Recently purchased this little gem of a project boat (Cat 25 tall rig) and discovered this after removing the seat cushions. There's no ongoing evidence of chainplate leaking or any other damage on the backside and no current leaking so seems as though the source was taken care of already. Perhaps it was from a leaking window above and neglected for a couple years hidden under the cushions? regardless, I'm hoping someone here will be able to tell me that this corner is not structurally critical and that i can excavate and perhaps use wood filler to repair in place without having to demount/replace the entire bulkhead. Thoughts?
How serious is this rot?
- Thread starter jdallas
- Start date
Replace it. Some will say you will be fine, just patch it. If it were me, well, I would have moved the cushions before handing over money. But, I have also been in your shoes, first boat was a rotted POS O'Day 25. Anyway, I would go over the boat and replace all rotted wood. It doesn't get better with age, it gets worse.
I can't tell from the photos so is the bulkhead tabbed to the hull? If so I would probably look towards a repair. Maybe sistering some plywood (If possible from the other side). And doing a cosmetic repair there. You should remove any wet wood and mold before a repair. The mold will probably wicked up between the plys. You could probably use thickened epoxy for the repair. If you can find or make some mahogany sawdust and use as thickener the color will be pretty close. Try a local cabinet shop. Varnish for uv protection.
The chainplate comes in right above that, so you need to learn how it all works together as part of the chainplate support system.
I had a C25 for 13 years. Here is THE place to ask for folks who KNOW that particular boat:
I don't know your boat and that spot doesn't look like it will have a lot of impact on the overall structure of the boat, but the bulkhead does look like an important structural piece. What does it look like underneath the seat and back of the bench? Does the picture show the whole panel or is some of it buried?
Without more information, I think you should just replace it. It doesn't look that hard to remove and the cost and ease of cutting a piece of marine plywood to fit is a fraction of your typical "boat buck" repairs.
-Will (Dragonfly)
Without more information, I think you should just replace it. It doesn't look that hard to remove and the cost and ease of cutting a piece of marine plywood to fit is a fraction of your typical "boat buck" repairs.
-Will (Dragonfly)
The bulkhead, in addition to providing an anchorage position and hull stiffening bulkhead, the partition is the at the other side of the head.
I'm not sure how the cushion really contributed to this without a being observable? The traditional layout of your C25 appears to have no vertical cushion that rises that high.
Anyway, is there any sign of distress on the head side of the bulkhead? If not, then I'd disassemble the seatee to see what's going on there. IF then rot and delamination is simply localized to the aft facing side of the plywood, more or less at the surface of the seatee, then I'd clean-up the first few layers of the plywood and use troweled on West Epoxy and some layers of veneer to build it back up to the same level. (You'd be recreating the plywood with alternating layers.) The finish of it would depend on your desire to make-it "right". You could put a fabric "cushion" over the patch -- or get more extensive in your approach.
I think that the plywood is part of the side shroud and the hull stiffening. I believe it is screwed or tabbed in and wouldn't be cutting stuff out it.
As suggested elsewhere in the thread, including Shemandr above, we need to better see the extent of the rot and any distress to advise you.
I'm not sure how the cushion really contributed to this without a being observable? The traditional layout of your C25 appears to have no vertical cushion that rises that high.
Anyway, is there any sign of distress on the head side of the bulkhead? If not, then I'd disassemble the seatee to see what's going on there. IF then rot and delamination is simply localized to the aft facing side of the plywood, more or less at the surface of the seatee, then I'd clean-up the first few layers of the plywood and use troweled on West Epoxy and some layers of veneer to build it back up to the same level. (You'd be recreating the plywood with alternating layers.) The finish of it would depend on your desire to make-it "right". You could put a fabric "cushion" over the patch -- or get more extensive in your approach.
I think that the plywood is part of the side shroud and the hull stiffening. I believe it is screwed or tabbed in and wouldn't be cutting stuff out it.
