Questions about boat deck replacement

[ERock82]

I am going to replace the deck in my 14' Bayliner Capri. I have a few questions about this:


1.) Is it really necessary to resin and fiberglass the bottom side of the plywood for the deck or can I just poly resin only on the bottom and poly resin/fiberglass the top and sides?

2.) Is it necessary to put a coat of poly resin before the fiberglass is laid down? I know this can make it adhere better but for cost purposes is it really needed? If so, is it needed on bottom too? I would think I could get away on the bottom.

 

[alldodge]

As a non-expert, your going to replace the deck because it's bad. My guess is the underside of the deck is not resined, and one of the main reasons your replacing it now. Resin the wood before the cloth creates a better bond, otherwise you have to make sure to get the resin pushed through the cloth. Your trying to get by as inexpensive as possible which I understand, so question is do you want a trouble free boat, and how long do you plan on keeping it?

Experts will be along shortly

 

[Woodonglass]

Why did you start another thread on this topic? Forum Rules recommends that you continue posting to your previous thread. This keeps everyone from getting confused.
http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat-...ing-a-new-deck

Poly resin requires CSM to keep it from breaking apart once cured. Without it, it becomes brittle and breaks and allows water to penetrate to the wood. If you don't precoat the wood the CSM/Cloth will be starved of resin and delaminate from the substrate and this creates voids and weakens the structure. To ensure a good bond and that the structure is strong you must precoat the wood and fill any voids in the wood to keep delamination and voids from happening.

The dead air space below the deck will create condensation and that's why the bottom of the deck needs to be sealed. You don't absolutely have to use Resin and Glass to seal it but it's HIGHLY recommended. You could use sealant or Paint but it won't last as long and you're take a risk. The Resin and glass to to do the bottom of your deck will cost about $75. It's worth every penney!!!!

 

[Rickmerrill]

I accidently forgot to coat the front part of my transom in resin before laying the glass. Once it tacked up it was obvious something was wrong. When I decided to start over I was surprised how easy it was to to peel the glass off of the uncoated wood. I didn't make that mistake again! Polyester resin by itself on bare wood will crack if it's not reinforced with fabric. I wouldn't even bother, simple as that.

 

[ERock82]

Questions about cutting out old boat deck

I am going to replace the deck in my 14' Bayliner Capri. I have a few questions about cutting out the old one:

1.) When cutting out the old deck, how far from the sides of the boat should I cut? I was thinking 2 or 3 inches. I have heard about there being a lip on some boats where the deck rests on but not sure on mine. If I can, I would like to be able to use the old deck as a template.

2.) I may be able to use just 1 sheet of ply wood because the length of my deck is about 7 feet and width is about 54" at widest point( If 3 inches of lip were left on each side I could do this with 4x8' plywood). Question is, because of gas tank, will I need to split the sheets in half to access?(I don't plan on needing to ever pull it out). Or?.should I use one whole piece then cut out an access area once already laid down? I know it lays right between the two stringers so I could cut it out right where it would have support when put back on.

3.) I have heard someone say a dremel tool with a fiberglass blade might work okay for cutting the deck out?..any thoughts? I plan on using that and a circular to actually cut new plywood.

4.) When I cut right up on the sides to remove the seat base which is fiberglassed to the gunwales?..I figure that I will not be able to cut right up on the gunwales with the dremel. Would I just use a wire brush on a dremel or drill to grind down the half inch or so of glass sticking off?

Thanks!

 

[Arawak]

They made a 14'?? What year is it?

Some photos would help.

 

[Woodonglass]

ERock, As I've stated to you previously in your other thread on this exact same topic, our Forum rules clearly state, you should keep your posts ALL in one thread concerning your project an NOT continue to post new threads. You now have 4 open threads about the same topic on the forum. It gets very confusing to the members trying to keep everything all together. You should ask a moderator to combine all of your threads into one and then keep posting to that ONE thread. YOu have pics in the other thread and Arawak wouldn't be asking for pics if you would have posted these questions in that thread.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... Merged,...

 

[ERock82]

They made a 14'?? What year is it?

Some photos would help.

It's a 1995. They made a 14' in the 80's I think. But other than that, only made a 14' in 94 and 95. There aren't many, if any manufacturers making any 14' boats today that aren't bass boats.

 

[ERock82]

ERock, As I've stated to you previously in your other thread on this exact same topic, our Forum rules clearly state, you should keep your posts ALL in one thread concerning your project an NOT continue to post new threads. You now have 4 open threads about the same topic on the forum. It gets very confusing to the members trying to keep everything all together. You should ask a moderator to combine all of your threads into one and then keep posting to that ONE thread. YOu have pics in the other thread and Arawak wouldn't be asking for pics if you would have posted these questions in that thread.

Sorry, didn't see your post and I just assumed people might not see it in this post.

 

[JASinIL2006]

I am going to replace the deck in my 14' Bayliner Capri. I have a few questions about cutting out the old one:

1.) When cutting out the old deck, how far from the sides of the boat should I cut? I was thinking 2 or 3 inches. I have heard about there being a lip on some boats where the deck rests on but not sure on mine. If I can, I would like to be able to use the old deck as a template.

You could probably use a compass and set it for two inches and scribe a line around the deck. I'm not sure having the old deck to use as a template will really save you that much work, though. I found it was pretty easy to take measurements and lay it out on some foam insulation boards. I then cut those, test fit them in the boat, and then used them as my template. (I would never have been able to get my deck up in one piece, anyway.)

