My teak and holly floor is rotted out and ....

S

Sailsteve

Member
...It needs to be replaced.

Over the years rising and ebbing bilge water has taken its toll on the 1981 floor and some of the cabinetry on my E36RH. I am gearing up for an over-the-winter repair project. Has anyone done this work? If so, I could use some guidance about installing a new sub-floor and then the teak and holly surface. How thick does each have to be? Will a 3/4" marine ply suffice for the sub-floor or do I need 1"? How thick should the teak and holly ply be on top of the subfloor? Should I bother at all with teak and holly or is there another wood that would look as nice when finished? Etc. Etc Etc.

Any and all advice will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Steve
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P

PDX

Member III
Pre fab teak and holly is a veneer that comes on a plywood backer. The backer is marine grade plywood. If you like the teak and holly look, and want it pre fab, then I think this type of plywood only comes in teak. If constructing your own non veneer floor is an option, there are other rot resistant hardwoods available. I can think of two off hand, cumaru and ipe, that are harder than teak and more wear resistant. They are also considerably cheaper. They are also heavier if that is a problem.

As far as the thickness of the sub-floor, a safe bet would be to go with the thickness it came with. On my boat I sized down the sub-floor (3/4" to 1/2") but I also beefed up the underlying hull supports considerably.
 
C

Ccaptain

Ccaptain
Teak and holly 3/4' vs a glued up overrlay

I have this same job to accomplish on my Ericson 34. The cost of 3/4' teak and holly vs 5/8' subfloor and then 1/8" teak and holly is not worth talking about. This is without even considering the time spent and the cost of a high quality epoxy/glue. Of course I have the advantage of no shipping cost as a local lumber yard carries a wide range of dimensional lumber and exotic woods.
 
D

Dan Morehouse

Member III
The previous owner of my boat had the sole replaced after whatever original floor was damaged by water. They used 1/2" ply with teak and holly veneer. But the TAFG solid floor surfaces under it are so close together that 1/2" is perfectly acceptable. I just wish they had done a thorough job of coating the underside with epoxy, because even though it's probably marine grade plywood, mildew from the damp environment in the bilge has gotten all the way through the ply in spots and is discoloring the teak and holly in places. Epoxy the underside! And all the edges!
 
CTOlsen

CTOlsen

Member III
Teak/Holly vernee ply

I replaced the cabin sole on my previous boat. Purchased an 8'X4' sheet from the local lumber yard (Yukon Lumber) in Norfolk who will stock the stuff, then used toe existing sole pieces as templates. Worked and look perfect. Easy to do with standard hand power tools. You will likely need 2 sheets, so plan on ~ $350.00 for materials alone, depending on the thickness of your sole. Good Luck! It is very doable.
 
T

Tazman

Member I
1985 Ericson 32 Floor Replacement

One of the most challenging and rewarding projects I ever completed was replacing the floor on our Ericson 32. One day my wife was complaining that the floor felt a little spongy. Sure it was discolored from years of marine environment but did we really need to do it now. I jumped on the suspect part of the floor and my feet left a huge "dent" in the floor. Now the project was at the top of my winter project list.

At first I thought I would just remove the floor in one piece, use it as a template, cut the new teak and holly, and a new floor would be ready to install. What I'd didn't realize was that the floor was glued down. Three days with a hammer and chisel left the biggest piece, somewhere between 6-10". When finally removed, we discovered the sub flooring below also needed to be replaced. Once all the floor was removed, we understood why boats have that lovely musty smell. 30 years of darkness in a marine environment creates interesting creatures. Deciding to do this job right and never having to do it again, here are the steps taken.

Get bid from a professional. At 8k, it became a winter project.
Remove all the floor and sub floor. Plan on many hours with a hammer and chisel. clean, clean some more
Use hardboard to make a pattern. It took many hours with files, rasps, and saws but the pattern was perfect. We did that for the teak and holly as well as the sub floor
Transfer the floor pattern to the teak and holly. It took two sheets. I used Marine grade ply for the subfloor.
Fit all pieces onto the boat to make sure that all the lines, lined up and the fit was perfect.
Cut bilge hatches and trip them with teak. I used new stainless hardware throughout.
Three coats of West Epoxy on everything.
Finish Teak and Holly with a two part polyurethane finish, three coats. Wear a good respirator as this stuff is TOXIC
Secured the new floor with squared drive bronze screws, don't even think of glueing it down.

It took many hours but came out wonderful. There were times when I wanted to assume the fetal position and cry but it was worth it. The boat looks wonderful, the musty smell is gone, and my sense of accomplishment was extreme. Since it is screwed in place, I can remove it for a new coat or to just clean.
 
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