making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

[bobbo268]

regarding a pontoon deck: when marine plywood is not available nearby, $100 shipping seems crazy, and regular exterior plywood is just too easy to get, how are you guys sealing the wood for the deck? From the underside of my existing deck the woods seems fine (and feels fine from the top), but i've heard carpet removal is a real PITA on an almost 20 year old boat, so thinking i have to/should replace.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

If you can get a manufacturer's marking off of the original wood, you might find that it is standard exterior grade plywood.

 

[GT1000000]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

regarding a pontoon deck: when marine plywood is not available nearby, $100 shipping seems crazy, and regular exterior plywood is just too easy to get, how are you guys sealing the wood for the deck? From the underside of my existing deck the woods seems fine (and feels fine from the top), but i've heard carpet removal is a real PITA on an almost 20 year old boat, so thinking i have to/should replace.

A lot of us back yard boat rebuilders use good quality exterior grade plywood in our restos...ACX or BCX...they are manufactured using waterproof/resistant glues in the lamination process, which is what we need...they do contain voids which may or may not be an issue...
I recommend sealing the underside with a coat of resin, let it soak into the wood, when it becomes tacky, apply one layer of CSM, wet out thoroughly...install it and repeat on the top, possibly add 1 or 2 more layers of CSM and/or 1708...make sure you use a high quality marine sealant on any fasteners you punch through the deck to keep it from becoming a water entry point.
Carpet is nice on the feet, but tends to be a problem creator on boats...If possible I would go with a quality coating such as Durabak or install a marine grade vinyl flooring like Nautolex...
Good Luck and Have Fun!
GT1M

 

[jc55]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

I have a 28' Harris Flote bote that has been used as a floating dock by previous owners. I removed the carpet to take a look at the deck and see that it's stamped the year 2001 and it is exterior plywood, uncoated. There is just slight delamination on the top layer near a couple of edges. The whole thing is SOLID! I coated it with a 2 part Amercoat epoxy, I'll probably recarpet.

That being said, I looked at every cost effective option for covering and there is none. You'd be spending hundreds of dollars to CSM/resin coat, lay rubber, epoxy, etc. Bang for the buck (cosidering my experience), I'd use exterior plywood, primer/latex paint with
house paint, then carpet. Just my opinion.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

+1 exterior grade, non-pt plywood properly sealed with epoxy will outlast your grandkids. You can even use several coats of Spar Urethane, if the epoxy is too pricey or hard to find.

 

[bobbo268]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

I like either the house paint or spar urethane idea... Would I do this on top and bottom? That being said, this boat is trailered and used once a week if I'm lucky. .. I agree the epoxy would last forever but that is a lot of money for me

And whats non-pt mean? Sorry

 

[Lyle29464]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

I like either the house paint or spar urethane idea... Would I do this on top and bottom? That being said, this boat is trailered and used once a week if I'm lucky. .. I agree the epoxy would last forever but that is a lot of money for me

And whats non-pt mean? Sorry

pressure treated

 

[jigngrub]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

What do you plan on putting back over your deck, more carpet?

 

[kfa4303]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

No worries about the epoxy bobbo. The spar will work just fine, especially if you thin the first few coats a bit so it can soak deeply into the wood. Be sure you hit the top, bottom and all of the sides as well. It's best if you can cut and dry fit the wood panels then pre-drill as many holes as possible before apply it. Just take your time, do at least 3-4 coats and it will look great and last for ages. You can then paint over it, cover it with carpet, or just leave it in the clear coat. You want to avoid pressure treated wood (pt), particularly in aluminum boats, as it can cause pitting and corrosion in your hull. It also tends to be rather damp and doesn't absorb the spar/epoxy as well. Be sure to use aluminum rivets and/or stainless steel hardware throughout as well. Good luck.

