Boat floor repair help

[normanbd]

i have a 1980 22' glastron center console. Transom seems to be solid, but the deck is a little squishy and i would like to replace it before the season. i plan on cutting out the old deck, inspecting the stringers and foam, possibly replacing the foam with the pink stuff if needed and replacing the deck. i plan on using 1/2" or 3/4" ply, coating it with resin a few coats and glueing it down and putting a few ss screws in also. then fiberglassing the top of the deck with a few coats of cloth and then using white non skid as the final coat. my couple questions are:

1/2" or 3/4" ply, and what kind? pressure treated, exterior or interior? i heard interior can be used as long as you coat good with a couple layers of resin?

has anyone used evercoat boatyard fiberglass resin as the resin to coat the underside of the deck and lay the topside of the deck with fiberglass? will this work? its a general purpose fiberglass finish resin and no one seems to know if it comes with wax all ready mixed or separate. i know that if you use the wax you have to sand inbetween coats.

i also have a few scratches on the outside of the boat and some dings on the back near the transon. do i just sand these down? and what to use as i filler to build it back up? and then resand to prep for paint.

what do i use for cracks and chips in the gelcoat/paint.

any info would be great, im new to iboats, this is my 4th boat, but the first three were newer fish and ski's and bass boats that needed no work, now im in virginia and needed a big boat for the bay. i have tons of tools, time and space to do this. i have rebuilt engines, done body work on cars and painted cars and am really handy around the house. im on for a challenge and excited to take on this one. with a little info from the geniouses on here, i feel this will be a good project.

thanks again for your time and your future responses. will post pics once a start. oh yeah, im a math and science guy, english, especially spelling, is not my best thing.

 

[bigj1972]

Re: Boat floor repair help

Welcome aboard.
I'm sorta new too, but I can pass on some info I've learned during my rebuild to get this thread going.

1) If your deck is squishy, chances are your not gonna like what you find underneath as far as stringers. Better do some good looking at transom too. My boats skin was uncracked at transom and seemed solid, but very rotten after I pulled top cap off. Dug it out with a scre driver and vacuum even though it had not craked. Look for leaks(rotten wood) around pump holes, drains, or accesories.
2) As far as foam, that seems to be a debate on marine foam vs pink blocks..I still need more info.
3) If by some luck everything but the deck was good, I go with 3/4 because of more solid feeling, although more weight. BUT, you have to secure the edges and it might not be cosmetically appealing just doing a visable cut out rather than full floor.
4) Don't use interior grade period..if the resin cracks or screw holes leak, your screwed..you can get by with exterior if glassed or epoxied right, but I still like marine if you got a few extra bucks. It not only is best, but if you keep the receipt, can add confidence to a resale price. Also watch the treated stuff...make sure it is dried out, because resin has a hard time penetrating.

As far as the resin goes, others are more experienced but sounds like you get the jest of the finsh resin wax and no wax. I can just say that doing it right the first time means you don't have to do it again to resell it.

Good luck.

 

[Boater45]

Re: Boat floor repair help

i have a 1980 22' glastron center console. Transom seems to be solid, but the deck is a little squishy and i would like to replace it before the season. i plan on cutting out the old deck, inspecting the stringers and foam, possibly replacing the foam with the pink stuff if needed and replacing the deck. i plan on using 1/2" or 3/4" ply, coating it with resin a few coats and glueing it down and putting a few ss screws in also. then fiberglassing the top of the deck with a few coats of cloth and then using white non skid as the final coat. my couple questions are:

1/2" or 3/4" ply, and what kind? pressure treated, exterior or interior? i heard interior can be used as long as you coat good with a couple layers of resin?

has anyone used evercoat boatyard fiberglass resin as the resin to coat the underside of the deck and lay the topside of the deck with fiberglass? will this work? its a general purpose fiberglass finish resin and no one seems to know if it comes with wax all ready mixed or separate. i know that if you use the wax you have to sand inbetween coats.

i also have a few scratches on the outside of the boat and some dings on the back near the transon. do i just sand these down? and what to use as i filler to build it back up? and then resand to prep for paint.

what do i use for cracks and chips in the gelcoat/paint.

any info would be great, im new to iboats, this is my 4th boat, but the first three were newer fish and ski's and bass boats that needed no work, now im in virginia and needed a big boat for the bay. i have tons of tools, time and space to do this. i have rebuilt engines, done body work on cars and painted cars and am really handy around the house. im on for a challenge and excited to take on this one. with a little info from the geniouses on here, i feel this will be a good project.

thanks again for your time and your future responses. will post pics once a start. oh yeah, im a math and science guy, english, especially spelling, is not my best thing.

1. I would go with marine ply(Okoume or Meranti BS1088) only 1/2'' should be fine for the deck 3/4'' would just add too much weight. And you would get plenty of strength with 1/2'' marine ply glassed.
2. If you do use screws drill a hole 1/4'' and fill it with woodflour/epoxy mixture first (let harden) drill a pilot hole and then insert screws. Don't want water to intrude into your nice new plywood. I personally would glue the deck to your stringers and not use screws.
3. Don't use the pink foam from Lowes or Homedepot. You need U.S. Coast Guard approved, two-part (50/50 mix), pour-in-place, 2 pound per cubic foot polyurethane foam. It is ideal for flotation and insulation. Here is a web site: http://stores.infinityfrp.com/-strse-CHEMICALS-&-MORE/Categories.bok
4. I like to use Marinepoxy.....its easy and is a 2 to 1 mixture. And you won't get Amine Blush. Mix it with woodflour for you fillets to a peanutbutter thickness and lay your glass on top. You can get it here: http://boatbuildercentral.com/products.php?cat=41
5. Unfortunately once you get the deck up you will probably find some pretty ugly stringers down there.......won't know untill you het the floor up.

Hope this helps
Will

 

[bigj1972]

Re: Boat floor repair help

Good advice.

In dealing with a floor, if decking feels bad, the stringers are at least bad on the edges. And prob the transom too.

But hey, you don't learn unless you dive in. Then you never have to worry about buying a bad boat you can't fix yourself. The knowledge you gain by demolition and rebuild will last a life time..Then your friends will call you to go check a boat out for them Mr. Expert.