Soft Deck, What Would You Do?

Kind of what I was thinking Frank. Hate to remove it but it would be much easier. And like you said, without knowing exactly where it ends it would be hard to use the inject a dek. Easiest way would be to cut the whole bottom off, pull out ALL of the plywood coring and start fresh either with new plywood or the foam you mentioned. Just bought the boat in August. Had it surveyed but neither one of us noticed it. Seems like it got worse in the few weeks I had it in the water but I doubt that is the case. I did notice after I brought it home and was winterizing it there was a brown liquid line on the back edge of the platform. Wiped it off and didn't see anything. A few days later noticed it again. Wiped it again and looked real close and there is a hairline crack about 2-3" long that it is oozing from. My guess is me walking on it oozes it out.
 
Cool nights followed by warm days will cause a cored structure to weep tannin from the wood decay process. Another indicator that you need to see what is inside the platform so you can remove the rotted core and dry out the remaining solid wood.
 
bobeast said:
That 2 or 3 will either be spent now, or will have to come off the price when you sell. Either way, you're gonna have to pay it. Might as well enjoy it.

Now if this is the same marina that charged you $2200 to replace a holding tank, you might seriously consider getting a bid from a different marina for the deck repair.
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The $2200 wasn’t just the holding tank, I had them replace all the hoses associated with the head/tank, new sump box and pump for the shower and new AC water pump. I’ve gotten two quotes from two different people and both are $4-$5k
 
SkiPharmer said:
I’m gonna try to do the Injectadeck myself. You saying this is a good way to fix it or I should pay?
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I have not done enough research to answer the question. Given the financial breakdown of boat value and project cost to do the full on invasive procedure I would lean toward trying the Injectadeck if further research on the product and the specific job indicated a reasonable chance of success. Call them and talk it over with them.

MM
 
fwebster said:
Cool nights followed by warm days will cause a cored structure to weep tannin from the wood decay process. Another indicator that you need to see what is inside the platform so you can remove the rotted core and dry out the remaining solid wood.
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That was likely the conditions since it was late September/early October when I noticed it.
 
fwebster said:
This is not a difficult repair to do :

if the spot is relatively small, and
if it can be accessed from the hatch opening.

Generally, the deck coring is balsa and is wet enough to rot. The only real way to fix it is to remove the rotted wood, replace it then fix any damage you do getting to the core. If you are lucky and if the soft core can be reached thru the hole where the hatch was installed.....which is very likely the place t he water got in . A bent rod can sometimes be used to rout out the rotted coring, then shopvac the grbae out, then more bent rodding then more vacuuming. Eventually when you are down to new wood, a piece of balsa coring can be cut and inserted using resin or epoxy to bond it to the deck and ceiling. Then reinstall the hatch, and remove all the others and rebed them.

If that won't work, the only fix is to remove either the deck skin or the ceiling beneath to access the rotted core. Repairing the non-skid finish on the deck is a challenge and very few fiberglass guys can get a decent match. Sometimes you can make the cuts in non-skid parts of the deck where getting a sound repair and a good match is easier because you aren't dealing with non-skid. Cutting away the ceiling is a possibility if it is a relatively small area, but it will trash the interior unless whoever does the repair is careful to maks and cover the interior.

Working thru the hatch opening will save a lot of money since there is no gelcoat or non-skid match to deal with. If the wet area it is small enough to access that way, then the cost should be closer to $1000 than to $4000. If the area is confined to the edge of the hatch and running 8-12" out, the core can be dug out, the area dried out and refilled with thickened epoxy as a core...replacing balsa isn't necessary and that repair would be even less.

Note: Those costs are Gulf Coast estimates where 2/3 of the ex boat yard workers with a 1/2 pick up are running around doing fiberglass repairs.......I have no clue what MN prices would be.

