replaceing pieces by the bilge........now with pics

[alilley]

please forgive me on the the termanoligy use here as i am still learning a lot of it as i go

i have a 1988 sunchaser 1702 with 3.0 alapha 1 out drive. wile putting a new battery box in i realised that the "floor where the battery box and the trim pump sit (located on either side of the bilge) was very soft (to the point where i could push a small nail in by hand with a lot of force), now what i can tell you is that it appiers to be covered in fiber glassand go from the back of the rear bench seat to the backl of the transom from the side to what i think is called the stringer. then it is on the same place on the other side but that is where my fuel tank sits, this is on both sides of the motor but not under it.
if i need to get a picture of what i am talking about ive me a day or so and i will try to (as the boat is currently covered)

now for the question, with these pieces being so soft is this normal? if not how do i fix them? do i need to remove and cut a piece of wood and re glass them in? can i just "cover them with a new piece of wood and glass that in? how do i remove them with out tearin up the hull?

thanks in advance for all the help out there i have already learned a lot from other sections in this forum

 

[Fisherball]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

No, it is not normal for any of the deck or stringers to be soft. There is a good chance that the rot is though out the boat. Follow this link & read. It'll tell you any & everything you'll ever need to know to fix whatever problem exists on your boat. Post pix & you'll get specific advise on every step.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=234392

Good Luck!

 

[rickryder]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Well I would say you are going to have to do some exploring.... If your deck (boats have decks not floors ) is soft you may have some underlying issues...waterlogged foam,rotten stringers,soft transom etc. You will have to cut some of the deck up and core test your foam for water.

Take a circular saw and set the blade about 1/2-5/8" deep and cut out a square in the soft area.
Then take a piece of pipe 1 1/2"-2" in diameter and twist it down till you hit the hull.....pull pipe out and remove the foam and squeeze it...
If it has water in it your going to have to keep cutting the deck and look for dry foam.

The boat I bought had some soft spots.....look at my rest thread @ the bottom of my post to see what you might be in for....or you can be lucky and find dry foam,then it's just some plywood and fiberglass to repair the deck.

Good luck and let us know what you find Pics are always a good thing

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

the deck was replaced by thre previous owner and is very solid i have stood on the outdrive and it feels solid as well the only place i have noticed anything soft is here in the back on both sides of the bilge area. i am getting ready to pull and replace the motor wile i had it out i was going to fix this issue as well. should i just take like a 2 inch hole saw and cut a hole in itto see what is oing on? or whould pic's really help on this?

 

[fat fanny]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Wow the PO replaced the deck! and do you trust that he did the right thing and replaced or inspected the stringers and foam for water intrusion and then sold it! and now it just so happens you have a soft spot near the transom on the deck. Very ?able if I was you when the motor is out I would be doing several core samles to ensure the structural entegrity of the boat.

 

[rickryder]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Standing on the outdrive really isn't going to tell you if you have rot starting in there. Only true way is core samples....I don't take a seller at his word unless he is a trustworthy friend or family.
We make these suggestions from a safty standpoint. Well since your pulling the motor I would do some drilling and checking just to be safe.

 

[Bondo]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

and it feels solid as well the only place i have noticed anything soft is here in the back on both sides of the bilge area.

Ayuh,... That sounds like the Stringers,....

The already replaced deck needs to come out to get at the stringers, to replace 'em...
Sounds like the PO did a halfazzed job...

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

where is the foam located? how do i get to it? if the stringers are rotten wha do i use to replace them with?

 

[Bondo]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

where is the foam located? (Under the Deck)
how do i get to it? (Pull the Deck)
if the stringers are rotten wha do i use to replace them with? (Strips of 3/4" Plywood)

Ayuh,... My guess is, you'll be doin' the Transom too....

 

[jonesg]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

.. it doesn't take these guys long to get to the heart of the matter does it.
Its a project boat, join the club, we've all gone through this sort of thing in varying degrees, mostly to the N'th degree.

 

[Tolyn]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Yep. That's how my "project" started too. New plywood on top from the previous owner was a sign of much worse below unfortunately.

Hang in there. Make some cuts, post some pictures and folks will help you find out what you are in for and how to fix it. Prepare yourself for the worst and it can only get better from there

Respectfully,
-T

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

ok it os starting to sound like a hole lot more of a project then i intended on tackling when i purchased it. if i would have known then what i do now i prob would have looked the other way. but that is in the past and we reall like the room and the way this boat is set up so i do not intend on putting it on the market to dump my head ach on someone else.

i am starting to think that whom ever redid the deck on it pulled the foam out. when looking from the transome area tward the bow under the decking all that is there is the bottom hull area there is nothin. now i am thinking that some one has been in and worked on the stringers before cus of an issue that i found out after i forgot to put the cover one one night and it stormed, the bilge area is in 2 parts first being directly under the motorand teh second being in front of the stringer that runs cross ways (beam i think it is called) but it is all glassed over and water can not drain to the area under the motor to drain out of the boat. that was when i found a bilge pump wired with a float switch and gator clips under the deck. i spoke with the local marina about this and he looked at it, he make the comment "looks like some one has glassed the drain hole over" nhe suggested that i drill another one and seal it back off or figure out some what to keep water out of that area.

