vinyl deck covering,its antislip and comes in different colors. reasonable price too.

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

P.S. My girlfriend is from Indianapolis. I'm an ole Connectucut boy myself.

 

[RobDar]

Re: fixing deck rot

thanks mark...will look into it<br />I have thought about using a variety of different deck coatings that are available...I am afraid that people who may look to be my boat will expect the typical bass boat carpet...

 

[ejwamsle]

Re: fixing deck rot

I am in the process of replacing my floor of my bowrider. I was going to ask in a new forum about what type of plywood to use, and it looks like Mark's Joy has given a good response to that question. But what thickness of plywood is ideal to get the stability yet keep the overall weight of the boat down by not buying the thickest plywood available?<br /><br />Also, my boat had fiberglass and resin coating on the plywood and then the carpet was on top of that. Is the vinyl deck covering a substitute for recoating with fiberglass and resin over top of the plywood before putting down a floor covering?

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

ejwamsle, How big is your boat? I would use a minimum of 3/4 inch p/t ply. If your stringers and ribs are far and inbetween, I would use 1 inch. But 3/4 should be fine. The resin coating is to help keep the wood dry, as well as help keeping the floor rigid. It wouldn't hurt to put a layer of fiberglass over the plywood. sand and then put vinyl covering (or carpet) down. And No, the vinyl is not a substitute for resin, it is the actual finished flooring. And very easy to maintain.

 

[samsam]

Re: fixing deck rot

Originally posted by Roberta & Darin Lee:<br /> I am going to just replace and recarpet the whole front deck. I have some hardware underneath it (the mounting tabs for the deck have stripped out) that need replacing anyway.<br />Should I use marine ply or can I use pressure treated ply? <br />Any other new products anyone knows of?

Since you have mounting tabs that have stripped out,I'm guessing your boat is aluminum. As I just posted in another thread, the old chemicals in PT ply have been outlawed and replaced with chemicals that are corrosive to aluminum and other metals. The use of PT ply was a topic in another forum, where one person stated even the "leachate", whatever might get washed out by rain or such and sit in the bilge, was corrosive. One person questioned several manufacturers about what glues, aside from "liquid nails" and that stuff, and which resins, Polyester-epoxy-vinylester, were compatible with their "new" PT and none of them would commit to anything. So the resins and glues question will have to be found out by experiment but the corrosion problems are allready known. Sam

 

[ejwamsle]

Re: fixing deck rot

I have a (1979) 17.5' Galaxy Bowrider I/O. I am in the process of taking out all the old plywood from the floor. The stringers seem to be in good condition. My plan was to just put in p/t plywood, i guess 3/4" should be enough. My stringers are about 12" apart, but there are no cross braces. Should I add some strips to go across the boat? <br /><br />What weight and type fiberglass is best to use. My plan was to coat the top of the floor after replacing the plywood with 1.5oz Matted fiberglass. Or should I use the woven fiberglass?<br /><br />And then the final question is which type of resin is best to use with the fiberglass?

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

sam sam, Even if its true about corrosive chems. in the p/t ply, I dont think it would cause a problem since it would be covered with resins, glass, and the finished marine flooring. Any rain water that rolls off the deck into the bilge, really won't be in contact with the raw plywood. And I'm sure there is plenty of room between the bilge, and the underneath of the plywood decking to let water pass freely, still not having contact with the wood and chems. If water does reach the underneath deck, I'd say your boat has a serious leak, and is about to sink. I also wouldnt use ANY adheisives to glue the plywood down, You never know when you might have to take the deck back up. If I need an adheisive, I use a product by 3M called "Marine 5200" It holds tight, and is excellent above, and BELOW the waterline. And I've never had problems when I needed to screw an glue. P.S. If you clean the bilge once a year, I wouldnt worry about any corrosion .

