Boat weight question

[Stein]

Got it washed out, at least good enough for under the floorboards.




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[blackpowderhunter]

looks great.
feel free to shoot me a message if you have any questions regarding the new decking.  i did a similar project on my old north river, was a 2006 with saturated floors and foam.
I did a 2 part epoxy to seal the marine grade plywood and then wrapped in nautolex vinyl, then used a staple gun with stainless staples hooked up to my compressor to glue and staple the vinyl down.
i think this is the epoxy i used to seal the wood
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=97636

[Stein]

looks great.
feel free to shoot me a message if you have any questions regarding the new decking.  i did a similar project on my old north river, was a 2006 with saturated floors and foam.
I did a 2 part epoxy to seal the marine grade plywood and then wrapped in nautolex vinyl, then used a staple gun with stainless staples hooked up to my compressor to glue and staple the vinyl down.
i think this is the epoxy i used to seal the wood
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=97636

Thanks, I was thinking about many coats of varnish but it looks like that might penetrate and hold up better.

Did you coat both sides, I'm assuming yes.

Is the one quart kit enough?

What vinyl and adhesive did you use.  They sure don't give that stuff away.

[blackpowderhunter]

looks great.
feel free to shoot me a message if you have any questions regarding the new decking.  i did a similar project on my old north river, was a 2006 with saturated floors and foam.
I did a 2 part epoxy to seal the marine grade plywood and then wrapped in nautolex vinyl, then used a staple gun with stainless staples hooked up to my compressor to glue and staple the vinyl down.
i think this is the epoxy i used to seal the wood
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=97636

Thanks, I was thinking about many coats of varnish but it looks like that might penetrate and hold up better.

Did you coat both sides, I'm assuming yes.

Is the one quart kit enough?

What vinyl and adhesive did you use.  They sure don't give that stuff away.

yep, coated both sides.
i also pre drilled all of the holes for 'screws' that hold the decking down and filled them in with the epoxy to penetrate there, hoping to eliminate points of entry.
im 99% sure i only used the 1 qt kit but at this point i cant remember...i searched through my emails for the receipt but cant find it.
i used to nautolex glue, not cheap, but i figured if i got bubbling or non stuck areas after all that work id be pissed if id used 'inferior' glue, so i bit the bullet.
https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?id=23788#

when applying the vinyl i glued it down, used a flooring roller to really smooth out any air bubbles, flipped over and stapled one side and then pulled it reallllly tight and stapled the other side.
having an air stapler really helps here because you're putting them in every few inches, and a regular staple gun will give you some hand cramps quick 

[Stein]

Thanks, I have an electric stapler with stainless staples from previous projects, so I'm loaded there.

I'm off to the hardware store for round 1 of purchases.  I'm also expecting a grey van later today with more goodies.

Did you do one or two coats on the epoxy?  Looks like 1 should be good for new wood, but they don't say for sure.

[blackpowderhunter]

i did 2 coats, the second coat was more of a finishing/touch up/fill in areas that soaked up more than others though.

[kball4]

I recently did a complete tear down of a Lund Fisherman 1800 I am rebuilding and I was astounded by the amount of water in the foam.  I re-poured with 4lb closed cell foam which is denser than the recommended 2lb foam most boats come with.  I also fiberglassed in the floor boards and put a bead of marine 3M caulk along the edge to prevent any water from getting through the floor again.

[Stein]

Well, I hoped to post pictures of all the foam done today but somehow I ordered the 6 lb instead of the 2 lb and noticed the difference after pouring a 2 quart kit.  If anyone wants to make their own crab buoys, the 6 lb foam would do it.  A 2 quart kit (1 quart each A and B) only makes .75 cubic feet vs 2 cubic feet for the 2 lb foam.

I'm thinking the 6 lb foam would be highly impervious to water, it's literally hard as plastic, even a bit harder than a crab buoy which obviously can be in the water a really long time before it gets water logged.  The bad part is the price, it's the same cost but you would have to buy 2.5 times more foam and it's $52 for a 2 quart kit.  A guy wouldn't want to have to pull that out of the boat, it would pretty much be a permanent thing.

We have family coming in for the 4th, so I'll likely put the boat back together sans foam, run it over the weekend and then find a 3 day stretch I won't be using it and tear it back apart and pour the new foam.

I did decide against replacing the floor.  It dried out probably 80% and for some reason there is a shortage of the flooring adhesive such that nobody has it in stock.  That, coupled with the $400 price tag for the wood, flooring and adhesive and we'll get at least 2 more years out of this floor before I get the itch to replace it.  The flooring itself is in really good shape and there is no rot in the wood, it's 100% solid everywhere.  I did put two coats of epoxy on the underside so it won't be getting any more water, but won't be drying out from that side either.

On the good side, I was able to reroute the fuel vent so I don't have it blocking access to the bilge and the wiring is all tidied up.  I reglued both the bilge pumps and created 3/4" drains through the side parts of the boat and 1.5" from the bow to the bilge.  I have three hopefully watertight foam compartments and the boat shouldn't hold water up front.  I'll post pictures when I get a chance.

I have some ideas that might help others as this issue is likely present on 99% of the boats under 20' that have plywood floors not sealed to the hull which is basically all of them.  Boat builders could do it "right", but virtually nobody would pay for something they can't see when the other builder is selling his for less.  My guess is it would add $500-1,000 or so to have watertight foam compartments, epoxied wood and proper drains, maybe even more.

Anyway, one way or another she will be on the crab in a few days even if we have to sit on milk crates.

Good times.