As suggested elsewhere in the thread, including Shemandr above, we need to better see the extent of the rot and any distress to advise you.
Thanks for the detailed response. I'll head out to the marina this weekend and take more pics but, to me, there's no sign of distress on the head side nor around the chainplate or anywhere else along the bulkhead perimeter and it appears to be localized to the aft facing plywood BUT the responses bring up excellent points and I need to open up the settee and examine the underside and hull.
i'll also check out the owners forum posted above.
Not a huge concern, just replace it. But it begs the question why you didn't see it beforehand even if it was just a project boat?
Replacing the bulkhead is a lot easier than you think. A bit time consuming but there's nothing difficult about it. When I replaced the bulkhead on my O'Day 25 I wondered why there wasn't any posts on it. Then I did the job and realized how simple it was
Because I'm new to sailing and didn't look in that corner; think that's obvious. I can give you a listing of everything else that was examined and tested during water trial along with the risk/benefit analysis if you like but, with the condition of the interior when I got it, I'm surprised there wasn't a dead body tucked away as well. I also didn't buy Apple stock in 1984. Wanna rub my nose in that, too?
Can't advise on whether this is repairable, but I replaced both bulkheads on a 1975 Catalina 27 a few years ago, and it was not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. The 25 is a very similar boat. Access to the port bulkhead is better than the starboard one since the backside is in the hanging locker instead of the head. We had the boat on the hard, the mast off, and they came out with relatively little difficulty. I'd at least loosen your rigging to take it out. We used the old bulkheads as templates for the new ones, which we epoxy sealed before installing. My guess is they'll last another 40 years or more, which the new owner will appreciate.
Good luck.
Good luck.
Not an expect, but that bulkhead looks like it was replaced already since it appears to be a different stain and grain then the forward starboard one visible in the picture. I'd be interested to see what the other side looks like and if the bolts and chain plate are loose. Still as others have said there is damage and risk without replace. I used a penetrating epoxy specific for rot repairs and it worked for my needs and how I used my O'Day 25. When I sold it I did not hide the repair and gave the new owner my honest opinion on it and that if he planned to really push the boat hard I'd replace it and the standing rigging.
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I had the same exact issue on my Catalina 30.. i replaced it. When i inspected how the load was spread out for the chainplate i didn't want to risk any problems when the boat is under major load and heeled to starboard 45 degrees from a surprise gust.. That's a LOT of load on the system. the issue you will find is finding a piece of plywood at that width. I had to learn how to splice plywood to create a wide enough piece.. if its anything like my old 30, that bulkhead goes another 6-7 inches into the port side beyond what you can see.
That bulkhead is a very important link in the system that holds the rig up. If it’s got any rot, it should be replaced. Take an ice pick to it and see if it’s soft. It it is soft, it’s no longer strong.
Here’s a couple of pictures of replacing the bulkhead on my old 1977 Catalina 27, which has the same type of bulkhead structure as your boat.
Catalina 27 Bulkhead Replacement
Here’s a couple of pictures of replacing the bulkhead on my old 1977 Catalina 27, which has the same type of bulkhead structure as your boat.
Catalina 27 Bulkhead Replacement
Pretty sure we used DrJudyB's post as a guide when we did our bulkhead replacements on our 1975 Catalina 27. Two thumbs up.
Does the compression post have to be removed? If so, how?
I’m in the process of doing my bulkheads as we speak. I was horrified at the extent of the rot even though it didn’t look nearly as bad as the OP’s picture . You could easily push a screwdriver straight through. Starboard side is out, port side is in process. Just need to know about the compression post. I don’t want to remove it if it’s not necessary.
Tom G
I’m in the process of doing my bulkheads as we speak. I was horrified at the extent of the rot even though it didn’t look nearly as bad as the OP’s picture . You could easily push a screwdriver straight through. Starboard side is out, port side is in process. Just need to know about the compression post. I don’t want to remove it if it’s not necessary.
Tom G