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

EJ, you say "seem to be in good condition" How did you check it for rot? Anyway, There should only be "2" stringers that run parallel with the length of your boat of that size. That being said, I dont think you need cross braces, as long as we are both on the same page about stringers. I use woven fiberglass. I feel its stronger, and EASIER to work with. Like I said (above) I wouldnt glue the ply down. Use a good size s.s. screw, and it will hold fine. If you wanted to, you can put some glue (I recommend 3m 5200 marine adeisive) on the screw before you drive it home for extra holding power. Another good screw you can use, (and its cheaper than s.s) are rust proof deck screws that you can get at Home Depot.

 

[drjrusso]

Re: fixing deck rot

Mark, You "wouldnt glue the ply down" but what is the best method for attaching the ply to the sides of the hull? My 60's vintage Starcraft only has one stringer running down the center of the boat and what appears to be a "grove" in the sides that would support the floor. The previous owner used thin strips of metal across the main stringer to help attach the ply at the 4 foot widths. I assume I will need to replace these? Any advice is welcome as I am a complete novice. Jim

 

[gewf631]

Re: fixing deck rot

newbieJim<br />I replaced the floor in my mid-70's Starcraft a couple years back. Those thin strips of metal were probably factory installed, and their purpose is to add integrity to the plywood joints - so basically, if you step close to a joint, both pieces move in unison.<br />In mine, the groove in the side does support the floor, and was actually an extra rib, so I was able to add fasteners to-it.<br /><br />Hopefully, you were able to salvage enough of the old floor to use as a pattern. Keep in mind that if you change the thickness, you may have to alter the pattern slightly.<br /><br />As for fastening, I used stainless steel screws. You'll hear opinions about how the different metals will interact with each other, causing corrosion, but I have an uncle who did the same thing some 25-years earlier, and never had a problem in our fresh water environment. If this is a concern, you can still use stainless, but you need to create a barrier between the metals - can't remember what is used. Or, you can just go with aluminum fasteners - not as strong, so you'll have to use more, but they get the job done.<br /><br />You didn't mention the size of your boat, but from what I've seen, the single stringers were in the 14'-16' boats.<br /><br />You should be able to get all your questions answered on this forum, but there's a good one devoted strictly to aluminum boats, over here. Also, there's a Yahoo! group devoted to Starcraft boats, over here.

 

[RobDar]

Re: fixing deck rot

Here is what I found out in the last few days...<br />The PT ply is corrosive to aluminum. The chemicals, leaching out through the wood when the wood gets wet, are as well dangerous to aquatic life...a risk I just will not take.<br />There is not alot of sense in using pressure treated and then coating it in resin. Coating PT in resin will actually shorten the life of the wood as PT relies on its breathablity and evaporation. It lasts in the weather because of the chemicals the weather leaches from the wood. Georgia Pacific says that you will get the same life from standard ply coated in resin as you will PT coated in resins...maybe even better life. They also feel that, because of the woods evaporation and the chemicals in the ply, fiberglass will not adhere to PT ply long term...the bending and flexing of the board will seperate the glass from the wood. They had no suggestion for good resins to use other than to avoid any resins sensitive to alchohol.<br /><br />The increase in weight between PT and standard is between 7% and 15% depending on the quality of the treating and thickness of the ply. Add to this to the resin and you have a very heavy deck.

 

[dmarkvid2]

Re: fixing deck rot

newbie, I had a 30 ft. Pembroke years ago. It was a wooden lapstreak construction, I used rivits to rivit the boards to the ribs on side of the hull. That was my only wood boat. I'm only guessing here, but I'd say, the plywood eirther gets rivited, or screwed. For a plywood hull, and not lapstreak, I'd guess its screwed. But I'm sure if you visit a library, you might find out for sure.

