I'm working on a renovation of an '87 Carver 4207. There were a couple of salon leaks that I traced to the teak fasteners. The teak was in poor shape anyway so I pulled it all up. The deck seemed pretty wet under the teak. Dried it out, plugged all the holes with some PL375 and then sanded everything down. I know I'm not laying anymore teak, but I'm not sure if I want to put down carpet or some truck bed liner-like material. But my main question is: Do I need to do anymore surface prep? I've seen three paths on various web sites 1) Nothing else required 2) Lay down a few coats of epoxy (to assure a watertight seal?) 3) #2 over a layer of glass cloth Sure would like some expert input Charles
If this is an exterior deck, I would not leave it that way. I'd put a few coats of awlgrip epoxy primer, and a few coats of awlgrip and nonskid.
I have a lot of teak and it a pain in the butt. I have came a long ways in stopping leaks but there always seams to be another one come up. I thought taking it up and repair any wood then fiberglass but I cant undo that once it is up. I think I can stop all the leaks by Summer2012. I think pulling it up and and fiberglassing will be more work then trying to fix the leaks, and the teak will look beter. What did you do with your old teak lumber.
A little more info would be helpful. Is it external or internal is a big question and what is the deck material, single skin or cored composite? Simply filling the holes would most likely suffice if it's single skin but if it's composite it can be a whole different ball game. Especially in external situations, the core may have water intrusion that can lead to problems down the road with expansion/contraction due to temperature changes. Make sure you aren't filling the holes trapping moisture inside the core, if any exists. Goo smeared into the holes, no matter how meticulously done, will not be an airtight seal and the pressures can "blow out" around microfractures near the plugs and the only sure way to permanantly repair them is a layer of glass. As a case in point I recently repaired a deck that was blowing bubbles under a synthetic teak decking applied over filled screw holes. This deck was actually single skin but had hollow form transverse beams that contained air and were blowing bubbles on hot sunny days that disappeared at night. Adding a layer of glass over the filled holes cured the problem on a test area and is generating a rewrite in the manufacturers instructions for preparation prior to installing the decking material. If you're going with carpet, fairing won't be an issue so I'd take the safe route and add a layer of glass.
Thanks Bill The teak is exterior and I believe the surface is single skin. Quality glass and epoxy are expensive. The fastener holes are pretty much aligned in straight lines. So it should serve the same purpose if I simply lay a 3" strip of glass and epoxy over each line of holes, right? Charles
Like anything on a boat, quality isn't cheap. I wouldn't glass strips, they will leave humps that will print through whatever you put on top, even carpet. You can save weight and money by going with a thinner glass, like a 1200 or 1700 weight biax, which uses 1/2 the resin as glass with chopped strand mat stitched to it. Just make sure you sand the entire surface first so you get good adhesion. I'm guessing without seeing it but it should take less than a gallon of mixed resin to do your job with that cloth.
Of your 3 choices: 3. Epoxy and cloth: Most expensive, adds unneeded strength, cost, and filling work. Epoxy wrong resin, use polyester resin and gelcoat. 2. Epoxy Seal: Wrong resin...use polyester on polyester. Will "seal" plenty but probably not required. 1. Nothing: Almost correct, you don't need additional strength or sealing. I would spray with epoxy primer and epoxy paint (epoxy fills defects better than urethanes). Then add non-skid areas.
I like your option 1 the best Gary. I still haven't resurfaced the deck. I repaired the balsa core where it was rotted, and plugged all the old teak fastener holes with PL Premium. One month, plenty of thunderstorms, and no leaks. So lately I've been thinking the same as you: primer, paint, and non skid - as the cheapest option. Then maybe an area rug. Any reason you said to spray the epoxy primer? Would it make a difference if I just roll it on?
Repairing the entire decks or fixing rotted stuff on the interior is a heck of a lot more expensive than fixing it properly. Grind the deck to get proper adhesion, put 1 layer of matting and good resin, then paint it with Awlgrip with sylica in it for traction, and do it once, proper and be done with it. It's not all that expensive to do it right. I would never carpet exterior decks that are not in a almost waterproof enclosure.
When spraying I can shoot primer/filler and cover/fill most any defect, but that's only required on major surface rebuilds, and your's is only a recoat. If your surface is "good", then roll/brush will be adequate. I can spray an epoxy thick enough on a "good" surface so priming not required... I fill and recoat in one attack.
CapJ, I'm not sure what you're saying. That there's no need to replace the rotted core? I peeled back the fiberglass top layer, put in epoxy saturated plywood, then layed the fiberlass back down and epoxyed it in. Your post seems to say don't bother? Just grind down the surface and seal it? The aft deck (about 8' x 15') is covered and usually surrounded by isenglass.
Yes, definately replace the rotted core. But instead of just filling all of the screw holes left from removing all of the teak decking, grind the deck and put 1 layer of fiberglass matting over it, and finish it correctly. Don't just fill a bunch of screw holes and cover it with carpet, or paint.
Get a 1/2" or larger counter-sink and drill out the screw holes. Not below the surface just widen the hole. You can fill the holes with vc watertite, evercoat kitty hair, or small pieces of chopped mat and resin. If you already have epoxy resin use that. The problem with a long strip over the holes is you have to fair it out. Sand with 80 grit then roll or spray with a high-build epoxy primer, then topcoat. If you can ge someone to spray the nonskid it will look better than rolled.
