Soft Sole Replacement

kloudie1 · Feb 24, 2013

Ya might want to consider a waterproof core material like Klegecell or Divnycell, instead of wood.. For below waterline application, seems like it would be much better for piece of mind.. That is a highly loaded piece of hull .. I believe I'd repair it with foam ..

Chris Patterson · Feb 24, 2013

My only thought would be, is it's a heck of a lot cheaper to fill it with your plywood than buy all that epoxy. It had wood in it before didn't it? But you'll do a better job of waterproofing it than AMF did.

RichH · Feb 24, 2013

kloudie1 said:
Ya might want to consider a waterproof core material like Klegecell or Divnycell, instead of wood.. For below waterline application, seems like it would be much better for piece of mind.. That is a highly loaded piece of hull .. I believe I'd repair it with foam ..

Ditto on Klegecell or Divnycell .... why do this backbreaking work 'twice' when your bilge 'overflows' again.

Ted · Feb 24, 2013

Before you commit to a method you have to determine if your cabin sole was part of the structural integrity of the boat. Many boat builders used a structural pan as part of the interior finished surfaces. Looking at your photo, it looks like your sole may be used to stiffen the hull at the keel. If that's the case, you must handle the fiberglass work as a structural repair and not as strictly cosmetic.

Bad Obsession · Mar 3, 2013

If you need to warm the wet core, why not place a cabin heater in the cabin overnight. A ceramic one will warm it up quite a bit and then you can do the work while it is still cool outside.

I have to agree with the idea of a waterproof core material. It just seems like a good idea to do this.

onecoolair · Apr 7, 2013

Squidd said:
Got a chance to do a little more damage in the boat...

Got the sole opened up and the old soft Balsa sub floor out...

Started fitting Marine grade plywood to fill void...

Next step is to coat plywood and epoxy into soleprior to glass work...but for that I'm gonna need some warmer days/nights...my little heater warms up tyhe air enough to work but probably not warm enought to kick the epoxy...That and I want things to dry up a little more before I reseal...

Can you run a dehumidifier while boat is closed up.....let it sit on counter and then drain onto sink.....it will slightly warm the boat.... I do this on my boat and it makes for a big difference down below.... Mine is just a little 30 pint from Wally mart . It has electronic controls so you can set the humidity level to your needs Well worth the expense.

onecoolair · Apr 7, 2013

Squidd said:
Might be a little too cool for a dehumidifier at present, they neeed 40* or better to opperate...

Up here in northern Wisconsin were still getting 20* nights, only 40* days and have 10" of snow on the ground yet...Still waiting for spring to appear...

I under stand your point ...This unit as an automatic defrost cycle. Just set it and forget...I had no problem with it freezing up this winter. And with the many other feachers and its little computer brain...Of course down here we have had a more mild winter then you up north...Back 35+ years ago I had an old sears model and it would just freeze up after it got dark....And that was in the middle of summer...It was large had sharp edges and was a real pain to store, we would have to leave it on the skinny finger pier when we wanted to go sailing. ....You would think that after you got the humidity down to a certain level inside the boat there would be less dampness in the air to collect on the coils and freeze.

bffatcat · Apr 28, 2013

repairs below water lne

I would listen to Rich H and bad obsession Namely, avoid wood below the water line

Jumpstart · Apr 28, 2013

No problem with "wood" below the waterline if it is done right. My cockpit sole with balsa, plywood and solid glass core.

Chris Patterson · Apr 29, 2013

It's my understanding that boats have been built with wood below the waterline for around ten thousand years or so.

You may be alright..

topcat0399 · May 5, 2013

Squidd said:
Had a couple warm days (finally) so I layed up a bit moreepoxy on the sole...

I had already coated the bottom of the plywood as well as edges, then a layer in bottom of sole cavity...let that harden up...

Then I mixed a batch and poured it in the cracks and gaps around the plywood to tie everything together...I coated the top of the plywood and layed in a wide layer of 6oz cloth over the existing sole...

Then another narrower layer of cloth and epoxy to build up the thickness of the original sole.

When this hardens up, I'll sand the lumps and bumps out and be ready for the final top coat to smooth it all out into one texture...

Not sure if I want to go to the trouble of making molds and trying to duplicate the old non skid pattern with borders etc...or just dust it with silica sand in the wet top coat and then cover with paint...

You and I are living very similiar lives right now.....except here the thaw finally happened and I've been gluing my but off while the sun is still shining. The number one priority this year is NO more water from topside. 40 year old boats and wet cores just seem to go together.

happy sails

Soft Sole Replacement

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