 

[ljshein]

Re: fixing deck rot

All,<br /><br />I'm in the process of rebuilding the decking on my 84 Bayliner bowrider. Just started to pull it apart this weekend and found out how little floor actually still remained <br /><br />I did a lot of research before I started this project and I feel pressure treated wood is a mistake. Everything I've read says that fiberglass will not bond properly to PT wood. In fact, they go on to say that you don't even need marine grade wood if you use epoxy on both sides and the edges. Normal A/C wood that you find at home depot will be fine.<br /><br />The best resource If found is a book called runabout renovation. It is a little dated but all the concepts still apply.<br /><br />Amazon.com <br /><br />I've been taking a lot of pictures at I do this so hopefully, I can set up a web site and share the process with everyone.<br /><br />Jeff

 

[drjrusso]

Re: fixing deck rot

You guys are fast, thanks for the replies! Ed, you did not say if you replaced the thin metal strips on your Starcraft, did you? I plan on using the pourable foam under the flooring, so maybe they are not necessary for integrity. Ideas? Jim

 

[gregmercer]

Re: fixing deck rot

When you say use epoxy on all sides....<br /><br />Do you mean epoxy resin or just some kind of epoxy paint? <br /><br />I also read Runabout Renovation....<br /><br />It says before screwing down the floor you need to treat your plywood with a wood preservative. It dosen't tell anything more specific then this though. I don't really know what to use.<br /><br />Thanks<br /><br />Greg

 

[ljshein]

Re: fixing deck rot

Greg,<br /><br />epoxy resin should do the trick. You want the wood encased on all sides to keep the moisture out.<br /><br />Of course, all of my knowledge is just theory at this point based on what I've read, I'm still tearing the old wood out of mine <br /><br />Good luck!<br />Jeff

 

[ejwamsle]

Re: fixing deck rot

I sent a message to Fiberglass Warehouse and asked about what fiberglass and resin to use. Here is their reply, let me know if this is the best way or any pointers or tips?<br /><br />To make it nice and sturdy, I would use one layer of 1.5 oz chopped strand mat Chopped Strand Mat , and one layer of 10 oz Fiberglass cloth style 7500. Fiberglass cloth . General purpose laminating resin is the most widely used resin. Fiberglass Resin . <br />You will also need MEKP, which is also sold on the polyester resin page.<br /> <br />Once you get your plywood in place, coat the plywood with resin. Place your mat on top of the resin. Wet out the mat with more resin. You can use a squeegue or speader to move the resin around. Accessories . Place the cloth on next and wet it out with more resin. Again spreading it out with a squeegue or spreader. Let the resin cure until it starts to gel (thicken up). Add a layer of resin mixed with Surfacing agent, also found on our polyester resin page. Add to the resin at 5% by weight. The surfacing agent will allow our floor to cure dry. If not it will by tacky. (You can also cover it with a plastic film).<br /> <br />Polyester resin can be tricky to work with. Polyester resin doesn't take too long to kick, you only have about 15 minutes to use the resin once you have mixed the mekp in it. Generally, people you .5% to 1.5% MEKP depending on how fast they want the resin to kick. A little will kick it slower, and more faster. Temperature also effects the cure time. Colder is slower and hotter faster. <br /> <br />If you have anymore questions, please let me know.<br /> <br />Dallin<br />Fiberglass Warehouse

 

[samsam]

Re: fixing deck rot

Originally posted by ejwamsle:<br /> and let me know if this is the best way or any pointers or tips?<br /><br /> Add a layer of resin mixed with Surfacing agent, also found on our polyester resin page. Add to the resin at 5% by weight. The surfacing agent will allow our floor to cure dry. If not it will by tacky.

<br /><br />All the rest of what they said is OK and even the part above is OK too. Where I see a problem is if you don't use a colored gelcoat or add some pigment to the resin on this last step, you will end up with a "clear" coat of resin which won't stand up to UV rays very well at all. If you then decide to paint it, you have to remove all of the surfacing agent, which is actually just wax dissolved in styrene. And you can't just sand it off as it will get imbedded in the deck somewhat which will be a crappy base for your paint. I used to make canoes and to save weight (and money), after all the laminating was done (with laminating resin, which is un-waxed) instead of gelcoating the insides I would paint it with acrylic latex porch and floor enamel from Sears. Any good brand will do, the durability is good, you can get any color you want and it is easy to repaint when needed or to change colors. Un-waxed resin is tacky and hard to sand so I would put on a coat of paint and let that dry, then sand with 80 grit before putting on one more coat. The last coat of resin in the quoted instructions is good to fill in the weave of the cloth which will help keep dirt from getting lodged in there. Sam