 

[bobbo268]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

it will deinfately be carpet. I have a 2 year old daugther, otherwise i would do the wood floor looking vinyl, but i need a soft floor for her bottom . I'm going to do a test spot today under the console to see if i even "need" to replace the floor. I'm just assuming i have to since from a lot of stories of trying to replace 15 - 20 year old carpet usually means days scraping off glue, although the rare story of a crappy glue job means a clean carpet removal. I'm starting with a premiere brand boat, so if its like the rest of the boat, it was probably glued right, which means it may not come off easy.... I'm getting the seats re-upholstered and replacing the siding, and the blue carpet just won't match anything

 

[kfa4303]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

yeah, it's easier to just rip out and replace the old decking rather than trying to scrape of the old carpet. Once you seal the new wood, you can cover it with whatever you like; carpet, vinyl, paint, etc....

 

[jigngrub]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

it will deinfately be carpet. I have a 2 year old daugther, otherwise i would do the wood floor looking vinyl, but i need a soft floor for her bottom . I'm going to do a test spot today under the console to see if i even "need" to replace the floor. I'm just assuming i have to since from a lot of stories of trying to replace 15 - 20 year old carpet usually means days scraping off glue, although the rare story of a crappy glue job means a clean carpet removal. I'm starting with a premiere brand boat, so if its like the rest of the boat, it was probably glued right, which means it may not come off easy.... I'm getting the seats re-upholstered and replacing the siding, and the blue carpet just won't match anything

Ok, I wouldn't worry about doing too much to the plywood then... a couple coats of spar urethane should be fine because you're just going to be tearing this decking out in another 6-8 yrs. and putting down new decking and carpet when this new carpet goes bad.

... or you could do a better sealing job and use a longer lasting deck finish that repels water... and carry a throw rug/blanket/beach towel for the baby's bottom and not have to replace your decking for 15-20 yrs. That baby is only going to be a baby for another 2 or 3 years.

 

[icyveins]

next post, tried to delete this one

 

[icyveins]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

68$ a sheet from menards for 3/4 4-8 really nice stuff came out of Wisconsin, very happy with it. I also put down awesome marine vinyl. I am very pleased with the way it turned out.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

68$ a sheet from menards for 3/4 4-8 really nice stuff came out of Wisconsin, very happy with it. I also put down awesome marine vinyl. I am very pleased with the way it turned out.

What brand of marine vinyl is that?

 

[bobbo268]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

68$ a sheet from menards for 3/4 4-8 really nice stuff came out of Wisconsin, very happy with it. I also put down awesome marine vinyl. I am very pleased with the way it turned out.

View attachment 216484View attachment 216485View attachment 216486

you said vinyl but looks like carpet.... you get that tan carpet from the first pic at menards? if not, where and how much? (i guess i'm confused between what you're saying vinyl but i'm seeing carpet). i was thinking about this carpet, but i kind of like the color of yours in that first pic: http://www.restorepontoon.com/pontoon/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=2923

 

[jigngrub]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

Nah, that's marine vinyl... look at how the light is shining off of it in the first pic.

My Nautolex marine decking vinyl has that pebble grain texture to it too.... but that stuff might be a different brand.

People think my Nautolex is carpet until they reach down and touch it:
http://forums.iboats.com/boat-resto...ir/97-tracker-pro-deep-v-facelift-509163.html

 

[icyveins]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

no thats straight up vinyl ......I bought a 8.6 by 28 for 600.00, it has the texture for grip.....I guess I dont know why you think it carpet...lol
marine ply is 66 a sheet, the flooring is about 20$ a foot

 

[JZEVINRUDE]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

Marine plywood is 125.00 in my area, so I bought a 4x8 3/4 medium density overlay (mdo) for 50.00. It has far fewer voids than exterior ply, waterproof glue, and a beautiful one side finish. It is also called sign board and used by sign companies for exterior signs. I coated it with an epoxy resin on its edges and faces. Came out beautiful. I mad stringers and flooring from it.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: making your own marine plywood out of home depot plywood??

no thats straight up vinyl ......I bought a 8.6 by 28 for 600.00, it has the texture for grip.....I guess I dont know why you think it carpet...lol
marine ply is 66 a sheet, the flooring is about 20$ a foot

You paid $2.52 per s.f for your vinyl and $2.06 per s.f for your plywood.

You can get Nautolex marine vinyl for $1.05 a s.f @ Defender:
Nautolex Marine Vinyl Flooring
If you want to compare it to carpet prices it's only $9.50 a square yard.