Selling the boat without fixing it isn't a good plan. It will not pass a survey with a soft deck and you will end up taking a bath to get it sold. If you want a new boat, get this one fixed, detailed and prettied up, then go shopping and you will be money ahead.
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It is finally Spring here in MN and the weather is nice but now the St. Croix River is VERY flooded :( I the large front hatch out of my 1995 330 Sundancer (took 5 min) and wow the lower and side parts are all rotted and wet. I cleaned it out as much as I could per Frank's suggestion. There really isn't much to these cores and decks. There also isn't anything stopping water from getting in except for whatever caulking or seal they use on the hatch. The second that goes, boom you have water in your core. Why did they not just fiberglass these open sections? After seeing this I bet the majority of boats 10+ years old if they have not resealed or rebedded their hatches have wet core (to some degree). Anyways, I think I am gonna keep scraping as much as I can out, let it dry out, then cut 3/4 inch strips of marine plywood and fill the gaps with the strips and use West Systems Six10 resin to fill in everything else. then reseal/bed the hatch/screws with 3M 4200. What are is everyone thoughts on this? I think I can fix this for around $200 as opposed to the $5,000 I was originally quoted.

Thanks,
-Chris
 
Chris

If you have access to all of the wet coring from the hatch then the professional repair wouldn’t be 5000.00. Make sure you get the moisture out before you repair it. It may be worth having a fiberglass guy look at your work now that the hatch has been removed and get their opinion again.
 
NotHerDecision said:
Chris

If you have access to all of the wet coring from the hatch then the professional repair wouldn’t be 5000.00. Make sure you get the moisture out before you repair it. It may be worth having a fiberglass guy look at your work now that the hatch has been removed and get their opinion again.
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None of the professionals want to do the work now. My guess is that they have bigger jobs.
 
Completed this job yesterday! I am the least handy person you will meet so I had my contractor buddy help me. Total time was 2.5 hours. Used marine plywood and West Systems Six10 epoxy then resealed the hatch with 3M 4000UV. I think it turned out well. Total cost was $192. Should be better than Factory. Check your hatches!
 

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SkiPharmer said:
Completed this job yesterday! I am the least handy person you will meet so I had my contractor buddy help me. Total time was 2.5 hours. Used marine plywood and West Systems Six10 epoxy then resealed the hatch with 3M 4000UV. I think it turned out well. Total cost was $192. Should be better than Factory. Check your hatches!
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That's great, thanks for the follow up and pics!
 
SkiPharmer said:
Completed this job yesterday! I am the least handy person you will meet so I had my contractor buddy help me. Total time was 2.5 hours. Used marine plywood and West Systems Six10 epoxy then resealed the hatch with 3M 4000UV. I think it turned out well. Total cost was $192. Should be better than Factory. Check your hatches!
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Nice Job. Six10 is some wonderful epoxy. I use that for all kinds of jobs on the boat.
 
Good news: the soft deck is now rock hard. Can’t even tell where it was.
Bad news: i thought i sealed my hatch properly but i washed the boat and it leaks bad! My mattress and bedding was soaked :( I used 3M 4000UV. I’m thinking of taking the hatch off and using a ton more. What else would you do? I put enough on that it came out of most of the sides..

It’s always something!
 
SkiPharmer said:
used 3M 4000UV. I’m thinking of taking the hatch off and using a ton more. What else would you do? I put enough on that it came out of most of the sides..
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It sounds like you tightened down on the screws right away, ejecting all the caulk. Start over, but this time be gentle with the hatch until the caulk has had a chance to partly cure. When it's firmed up enough to be pliable but no longer gooey, then screw the hatch down. (you can put a bead on a piece of cardboard as a sample)

I coat the screws with caulk just to be sure. I don't trust my caulking skills when it comes to a clean bead, so I ran plastic detail tape around the perimeter of the hatch base (3/4ths - the hinge gets in the way). The results were better than factory.
 
RollerCoastr said:
It sounds like you tightened down on the screws right away, ejecting all the caulk. Start over, but this time be gentle with the hatch until the caulk has had a chance to partly cure. When it's firmed up enough to be pliable but no longer gooey, then screw the hatch down. (you can put a bead on a piece of cardboard as a sample)

I coat the screws with caulk just to be sure. I don't trust my caulking skills when it comes to a clean bead, so I ran plastic detail tape around the perimeter of the hatch base (3/4ths - the hinge gets in the way). The results were better than factory.
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I did screw the screws in right away. I had no idea I was supposed to wait. thanks for that advice!
 
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