Treated lumber and boat age?

[muskie hunter]

Are boats built with treated lumber? I am looking at something like a 1982 Sea Ray Sundancer 26 ft. Im wondering if the transome, inside keel and wood under the floor is treated to prevent rotting.
At what age would you start being concerned with rot. How do you tell if the wood under the floor is soft? Would you not consider buying an older boat because of the chance of rot?

 

[Boomyal]

Re: Treated lumber and boat age?

Short answer is NO on the treated lumber. As for the age and potential rot, I think it is a bit of a crap shoot. Not only do they not use treated wood, most manufacturers do not even take much care to prevent water from entering below the deck or provide for drainage if it does. At best, you can make sure the floor is sound. Any rot below will eventually work it's way up to the floor.

 

[BillP]

Re: Treated lumber and boat age?

SeaRay may or may not use pt wood but hoards of other well known production boat mgs have used it for 20+ yrs with great success. They are usually the ones who give long term or lifetime warranty against rot. It's mostly used for stringers and transoms. The most commom pt mfg of marine ply panels is Greenwood Products. Surf and write them for details...the list of boat mfgs who use their pt ply is impressive and you will see highly respected names.