spongy deck area

[HCMCS18691]

I have a 25 year old fiberglass sailboat,recently acquired, that has an area in the deck of the cockpit that "gives" when you step on it. It feels spongy. Looking at the underside of the deck there doesn't seem to be anything that looks different. The soft area is just forward of the wheel and is about 18 inches in diameter. I'd like to be able to repair it , but don't have a clue. hcmcs@sbcglobal.com

 

[Mike]

Forum archives this site

If you go to forums on this site main page them forum archives and enter soft spot on deck you'll see lots of posts. one is from steve on april of 2004. I tried to cut and past the address below. Don't know if it will work. Seen this discussed many times here. Seems it usually is caused by water in between glass layers. Usually there is wood between the layers and the water causes it to turn to mush. Some talk of drilling holes through top layer of glass only, using L shaped sturdy wire in a drill to weed out the mush and inject epoxy. If its a larger area they say you can cut a square in the top layer of glass remove and replace wood and reglass. I'm not sure about cockpit deck. May be cored (wood between) or solid. DONT DO ANY OF THIS WITHOUT FIRST CHECKING. I'm only passing on what I've heard. I've never done it. I have drilled holes in deck for hardware and on my O'Day 25 there is a thin layer of glas then wood then glass. Get advise, careful,Mike

 

[Droop]

Here is what you have to do

Water has leaked into the wood core from the bolts that hold the wheel pedestal and wheel guard. You have to take the wheel assemble all apart first. Carefully cut the fiber glass out so it can be reused. The replace the rotted wood. Glue the removed fiberglass back down and reassemble the wheel. Remember to use lots of caulk with the bolts. This is a big job! Lots of work. If the owner would have keep up with maintenance this could have been avoided. Even just keep the water out with a wheel cover would have helped.. What Mike talked about will not work. He is describing a method to prevent this from happening. The L-shaped dril bit (bent nail) removes the wood so the you can fill it with epoxy and really keep the water out. Some peolpe do this for every deck pentration. This is also a big job to prevent your problem.What would I do? Just sail the boat! It is a 25 year old boat. 10 - 20 more year and she is ready for the bone yard.Sorry!

 

[TT]

Do some research first

HCMCS in Chicago - Please read my reply to Rick in response to his "Repairing Damaged Core" post on this site. It actually applies more to your problem than to Rick's. Same truths apply in both cases, though Rick's problem is a lot easier to fix than yours. If you'd like more info, I think you can e-mail me via this site.