Headliner Replacement?

[Kper]

I'm in the process of trying to work a deal on a 222 that has been unused for a couple years and seems to be sound but needs a complete cleaning and some general maintenance. The headliner is dirty and has some staining. It's also separated at the mast step (something I need to look closer at). Is there a preferred method to clean the headliner and if that doesn't bring satisfactory results is the headliner available aftermarket? Looks like a big task to replace it.

Thanks.

 

[Brian S]

Kper, I tried to clean mine with some spray foam auto carpet cleaner. I don't think it made any difference.

I believe I read here somewhere that you can get the headliner material from Sailrite.com. It would be a big job, and I don't know that I'd want to bother.

Many boats just have a kind of semi-finished fiberglass, which can be painted. I see the utility in it, but I confess, I like the warm, cozy feeling of the carpeting, and it also makes for some quieter sleeping.

I don't think I'd ever want that foam backed vinyl-type headliner on a boat. When that foam starts to deteriorate (and it will,) there's no choice but to tear it out, laboriously try to clean off the old crumbly foam and glue, and start over again. Anything one would try to glue the old liner in place for another few years never seems to work.

 

[Kper]

Thanks, Brian. I didn't think it would be a pleasant experience. I would imagine the finish on the glass wouldn't be nice and smooth, either.

 

[agprice22]

I found the glass under the headliner on my 272 has the "combed" effect created when one runs the toothed floor glue speader through the glue, so you are probably stuck with that.

My wife and just removed the headliner / hull blanket from our 272. Luckily, there were no terrible leaks that fouled the bulkheads, so we just needed to:

1. Remove all the nuts and washers (making this a good time to rebed the deck hardware!)
2. Pull the trim off everything.
3. Remove the cabinets from the head
4. Pull off the headliner / hull blanket: this is hard work! Maybe see if you could find a solvent to soften the glue? Wear gloves, as pulling the carpeting will make your hands raw after a while. You will need some single edge razors, as the carpet seems to be applied to the entire cabin ceiling, right to the edge, before it is laid on the hull! Thus, the carpet is glued into the hull seam! Ugh! Also, pulling it will create a lot of dust. Something I considered but didn't try: get under a corner of the carpet, and shear the carpet away from the fiberglass with my Dremel Multimax tool. Could work!
5. Sand the glue and carpet remnants til smooth(er). You will NOT get all the glue off. Wear a mask, and connect your sander to a vacuum.
6. Clean the cabin ceiling and hull walls with a glue solvent (3m).
7. Buy a new carpet from Great Lakes Skipper or some other dealer. We bought an Off White, 1/4" foam backed, marine treated vinyl. Not cheap, but I doubt I will outlive it!
8. Buy a 3m spray adhesive. We bought Super 77 spray adhesive.

We are about to apply the vinyl this coming weekend. We will post pictures!

Thanks,
Andrew

 

[caguy]

When you redo your headliner consider this nifty idea from Sailrite.

http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?p=974527&highlight=caguy headliner velcro

 

[agprice22]

Here are a couple pics of of the cabin with the headliner removed:









Next: clean the cabin with the solvent remover.
Then: rebed the deck hardware.

Thanks,
Andrew

 

[mm2347]

I cleaned with Resolve Carpet Cleaner. It worked well but left some of the stains. After a couple of weeks I no longer noticed them.

 

[agprice22]

I cleaned with Resolve Carpet Cleaner. It worked well but left some of the stains. After a couple of weeks I no longer noticed them.

Weeeelllll... That ain't gonna work so well heeerrreee... 'Cause we already removed the carpet! However, the foam-backed vinyl is looking good!

 

[Brian S]

You can expect foam backed vinyl to last about 20-25 years, from what I've heard from folks who have the vinyl falling down due to degradation of the foam.

 

[Mad Dog]

I cleaned with Resolve Carpet Cleaner. It worked well but left some of the stains. After a couple of weeks I no longer noticed them.

My old girl has that awful boat smell, and I've narrowed it done to a mildewy headliner. How did you actually clean the liner - spray and vac with a wet/dry vac?

 

[agprice22]

So far, my feeling on the vinyl headliner is that it takes A LOT of glue to make it stick, and the smooth surface lets it show the surface fluctuations. However, it looks good, and it gives the boat a finished, more expensive look. Oh, it is harder to butt joint than the carpet too.

Thanks,

Andrew

 

[Technodad]

I replaced my hull liner with proper hull liner material, it is soft and sort of stretchy so it conforms easily over curves and bumps. The material is totally breathable so does not trap moisture like vinyl, it is mildew resistant as well.
I stripped out the old stinky fabric liner, scraped the surface and applied spray on contact cement to the FG and the backside of the material. It went on so easily, I just trimmed the edges with a knife after it was laid on.
If anyone is interested I can dig out the material supplier, the material comes in a few nice colors (I chose a very light color to brighten the interior, and wide width. reasonably priced as well.
Google "hull liner material" and read about it.
Here is a pic, it is the white color below the light... unfortunately I don't have any install pictures.