Deck Repair - Fiberglassing Question (Newbie)

[Iroc-Sea]

Hey all, working on repairing a soft spot in my deck (18’ bowrider) and the carpeting.

Was thinking of cutting out the rot and using 3/4 marine ply to replace it. From what I read, I could either epoxy all sides to ‘prime it’ and glass all around (routing edges) or prime with epoxy and then set it, and glass over it?

I was leaning towards the second option. In that case any epoxy recommendations? Heard RAKA is good for going over plywood.

For glassing, read that two layers of 6oz cloth would be appropriate. Does this sound correct?

Would I need putty and fiberglass tape where the deck meets the sidewall or should I overlap the existing fiberglass with the cloth?

Any other tips or suggestions? Thanks!

 

[alldodge]

What your discussing could work but need to cut out the spot first to find out what made it soft.

Once it's cut out you may find the issue goes out further then what your seeing now. Most places show up after other things start happening below

 

[Scott Danforth]

only one boat out of about a million only had a soft deck and not need transom, stringers, and new foam.

all the information you need is in the stickies at the top of the forum. 4th sticky down, links 14, 15, 18, 2, 3, 4a, and 4b.

no need for epoxy

 

[JASinIL2006]

How old is your boat? Any idea why you have a spot that's rotten? Soft/rotten spots - unless caused by some penetration, like a screw - often are symptoms of greater problems below the decking. Boats often rot from the bottom up, which means the structure of the boat may be seriously compromised by the time you see soft spots in the deck.

 

[Iroc-Sea]

Thanks guys, appreciate the tips and info. I would have responded sooner but I’ve been reading the sticky/watching the restore of the 95 Sea Ray. Some great information - still a lot more to go.

The spot is in the back port side corner of the boat which gets wet often. For whatever the reason, that seat gets splashed the most when underway and rainwater seems to collect on that part of the canvas despite my efforts to lift it.

I did question the integrity of my transom (actually made a separate thread about it) but it has 0 flexing and was dry when I cored a few holes. I cut out a bit of the soft section and saw the extent of the deck rot. The foam was dry but good point, may sample the stringer as well to see what I'm working with. Lmk if you have any suggestions!

Based on my reading today, (assuming stringers are okay), thinking of going with poly resin - priming wood, CSM on all sides, then tabbing in and covering with 1708.

Does that sound better?

 

[todhunter]

Based on my reading today, (assuming stringers are okay), thinking of going with poly resin - priming wood, CSM on all sides, then tabbing in and covering with 1708.

Does that sound better?

Yes, that sounds like a solid plan. You say priming on all sides - assume you mean with poly resin?

 

[Iroc-Sea]

Yup I was thinking a coat of poly resin all around the board, then once it gets tacky, a layer of CSM all around and lastly tabbing and 1708 on top.

 

[nola mike]

I cut out a bit of the soft section and saw the extent of the deck rot. The foam was dry but good point, may sample the stringer as well to see what I'm working with. Lmk if you have any suggestions!

I'd suggest you core the foam as well, to the hull (PVC pipe works well for this) and check out the the nearby stringers thoroughly (including/especially the bottoms). Not sure how you'd eval the stringers without taking a core sample there as well.

 

[88 Capri (2022 SOTY)]

Yup I was thinking a coat of poly resin all around the board, then once it gets tacky, a layer of CSM all around and lastly tabbing and 1708 on top.

Depending on the dryness of the wood a second coat of resin may not be out of the question. When I coated mine the first coat all but disappeared.