questions about detecting condition of wood

[Ezrider_92356]

well today i drilled some holes in my floor with a 2 inch hole saw to check the condition of the stringers they are covered in fiberglass so i drilled some holes with a small drill bit the wood came out a normal collor but i cant tell if its wet or not or if its rotting i drilled a few holes in the transom as well and the wood looked the same i know the transom is starting to rot right around the drain plug i dont want to drill there becouse i cant get to that spot from the outside i dont realy want to drill a hole threw the outside fiberglass. i also suspect the transom becouse the washers from the motor mounts are sunk in a small amount i dont know if they where over tigtened or if the transom is worse than i think with the motor up in the trailer position if i grab the lower unit and hang from it (i weigh about 135lbs) and bounce up and down i think the transom flexes a small amount maby 1/4 inch its kinda hard to tell though because the trailer bounces too when i do that.

 

[Robj]

Re: questions about detecting condition of wood

Maybe put the sawdust onto a paper towel and see if it gets it wet. Another method is if you have access to an accurate scale, accurate to .01 gram, weigh the sawdust and then let it dry in the oven at about 200 degrees F, for a few hours and then reweigh. If the wood is wet, chances are there is some rott present.

Have a great day,

Rob.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: questions about detecting condition of wood

good wood looks like new saw dust. rot or wet is gummy, usually darker.

 

[Ezrider_92356]

Re: questions about detecting condition of wood

well i used a paper towel i had to press the wood shaving pretty hard onto the paper towel to get any moisture out of them but i did get some. they look pretty good but i think im going to rip the floor out and do the stringers and transom over the winter. it all looks pretty streaight forward. if i dont do them im just going to worrie the thing is gonna break into two out on the watter. maby im paranoid. im re doing the interior so why redo the inside of the boat just to rip the floors off in a couple years also the wood in the floors were not glasses on the bottom and the bottom of the wood was damp. i see a major design flaw in the constuction of the boat the only way for watter vapor to escape the bilge area is threw the drain plug and 1 hole in the floor the size of a drain plug.

 

[Robj]

Re: questions about detecting condition of wood

Dry wood will not wet a paper towel. So it is safe to say that they are wet. You are making the right decision by dealing with this problem over the winter so you can be out in your boat in the summer.

Have a great day,

Rob.