Re: 1990 18FT SEARAY rotten wood
This question is for Big Dog but I'd welcome anyone else's input. I just bought an '85 Sea Ray and I also found the wood on the port side of the gas tank is rotted; the other sides seem ok (still hard when I put a screwdriver to them). There's a strip of plywood next to the tank, then a ~2" piece of wood behind it that runs the length of the tank and extends further toward both the bow and stern. Both the plywood strip and wood plank are rotted enough that I can pry off sections of them. What I see behind and underneath the wood plank (which is about 3" high by the way) is fiberglass; and this fiberglass feels solid. It seems that the plywood floor rests on top of fiberglass deck. Is that how boats (Sea Rays) are put together: stringers, then fiberglass deck, then floor?<br /><br />I plan to remove the gas tank and replace any rotted wood, including as much of the plywood floor as I can. Is there a way to find out whether the stringers are bad or whether the foam is soaked with water without cutting holes in the floor? Can I take advantage of the removed gas tank? From what I've read on this forum, it sounds like if either stringers or foam is bad, I'm likely to have to cut up the entire deck to fix them. This is something I would not be able to do; I don't have the time/resources. If it comes to that I'll have to sell the boat at a loss or give it away, so I'd like to find out. Thanks for any input.
