Sagging Deck Question

[BaySailerBill]

Hi All, I need to pick the brains of this knowledge packed collection of old salts.I'm restoring my 1973 Oday-23 hardtop and I have some sagging in the bow deck. I'm a woodworker so I was considering installing some 1"x2.5" oak header beams above the V-berth to firm-up the deck. Does this sould like a reasonable fix, or does anyone have some better advice. Before I breakout the tools I thought it might be a good idea to ask the experts.Thanks,BILL

 

[48dodge]

I'm definitely no expert.

I can't say for certain since I don't know how the 23 deck is supposed to feel, but it sounds like you might have a rotten core. If that's the case, then the outer layer fiberglass will need to be removed and the core replaced. Header beams would just mask the problem.

 

[Wayne M]

Someone in

our Catalina 22 forum had the same problem the wood core beneath the fiberglass was rotted. He used a product called Rot Doctor.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Problem source?

Have you fixed the source of the wet coring? In the Related Link it appears there are several potential sources of water ingress. As previously mentioned the best fix is to cut out the top skin, replace the core, and glass the skin back to original. There are some new coring options ( http://www.efoamstore.com/ ) that will not absorb moisture and will not rot. Still the source needs to be found and stopped I think.

 

[higgs]

Baysailor

You are getting sound advice here.

 

[BaySailerBill]

Thanks So Much

for all of your advice. Ed, I know exactly where the moisture is coming from. It seems the previous owner had no concept of pre-season maintenance. Every cleat and plate on the boat has to be removed, inspected and replaced with new bolts in many cases. I sailed the boat for three months last year after I bought it and everything seemed to be sound, but I have a feeling that I'm in for quite a bit of work once I start inspecting things more closely. 48dodge, I agree that the header beams will only mask the problem and it would be best to fix it and be done with it. Wayne, thanks for the link, I will call then tommorow. It looks like that product just might do the trick.Thanks again for your help

 

[Maine Sail]

Here's a good link..

Here's a very good link to deck repair. http://www.triton381.com/projects/restoration/recore.htmlIt's very, very important to ALWAYS re-bed the deck hardware when you re-install it. To do this a product like 3M 101, 3M 4200 or Life Caulk will work fine. To help make this seal a LOT more water tight countersink each of the holes slightly before bolting the hardware down. Doing this creates "bevel o-ring" and as you tighten the deck hardware this countersunk bevel catches the bedding compound forcing it around the shaft of the bolt thus creating a perfectly sealed o-ring..Don't bother with injecting epoxy! All it does is make a HUGE mess for you when it comes time to fix it the right way. I've seen the cores of a number of boats that attempted a fix this way and it made the labor that much worse when it came time to finally fix it the right way. Anyone suggesting this type of fix has clearly never seen the internal result!!!It does sound like you have a wet deck and it needs to be repaired. When you do repair it consider using solid fiberglass around the areas where deck hardware is so that even if a fitting does leak you won't damage the core.

 

[NautiDuck]

I did this project

I had a saggy deck on my C22. I used Rot Doctor epoxy on it. In my case the core was not rotten but the upper glass had delamed which created the flex. I did the repair from below since fixing the deck, especially non-skid, is very difficult to have look good. I drilled about 6 holes around the weak area (1/2" holes) with the holes up through the core but NOT through the upper glass. Then I used an oil/grease gun to pump thin epoxy into the void. I used a rubber cork with a hole drilled in it through which I passed the gun's nozzle. I cut the nozzle tip at an angle so the epoxy came out the side of the nozzle while the tip pushed against the upper glass. Pumped a bunch of epoxy up there, corked all the holes, and then put sand bags on the deck to compress it all together. Solid as a rock.If you go this route I can provide more details. If your core is completely rotted then you are looking at removing and replacing the core. Still, do the work from the inside and your deck will look good after the project.