O'Day 23 interior repair questions

[Maks_s]

Good day,

Just got my O'Day 23-2 1979 and planning some repairs. As a first step planning to clean up interior: clean old paint from hull in lockers, replace wall carpet after fixing of deck leaks.
As I see v-berth, bulkheads holders, seats, floor and etc made of one solid formed piece of plastic.
Is it possible to cut it and remove partially (for example v-berth) to clean up hull and then fiberglass it back?

 

[gblankinship]

Mark, I also have a 23' O'Day and have done many upgrades/changes. An old sailor once told me "it is your boat. If you have the knowledge and desire you can change it how ever you like."
If you are good at 'glassing' and construction, have at it.

 

[Siamese]

What you're describing is the fiberglass hull liner, which is engineered to give strength to the entire structure. So, if you did remove portions of it, then it would (as you apparently already understand) need to be replaced. And, your repairs would need to have the same integrity as the original.

But, what's the point? So it's dirty under there...where you can't see. Unless there's radioactive waste down there, why not just leave it alone?

 

[Maks_s]

First of all thanks for your responses!
Hull liner, cool good to know. I see some waste and hope it's not radioactive lol. I like clean surfaces, painted white with wood accents. If hull liner give strength I'll try to fit my 6.3 into existing spaces without cutting the liner

Another question is glue on hull after removing carpet above hull liner. Is it ok to sand it a little and apply epoxy fairing compound over it to prepare the surface for painting?

 

[Project_Mayhem]

Can you post a few pics so we can give you accurate advice? Some changes were made over the years

 

[Timm R Oday25]

On some of our Odays , the factory glued a weird burlap type fabric to the inside . I peeled it off . Using a rough aggressive brush and a shop vac ,I was able to clean the inside out in about 2 hours . Keep the shop vac up in the cockpit and you'll be done in no time. I know of quite a few folks who have been very happy using a porch and floor paint with excellant long lasting results

 

[Maks_s]

...rough aggressive brush and a shop vac..

Oh, cool. Is aggressive brush safe for hull? Could you please share brush type that work for you?

Can you post a few pics so we can give you accurate advice? Some changes were made over the years

I decided not to cut hull liner because was able ti access all places that would like to paint lol. But I found smth weird on hull on starboard side. See photos.

Also above this weird thing on hull deck joint I see kind of plywood... any ideas what is it for? I do not see any damage on hull or deck outside....

 

[Timm R Oday25]

A brush for cleaning off your Weber grill sould work just fine . My guess is what you are seeing came from a previous owner and definitely not from the factory. I would carefully try a heat gun and a scraper . The operative word is "carefully " . Just enough heat to soften whatever the white sealant is .

 

[Maks_s]

Grill brush work fine, but in some places I'm using scraper first. Tomorrow planning to try drill brush, just to compare.

 

[JBP-PA]

I've found the easiest way to remove old adhesive from the fiberglass without causing damage is a fine wire wheel on a drill. A coarse wheel caused too much damage for my preference, but a quick final pass with the course wheel keyed the surface nicely for epoxy filler. Note "easiest", not "easy", it's still a messy pain. Gives the shop vac a workout, also PPE is important.
I know some people grind off the whole inner mess and add new glass, maybe that is easier but I haven't tried it.

 

[rschuss]

One can purchase new fabric from Sail Right. Removing the old fabric will reveal what was causing the leaks. My choice would be to fix the leaks and apply new fabric. Fabric is classy, paint.

 

[Maks_s]

Wire brush on a drill plus wire wheel for specific places works great!

I don't like fabric in high humidity places. Also it keep odors. Planning to paint plus make some plywood shelves to keep painted part as a background.

 

[Timm R Oday25]

I used a water based adhesive and covered the hull with a very light blue outdoor carpet. After fifteen years no humidity and zero smells .
The carpet insulates the hull from the cold water and drastically reduces condensation .