Hunter 23 interior plywood replacement

Apr 28, 2019
1
Hunter 23 Seattle
Since a few months I have a neglected Hunter 23. The previous owner left it to rot and due to leaking windows the interior plywood had started to rot and mold. The other day when I sat on it I went through it. I started to remove the screws and the carpet and noticed that the plywood is fiberglassed to the hull.
Any recommendation on how to remove and replace and not endanger the hull strength?
 

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Apr 27, 2010
1,240
Hunter 23 Lake Wallenpaupack
Hard to tell what that photo is, maybe add one that shows a larger area.
But, you will likely have to grind out the wood, possibly leaving the tabbed glass edge on to which you can epoxy new wood. I fixed one of my chainplate bulkheads that had rotted from leakage. I used an angle grinder and a saw blade in an oscillating tool to cut out the bad wood and the glass tabbing. Just be very careful to not cut into the glass that forms the hull.
Check the chainplate bulkheads carefully. If they have rotted it'll be more painful than falling through the settee, if your mast is lost.
 
Sep 30, 2011
20
Hunter 23 Clarks Hill Lake
Going through the same up fit on my Hunter 23 right now. I was planning on grinding back the tabs so I could tab in the new parts. I have attached a photo from my boat. Looks like we have very similar damage.
6164EA49-2F04-4F2B-87B9-29E8C342F3C7.jpeg
 
Oct 27, 2016
0
Seattle
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Apr 27, 2010
1,240
Hunter 23 Lake Wallenpaupack
I'm glad I didn't have to rebuild all that interior woodwork on mine. Just sayin'. Wonder how your boats got so flooded to cause that much damage.
 
Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
Steve,
I'm in the middle of replacing a lot of the interior panels from my H34 due to rot. I just finished replacing the main cabin sole with 3/4 Holly and Teak plywood. I used the old panels (as much as was left) as a template. Cut the plywood and test fitted it. Then took it home and applied an epoxy to both sides, then 6 coats of a AWLGRIP to the top. I then replaced the side cubbies with new wood. I purchased 1/2 marine plywood and then either an off-white or natural teak Formica. Most of the replacement wood is inside the cubbies and what does show matches the remaining real teak. Again, I used the old pieces as templates. In some cases, I screwed the old piece to the new piece and then used a router with a pattern bit to duplicate the original, and then applied an epoxy coating after a test fit.

One of the hardest parts was removing the bronze screws, in some cases I just took a 4 1/2" grinder to cut off the old rotted panel and leave the teak unharmed. I didn't want to try and remove the screws that were countersunk into the teak and capped. I then screwed the teak back onto the new boards from the new board.
upload_2019-5-14_7-44-59.png


You can get new bronze screws by the box or get some stainless steel screws for the refit.

As for the fiberglass, it might be that the fiberglass is holding the wood in place rather than providing structural support. Regardless, You can probably pry it off or cut it and then get apply a new piece of fiberglass once you have the new wood in place. Fiberglassing isn't rocket science. Probably a youtube video.