Repairing Teak/Holly Cabin Sole Floor Dents

[kvalerio]

I made the rookie mistake of momentarily storing our hatch boards on the top stair of the cabin. My husband stepped on to the boat as I watched said hatch boards slide off the top step and onto the teak/holly floor of our '89 H27. There are now two nickel sized dents in the floor. Any suggestions for a repair technique or wood filler to fix these dings?

 

[woodster]

take a wet towel and lay it over the dent and take a steam iron and work it back and forth over the damaged area shooting steam off and on ...if that doesn't do it just plan on living with it ...or you could cut a plug out of the damage area and replace the damaged with a new plug of the matching material but that will require a lot of work

 

[CATBOAT WILLY]

Since the teak & holly sole in your boat is a veneer, it will be difficult to fix and make look original.
BUT, I would certainly fill it with something and get some varnish (or other sealer) over the dents. This is a perfect place for water intrusion, whether it be rain or sea water, which will most certainly destroy the the remainder of the floor board.

 

[kvalerio]

take a wet towel and lay it over the dent and take a steam iron and work it back and forth over the damaged area shooting steam off and on ...if that doesn't do it just plan on living with it ...or you could cut a plug out of the damage area and replace the damaged with a new plug of the matching material but that will require a lot of work

Thank you, Woodster. I plan to try the steam iron technique today! Fingers crossed...

 

[kvalerio]

Since the teak & holly sole in your boat is a veneer, it will be difficult to fix and make look original.
BUT, I would certainly fill it with something and get some varnish (or other sealer) over the dents. This is a perfect place for water intrusion, whether it be rain or sea water, which will most certainly destroy the the remainder of the floor board.

Good point regarding the water intrusion. I was thinking superficially of the looks. Every time I step into the cabin, all I can see are the dents mocking me and my bad judgement!

 

[Sailor_Jeff]

Good point regarding the water intrusion. I was thinking superficially of the looks. Every time I step into the cabin, all I can see are the dents mocking me and my bad judgement!

I crashed a plane about 20 something years ago. Doing something that was not so smart. Me and the plane got repaired quickly, my ego took a little longer. The plane still flies today. Yes, I still have it. I have the broken prop hung on the wall, first thing I see walking into the house. Like a sign reminding me. I have learned and when I see it, I smile remembering the mistake I'll never make again. Embrace those dents. Lessons learned at the university of hard Knox. The actual damage to the floor is really minor. No one would probably notice it but you. Seal it, and own it. And when you see someone else doing something not so smart, perhaps you can use that to be more tolerant.

I heard a wise man answer a kid once who asked why something was damaged. His answer was, "Because when I was younger I thought it was smart to do stupid things." In you case it wasn't stupid, it was a momentary laps. Innocent something that will never happen again to you.

The other thing you can do is to replace the soul (floor). Then wait for the next thing to scratch, dent, or break it. Or cut plug, epoxy sand epoxi sand and then, you will still see it.

I would live with it after it is sealed, but that's me.

 

[kvalerio]

I crashed a plane about 20 something years ago. Doing something that was not so smart. Me and the plane got repaired quickly, my ego took a little longer. The plane still flies today. Yes, I still have it. I have the broken prop hung on the wall, first thing I see walking into the house. Like a sign reminding me. I have learned and when I see it, I smile remembering the mistake I'll never make again. Embrace those dents. Lessons learned at the university of hard Knox. The actual damage to the floor is really minor. No one would probably notice it but you. Seal it, and own it. And when you see someone else doing something not so smart, perhaps you can use that to be more tolerant.

I heard a wise man answer a kid once who asked why something was damaged. His answer was, "Because when I was younger I thought it was smart to do stupid things." In you case it wasn't stupid, it was a momentary laps. Innocent something that will never happen again to you.

The other thing you can do is to replace the soul (floor). Then wait for the next thing to scratch, dent, or break it. Or cut plug, epoxy sand epoxi sand and then, you will still see it.

I would live with it after it is sealed, but that's me.

Sailor Jeff, thank you for sharing your story. Wow...a plane crash. I feel humbled! Makes me realize how much I need to stop sweating the small stuff. I will seal the darn floor and embrace my dents (and never store the hatch boards on the stairs again, even momentarily!)