lets see if i got the bascic idea on replacing the stringers......remove the deck, cut the top off the glass to access the stringers, remove old rotten wooden materal use 3/4 in salt treated plywood screwed together to eqil same thinckness, glass back over reinstall/ replace deck. in a nut shell is that the bascic idea behind it?

now the transom.......my transome is all glassed in unlike the jon boat project that i have started on it has a wooden (on the inside at least) transom i get the idea on how to replace that but with this one beoing all glassed in i am lost here. how do i even take a sample to check it? it does seem to feel very solid and i do not see any cracks in the glass or the "paint" ( i think it is really called jell coat?)

 

[rickryder]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Pictures please That will help us a bunch so we see what you do.

 

[Bondo]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

now the transom.......my transome is all glassed in unlike the jon boat project that i have started on it has a wooden (on the inside at least) transom i get the idea on how to replace that but with this one beoing all glassed in i am lost here. how do i even take a sample to check it?

Ayuh,... Once ya get the drive off, 'n the motor out, the condition of the transom will become apparent...

 

[jonesg]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

If the seller made no mention of having rebuilt the substructure you can assume its all still there, foam, rotted wood , old tank and old plumbing.
Doing it over is a BIG selling point.
The deck has to come off, the engine needs to be lifted out with a hoist (craigslist).
Transom will need doing, its not hard to do, it just seems bewildering because its all unknown.

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

ok i will get pics as soon as i can. with me be a o t r driver i am unsally only home late friday evenings and have to leave out again on sunday evening (nto the most ideal situation but the ms stays home and raised kids and bills are paid plus we get a few toys) when i get back home i willl pull the cover off and try to get some pictures (provided i can find the camra if it still works).

i guess my bigges issue is the fact that this is going to be a lot more work then i anticapated on doing to this. i when i purchased i knew it had a cracked block i was hoping that i could get that taken care of and be good to go but i guess i was wrong but like i always say life aint nothing but a poker game, some times you have to know when to fold know when to bluff and some times you have to work your opponates over to get a head. well i guess i should lolok on the bright side here once i get this taken care of (the stringers if that is the issue and the motor) i should have several years of worry free issues with it andi wont have to do it again for many years

 

[rickryder]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

If you follow the suggestions from the people on here on how to rebuild your boat you'll be giving it to your kids.

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

i had a thought and was wondering if this was a possiability or if it could be done this way. this is just kind od one of the questions of would this work type of thing

i recall reading on (i think this forum) some where that some one had use some kind of pour in compound to replace the transom. what was that stuff called? how good does it work? how easy is it to work with? now the big question............could a guy use the same stuff to replace the stringers with? if a guy were to cut only the top of the glass off and removed all the wood that would leave a cavity opr a mold for the stuff to pour into. then after the stuff cures jsut reglass the top of it back in. if it would worlk then you would never have to worrie about rot again as there would be very little wood to rot at least not on something on the structral part of it any way ...........so what are the thoughts on this?????

and once again many thanks for all the info so far i will try to have pics up by the end of the weekend even if i have to use my phone to snap them with

 

[jonesg]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

I used that seacast, but you need stringers so the deck is coming out.
Once you're in there anyway... going all wood is a LOT cheaper.
You could still do the seacast and forget the transom forever,
but you'd be throwing away $400 extra dollars that would be better going toward an engine.
My mistake was buying the seacast before knowing the full condition of the stringers so I still had to cut the deck off.

You may want to look at the engine situation first, if its gonna cost $6+K to repower , if everything is shot... it might not make sense, not that anything does in a boat but there are better ways to spend boating dollars because you can buy a very very nice boat without rot and good power for the same money without having to rebuild what you have.

 

[alilley]

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

Re: replaceing pieces by the bilge

well as far as cost is concerned on the motor i am looking at less then a grand (more like 500 if i am on the not so luck side). i purchased this boat for a grand with trailer knowing that it had motor problems i was just hoping that they was not as bad as they were. the previous owner didnt winterize it so if we figure on spend a nother grand on this repair (i dont realy have an idea what i am looking into just yet coist wise) then i would have less then 3 grand in this boat and i would know that everything is done right (as long as i can do them that is) and i would not have to worrie about it for many years to come. me personally 3 grand in a solid boat with a rebuilt motor transome, and stringers is not that bad of a deal. if i would of know now back then i would have chosen a different one i have learned so much about boats in the last 6 months and that is just from readding on this forum ......many thanks to everyone that has helped out on teaching me and holding th eguide ropes wile i learn