reinforcing floor board (updtated w/ pics)

Jack,
Where is it soft and have you pulled the carpet back like Brian suggested in your other thread when you asked?

Pictures?

Did you find the RWP and get to your impeller?

Jack,

What part of the floor feels soft? As I said in the other thread, most of the center section in the arena area is one big pannel. You remove the seats all the way round, and then the panel comes up with removal of about 4 screws.

I believe some guys on another forum mentioned using an rv plug to fill the hole. In RVs, sometimes a plug is used to fill the hole for table legs.

BKH

I'd say the weakest area is probably just behind dead center. I have removed it before, I just haven't found the time to do it since it has weakened.

I will update this thread when I remove it.

I'd imagine the best way to reinforce it would be to lay down fiberglass weave on the underside. thoughts?

if it is the removal panel then isn't it wood and shouldn't a new piece CPES and carpeted take care of the issue.

This is correct, It is fiberglass. Before I took a closer look, it appeared to be wood, by the looks of the hole left by the removed ski pylon.

Still haven't been able to remove it, but I will update this thread when I do.

Any suggestions on a good fiberglass/epoxy combo?

Thanks, all!

79nautique wrote: If it is fiberglas then remove the carpet from it, cut out the delaminated section and reglass with mat and/or cloth untill it's the same thickness, recarpet, reinstall.

I'm not sure what you mean by "the delaminated section".

Ok, that makes perfect sense. Thanks.

If it comes off without ripping, there should be no reason you can't glue it back on.

BKH

Epoxy is stronger than polyester based resin, and also more water proof under saturation. The auto parts stores will probably only sell polyester resin. Also, fiberglass, mat, cloth, roving is different for epoxy resin vs. polyester resin, at least that is what I'm told. You probably won't need much. Perhaps a quart or two. West Marine sells it, but they are pricey. You can probably also get it at Tap plastics. Most guys here doing major repairs/stringer jobs buy their materials from US composites. There is a lot of information about fiberglass repairs/materials in any of the stringer/floor threads.

In terms of glue, I have not seen a recommended brand. I know several have used outdoor carpet glue which they picked up at Lowe's, Depot, or Ace.

I'm not the fiberglass expert. I've only done patch work on surfboards, boats, etc. I'm perhaps a third of the way through my first stringer job, and have not yet purchased my resin or glass.

BKH

it looks like there might be some cracking under the 1st or 2nd layer of glass:

I'm sure some of the guys with more fiberglass experience than I will be along to recommend a fix. Looking at it, I now think you may need a bit more resin, but I don't think any more than a gallon.

You'll have to grind away some glass, to get rid of the glue, and makes sure there is a clean surface for the new glass to bond. I am also guessing they will advise to grind more deeply where the cracks are, lay in some reinforcement in the cracks, and then cover with a larger swath for strength. Again, I'd listen to someone with more expertise than me before I proceeded.

That cracking is just par for the course from people hopping in and out of the boat. A 200lb person coming down on the heal of the foot can generate a tremendous amount of force. Add in moisture in a boat which can soften the lamination, and it just happens.

BKH

I know that section of floor can be repaired, and I would guess it will be much cheaper than trying to replace it. I am not certain what the best method to do the repair is. Guys like pbrainard, morfoot, Dr CC and others, have a lot more experience than I do working with fiberglass.

BKH

Jack - Think of the repair as creating a very wide V groove. The depth should be to the bottom of the crack. The width need to be about 3 inches. You will want to feather the repair out level with the original surface. It will take several layers of glass, each one wider than the last.

Jack,
Brian's got the repair down pretty good but he also made another good point. That is replacement may be easier! First, it may be a real PITA to get the carpet adhesive off. It's going to take time, solvent, grinding and clogging lots of abrasive disk's. To do the job properly, the crack needs to be filled but just as Brien mentioned, another layer of cloth over the top and I'd recommend the bottom too.

See how easy the adhesive comes off. If tough, consider starting over with a piece of exterior ply with CPES, resin and glass on both sides/edges.

Pete, remember, this boat was a 96. There shouldn't be any wood in that floor panel. I don't think using ply is a good answer.

Jack, you need to grind a v down to the crack from each side. this gives you a clean surface for the repair to bind, and also allows you to build the area back up strongly. Once ground down, you can trickle some epoxy resin in the crack itself. However, as you build up the repair you need fiberglass cloth or mat in the resin. Resin by itself is strong, but brittle. The glass gives it strength. What Chris was saying is you start with a small strip, mayble and inch. Then A wider strip and so on until you have filled up the V and created a repair 3 or 4 inches wide.   The wider the repair, the stronger it will be be. If the cracks are small, you can probably just widen them with a dremel and fill with resin, then cover with mat. If the cracks are wide, and the fiberglass has delaminated near the cracks, you need to grind away the loose material.

There should be acore of some sort of composite in that panel. Worst case, you grind down to the core, and then build the fiberglas back up to level.

I believe what Pete is saying is that once you have fixed all of the cracks, he also recommends a layer of cloth across the whole repair, probably across the entire surface of the panel, for strength. He is recommending a layer of mat or cloth across top and bottom. To do this, you need to be sure all of the adhesive is off. This means either grinding the whole surface, or if you get lucky, getting it off with adhesive remover.

Just cutting a sheet of plywood, coating with CPES, and glassing over it would be quicker. But, in my opinion, it's not the right thing to do. One of the selling points of 93 and later boats is that they have no wood in the construction. I don't think it's in your best interest to put wood in there now.

I would guess it will take you a couple of hours to grind off the surface both sides, grind out the cracks to a V. Probably two or three layers of glass to fill up the Vs, and a layer of Mat or cloth on both sides. If you did just one layer a day, you'll be done in a week.

Free advice, take it for what it's worth.

BKH