Replacing pontoon deck'

[James R]

Does anyone have recommendations as to what screws or bolts to use to attach the ply to the frame.

 

[charlie73]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

Does anyone have recommendations as to what screws or bolts to use to attach the ply to the frame.

you can find all the necessary screws and bolts in packages,from pontoon stuff.com,overtons.com,and many others.just search the web

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

They're all stainless steel bolts and nuts with nylon to keep them tight. I just reused the same bolts and nuts that my boat came with originally. New stainless bolts and nuts are just very expensive.

 

[vergil]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

if you must replace them i suggest stainless steel decking screws

 

[James R]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

Thanks Charlie73. Got the self tapping screws from pontoon stuff and did the job. Went with 3/4 exterior ply and sealed it with Sherwin Williams Epoxy floor paint.
If I get 5 years out of it I'm ahead. Marine ply prices are!!**

 

[atlapp]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

Buy bolts, instead of screws and the best price I found was at restorepontoon.com, they were $10 cheaper than anybody else, the bolt hold much better than the screws.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

Another source of bolts is a chain store called Fastenal, Inc. We have 3 locations in our town selling in bulk at very reasonable prices. And, it takes a bunch of nuts and bolts to put down a pontoon boat floor. I would use the same fasteners the boat had on it originally.

I'm with you on the Epoxy floor paint, and marine plywood being very expensive @ $75 a sheet. I used gloss enamel paint on regular plywood a few years ago, and those panels have disintegrated on each side of my motor. I'm going to pull the fence up a little, and just replace those two pieces--still not a little job. The rest of my plywood is still good after 26 years' usage.

I may use elastomeric primer and coating coating both sides, like they put on mobile home roofs. I've been using this on my travel trailer roof with great success. And, it stretches with freezing, etc. And, you can buy it cheaply in small volumes at any home repair store--quarts and gallons.

 

[artistwood]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

I used deck bolts with a 1" head. I used a forester bit to countersink about a sixteenth of an inch. Used lock washers, nuts and blue loctite underneath. I couldn't get the nyloc nuts on because the bolts kept turning. The loctite will hold everything as tight as the nylocs.
The bolts hold tighter and they are flush with the deck. They have very flat round heads with spurs on them to help keep them from turning.

 

[James R]

Re: Replacing pontoon deck'

Thank you all for a wealth of information. I opted to use the self tapping treated screws from pontoonstuff. They have large heads and work well. Made the old large B&D drill grunt a bit. Did not need to countersink, they pulled down flush without any problem. The original deck was screwed down in a similar fashion but the old screws were not as good.