Rotten wood in casting deck

[Rudy Brown]

I have a spot of rotten wood in the casting deck on my 84 Cimmarron bass boat. Its right where the seat pedistal is mounted. The spot is about 10" in diameter. What is the proper way to fix this? Would it be ok to cut the damaged area out, then fiberglass new wood in? Would this be strong enough cause I'd be sitting on the repair when fishing. I was thinking of "sandwiching" plywood with 1/8 mild steel to reinforce the area, then remounting the seat pedistal. What do yall think? Thanks, Rudy.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

Rudy that may be the tip of the iceburg. Yes you cam cut out the piece and install a stronger peice but what is under that rot is what needs to be seen. That indication of rot is usually NOT isolated and there could be bigger problems under the deck.

In my previos bass boats the pedestal was a big tube socket that was supported by the hull. Some boats have a surface mount..... which is your's?

 

[Rudy Brown]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

Rudy that may be the tip of the iceburg. Yes you cam cut out the piece and install a stronger peice but what is under that rot is what needs to be seen. That indication of rot is usually NOT isolated and there could be bigger problems under the deck.

In my previos bass boats the pedestal was a big tube socket that was supported by the hull. Some boats have a surface mount..... which is your's?

I wish i'd taken a pic. The deck is just that with a storage space under it. It has a fiberglass shell under and over the wood (sandwiched). There is a rib of fiberglass 12" toward the bow in the center of the deck (for added strength). The wood is soft just a few inches away from the hole in it for the stem of the pedistal to go thru. Around that, the floor is still solid, no flex at all. I'm just wondering about the strength of the fix when I get done. I know I haveto cut out all the rotted wood. I expect the hole to be about 10" X 8". I was thinking about when i cut just cut the upper glass layer and wood and leave the lower layer of glass intact. Fit the new wood and glass it in place. Should I glass the heck out of the deck over the new wood? The reason for the rotten wood is water leaked in the seam where the seat pedistal was mounted. Dang boat manufactuer placed the carpet down, cut the hole for the pedistal and mounted the thing over the carpet. It took 24 years for it to rot, but it did. They even stapled the wiring for the boat to the cap before filling it with foam. Every place where there was a staple, there was a elecrtical short. I have since rewired the boat properly, thanks to this site. My Dad bought the boat new in 1984 and I inhereted it after his passing 14 years ago.

 

[cdnfthree2]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

If I am imagining what you described correctly, I had the exact situation once. (A piece of plywood encased in fiberglass completely? Mine rotted from the screw holes of the hinges, the hande holes, and the seat)I replaced the entire piece of wood by fliping the lid upside down and sliting open the corner seam of the glass with a sharp chisel. After the bottom is off you can scrape all the old wood out and glue in another with clamps or weights until it dries. Then glass or caulk the edge you split open. That's if were talking about the same thing. GL

 

[Rudy Brown]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

If I am imagining what you described correctly, I had the exact situation once. (A piece of plywood encased in fiberglass completely? Mine rotted from the screw holes of the hinges, the hande holes, and the seat)I replaced the entire piece of wood by fliping the lid upside down and sliting open the corner seam of the glass with a sharp chisel. After the bottom is off you can scrape all the old wood out and glue in another with clamps or weights until it dries. Then glass or caulk the edge you split open. That's if were talking about the same thing. GL

Yes, thats right. But instead of replacing all the wood, just the small rotted section. Ya think that would work? On a side note, you from Ft Worth? I was born there in 67.

 

[cdnfthree2]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

I can't say it won't work but I'd replace it all. I bet once you see the rest of it you may replace the whole thing anyway if you pull the glass. Yep, Fort Worth born and raised since 74 for the most part

 

[JeffsAV]

Re: Rotten wood in casting deck

I had the EXACT same problem on my 1977 Ouachita Spirit. Here are a couple of links to my posts about how I fixed it.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=289933&highlight=ouachita

http://bbcboards.zeroforum.com/zerothread?id=355015