2.) I may be able to use just 1 sheet of ply wood because the length of my deck is about 7 feet and width is about 54" at widest point( If 3 inches of lip were left on each side I could do this with 4x8' plywood). Question is, because of gas tank, will I need to split the sheets in half to access?(I don't plan on needing to ever pull it out). Or….should I use one whole piece then cut out an access area once already laid down? I know it lays right between the two stringers so I could cut it out right where it would have support when put back on.

You probably could cut the deck to fit the lip (from the old deck) left behind, but I think you'd be making it more difficult job. I had a lip near the front of my boat to which I attached my new deck, and that joint required much more work to look good and to be solid than did the places where the deck attached directly to the hull. Attaching the deck to the hull has a decent amount of 'wiggle room'; you have a gap that gets filled with thickened resin (aka peanut butter) and then tabbed over. Pretty simple. Joining the deck to an existing piece of deck requires a cleat, which has to be firmly attached to the existing deck and strong enough to take the load from the new deck. Not easy to do with a 2" lip... By attaching the deck to a lip, you're also increasing the number of places water can intrude and rot your new deck.

3.) I have heard someone say a dremel tool with a fiberglass blade might work okay for cutting the deck out…..any thoughts? I plan on using that and a circular to actually cut new plywood.

Unless you're talking about cutting very small bits, you'll burn out your Dremel. A circular saw, set to cut shallow (e.g., thickness of your plywood, plus 1/16' or so) is much easier. I also bought a cutting blade for my 4.5" angle grinder, but it was only for getting into tight spots. It was a little harder to control. For really tight places, an oscillating multi-tool with a toothed blade worked great, but it was REALLY slow going.

4.) When I cut right up on the sides to remove the seat base which is fiberglassed to the gunwales…..I figure that I will not be able to cut right up on the gunwales with the dremel. Would I just use a wire brush on a dremel or drill to grind down the half inch or so of glass sticking off?

Thanks!

This one I can't picture... not sure I understand your question.

I understand your wanting to leave a lip and avoid having to grind down to the hull, but I think you're better off getting rid of the old deck and making sure the new deck is solidly attached to the hull. I believe the latter approach will actually be less work in the long run.

Good luck!

Jim

 

[ERock82]

You could probably use a compass and set it for two inches and scribe a line around the deck. I'm not sure having the old deck to use as a template will really save you that much work, though. I found it was pretty easy to take measurements and lay it out on some foam insulation boards. I then cut those, test fit them in the boat, and then used them as my template. (I would never have been able to get my deck up in one piece, anyway.)



You probably could cut the deck to fit the lip (from the old deck) left behind, but I think you'd be making it more difficult job. I had a lip near the front of my boat to which I attached my new deck, and that joint required much more work to look good and to be solid than did the places where the deck attached directly to the hull. Attaching the deck to the hull has a decent amount of 'wiggle room'; you have a gap that gets filled with thickened resin (aka peanut butter) and then tabbed over. Pretty simple. Joining the deck to an existing piece of deck requires a cleat, which has to be firmly attached to the existing deck and strong enough to take the load from the new deck. Not easy to do with a 2" lip... By attaching the deck to a lip, you're also increasing the number of places water can intrude and rot your new deck.



Unless you're talking about cutting very small bits, you'll burn out your Dremel. A circular saw, set to cut shallow (e.g., thickness of your plywood, plus 1/16' or so) is much easier. I also bought a cutting blade for my 4.5" angle grinder, but it was only for getting into tight spots. It was a little harder to control. For really tight places, an oscillating multi-tool with a toothed blade worked great, but it was REALLY slow going.



This one I can't picture... not sure I understand your question.

I understand your wanting to leave a lip and avoid having to grind down to the hull, but I think you're better off getting rid of the old deck and making sure the new deck is solidly attached to the hull. I believe the latter approach will actually be less work in the long run.

Good luck!

Jim

Hey Jim, Thanks for the very detailed response!

Do you know what I should do about the gas tank and using a single sheet of plywood? Here is the original question on that"

"Question is, because of gas tank, will I need to split the sheets in half to access?(I don't plan on needing to ever pull it out). Or?.should I use one whole piece then cut out an access area once already laid down? I know it lays right between the two stringers so I could cut it out right where it would have support when put back on"

Thanks

 

[Woodonglass]

As we've stated many times, posting pics really helps us to help you. We can't see what you see. Are you certain that your fuel tank is below the deck on this 14ft boat? Is this an I/O or an Outboard boat?

 

[JASinIL2006]

I'm with Wood, a picture is worth a thousand words. (Maybe two thousand for me, I tend to be verbose sometime!) I'm having a hard time picturing the fuel tank area.

I can tell you that on my boat, I did not leave a full panel that could be unscrewed later to remove the tanks. I figured if I never needed to get the tank out, I'd just cut a panel big enough to remove the tank and then patch the deck back in. I did cut a round hole for a hatch to access the fuel sender area. IBecause I wanted reinforce the area around the hole, I did that before I installed the deck. I bought a round plastic cover from Iboats to screw over the hole.

Pics would help us be sure we understand what you're asking, though...

Jim

 

[Rickmerrill]

I did the same thing as Jas did. Just have a porthole in the deck to access the hose ends and the sender connections. If I ever have to remove the tank I'll worry about it when the time comes.