Best flooring options?

[HoosierHacker89]

I have a 1987 smoker craft magnum 165. It’s a nice boat and I only paid $500 for it. I’ve fished it all summer and It is a good boat for my needs. I have been looking at Lund fury 1600 and boats similar but I can’t justify 20k when my boat now works just fine.

My boat is in need of new flooring in the back. I’ll probably replace entire deck. I am wondering what options yall like the best? I have used Home Depot carpet: it was awful for Marine applications. I now know there is marine carpet. I have used Eva in the past as well and really like it. I just learned about the vinyl flooring being offered in most modern boats being a viable option. What would yall use as the cover for flooring in a fishing boat? I’m not cost sensitive since I can justify putting good money into a used boat and still being way ahead of a new one.

 

[MikeSchinlaub]

I would go with the vinyl.

Pros.
1. It doesn't absorb water like carpet or foam.
2. It's easier to clean.
3. it won't stain as bad.

Cons.
1. It shows imperfections in the floor worse than carpet or foam.
2. It's much harder to hide a bad cut when installing.
3. If water does get under it, it can't evaporate through the vinyl.

 

[cyclops222]

Says most of the important stuff.

 

[redneck joe]

If you want a cover, nautelex aka vinyl. I just painted mine with texture added. Only change i would have made is gone medium grey to hide dirt.

 

[Stinnett21]

In regard to fishing I suppose vinyl would be noisier right?

 

[dingbat]

I would take a look at Eva foam flooring. SeaDek is nice, but expensive. Lots of competitive products now on the market

 

[cyclops222]

Is Eva Foam open or closed cell foam ?

 

[HoosierHacker89]

I thought about stall mats but wasn’t sure how well it would work

 

[redneck joe]

If you are worried about noise when fishing then the floor covering is the least of your worries.

 

[HoosierHacker89]

My primary concern isn’t noise. Really just want to fish. I put some 3/4 inch plywood over the top of the back of the boat so I could just fish this year and not worry about redoing flooring in summer. It’s worked out so well I’ve really considered not redoing floors. That being said I want interior of boat to work well and look nice. It doesn’t leak a drop, fits well in my garage, I love tillers and I have a nice outboard for it, the seats are all removable. It really checks all my boxes. The new trailer I got for it is a 2019:

 

[MikeSchinlaub]

It’s worked out so well I’ve really considered not redoing floors.

I would suggest doing it. I don't know if smoker craft did this, but lunds screw a metal plate on the under side of the floor where the pedestal seat bases go. This helps keep the seats from ripping through a rotten floor when the boat is in use, but that won't work forever.

So even if you are fine with just putting a sheet on top, it's still a safety issue.