Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Howdy all! I've been reading and reading on this site. So am on information overload. New to boating (kind of funny,since I did 20 years in the Navy). So I bought this 26 foot trailerable houseboat last year (an emotional decission, which tend to bite me in the butt later). Used the boat last summer and ran fine but it always seemed a little heavier than i expected when towing and sat lower in the water than I thought it should. After reading on this site I did some closer investigation of the hull and transom. Yep, the floor, stringers and transom are rotted. In fact I am suprised the stern drive did not fall off the boat. Anyway, I have started on the terar down and rebuild. (pics to follow) The wood was heavy and wet and the foam was saturated. I seem to get conflicting advice re the use of PT plywood. Some say it is ok to use and others say never use it. So what is recommended?

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Welcome to iBoats!

The use of PT plywood is fine in Glass boats. NOT in Aluminum. If this is a Glass boat then use it but... Make SURE it is DRY. It can take up to 6 weeks for the various chemical treatments in the wood to completely cure and dry so buy it now, put in in the garage and get some fans on it. If it is NOT dry it can have problems with the resin and fiberglass adhering to it properly. A LOT of the guys on here use Regular AC Exterior Grade Ply. I prefer MDO plywood. Marine Grade IS the best but is kinda pricey. Douglas Fir lumber can also be used successfully. www.uscomposites.com is a good source for online fiberglass materials. You can check with your local marina or body shops to see where they get there fiberglass supplies as well.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Thanks Woodonglass, I really respect your comments throughout this post, You seem to have a great deal of knowledge. I just happen to have some very dry 3/4 PT that I was going to use. If I use it fo the stringers or the deck, does the underside need to have CSM applied, just a coat of resin, or nothing. OH yea it is a glass boat.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

One layer of 1.5oz CSM is sufficient for the underside of the deck.
These should help you figure out how to do it.

(Click the pics to enlarge)

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Thanks again, Your pics answered a whole bunch of questions I was gonna ask!

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

View attachment 96958I am going to try to attach some pics of progress so far. Hard to see but the stringers are only about 4' long on each side, and the center one is 8', the underside of the deckis attached to the flat portion of the tunnel.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

What would be the best way to attach the deck to the tunnels?

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

I am thinking laying down a thick coat of PB and then setting the 3/4 Plywood deck on and 4 80 pound bags of sand on top to hold deck to hull while I fillet the edges. How does that sound?

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

[/ATTACH]Here is a pick of the transom being stripped. Notice that the end of the flat bar goes up behind the what apears to be a layer of CSM However, it some places the CSM is well adhered others not so much. So should I only take off what comes off easily and then lay another layer of CSM over the whole transome area and then PB and then add the Plywood transom or do I need to Grind down everything.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

First off, let me make up for a past oversight...

Thank you for your Service to Our Country!!!!!

What kind of boat we workin on here? Looks kinda unique. What was the thickness of the deck that came out? Was there any Wood on the transom? How thick is the skin on the transom that you are peeling off? How is this vessel powered?

I know I ask a lot of questions. Just tryin to figure out what we're doin....

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

The boat is a 1980 yukon delta house boat. 8 foot beam, 26 foot long. Sort of a trihull design. The deck was 3/4 inch wafer board. It appears to be glued to the tunnnels of the hull. I assume it is meant for the deck to become integral to the hull overing strength. The transom had three layers of 1/2 inch wafer board. The outside skin of the transome hull is about a 1/4 inch thick. It is powered by a volvo penta aq120b with 270 outdrive.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

yeah it is certainly a unique design. We like to camp and fish. So we thought why not camp on the water! And it is trailerable!

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Post up some pics of the Entire boat from the outside. I want to see this BEAUTY!!!!

Well the WAFER Board will NOT be going back in!!!!! Marine Grade Ply or Ext. Grade Ply for sure.
It also appears that there was a Center Stringer. Is that Correct?

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

yes but the center stringer was only about 8 feet long 1 1/2 inches thick. you can see in some of the ealier pics there are 4 cross pieces along the center of the hull.

 

[archbuilder]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Sounds like you have a nice boat, sorry to hear about the rot! As a general rule of thumb, if you have non adheared loose piece of glass, grind it out and replace it. I will disagree with Wood on the pressure treated plywood (everyone has a theory and mine is probably wrong ). The newer pressure treating method (thank you EPA), uses chemicals that are very corrosive, the will even eat galvanized screws. My theory is to try to keep the water from getting to the wood in the first place, easier said that done. Just try to think about keeping the water our and keeping and minimizing the holes in any wood part. As for gluing the deck down, I like west systems six ten. Easy to use and creates one hell of a bond. Your bags of sand method for weighting it down should work fine. Just keep the glue between the hull and the bottom of the deck. After it sets up you can tab in the deck to the hull on the top side. Just keep the epoxy off anything you need to glass later.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Archbuilder has a point! Not all PT plywood is created the same. If you want to learn about it this will give you some information.
http://www.strongtie.com/productuse/ptwoodfaqs.html

As I said in my first post most of the guys on here just use Ext. Grade Plywood and as Arch says if you encapsulate it correctly and maintain it properly it will last longer than you have the boat.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Thanks Arch and Wood, What are your thoughts on OSB for the transom? It is an exterior glue product used for subfloors in construction. Heavier than plywood but no voids. R should I stick with AC grade plywood. Just wondering. They do make special fastners for the new PT chemicals. I am not stuck on the PT issue, just had some around. And I fully appreciate that the idea is to keep water out in the first place. On Submarines (where I served in the Navy) we had real issues with sea water in the people tank.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Oriented Strand Board(OSB) has absolutely NO Place on a boat. The AC Fir is MUCH superior. I know that Arch is opposed to the PT but it is your choice. I know other have used it and as long as it is DRY and you predrill and Coat all the fasteners with resin I think you would be fine.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

Thanks Wood! Guess I got a rise out of you by mentioning OSB! But hey, if you don't ask you never learn.

 

[HMCM(SS)Ret]

Re: Yukon Delta HB Rebuild

I am about ready to install the transom. I have zero experience with fiberglass resin so i was looking for some guidance on how much PB to mix up for a transom that is 2.5 feet by 7 feet. Any help would be greatly appreciated, I do not want to mix up way to much and have a lot of waste. But, i am thinking if I mix way to little I could run into issues as well. And, how thick should I apply the PB? Thanks!