Re: What Can I Use
I would go back to your first thought. The pressure treated wood. I saw one done that way at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri this summer. He'd used 5/4 decking that comes rounded on the edges. I talked to the guy at length about it because it looked great. I forget the brand of boat but it was an open bow, probably 19-20'. He said he picked out the good sides of each piece and treated the heck out of the reverse side with Thompsons water seal. Then he cut each piece to fit, cutting the ends with a jig saw with the blade set at the proper angle to match the slant of the hull. He butted the boards together and screwed it all down. Then it was left to sit in the sun for a few days to lose a little of the green color and for the boards to "shrink" a little. This left him with about a 1/16" crack between each slat. Then he sanded it smooth and splinter free and put on several coats of poly with a slight amber tint. It looked fantastic.
I asked him what about foam underneath getting wet and causing it all to rot. This is where I started to scratch my head. He said when he rebuilt the stringer grid he made the openings just the right size to fit empty 2 litre soda bottles. He glued the caps on and placed 128 of them in there. I asked him if this would work as well as foam. He said he didn't know but it had to be better than nothing, which is what some boats have there. Plus...they will probably last forever out of the sun. I couldn't argue with him.
Anyway, I'll say it again. The floor looked fantastic, and he said he had less than $300 total in the project. My camera was back at my truck so the only pic I have is in my head, but if I ever do a floor, this is what I'm gonna do.
As for aquiring the soda bottles...he said he told his co-workers that he was looking for empty bottles on a Tuesday and by Friday he had 200.
