Strip ceilings

[chowdan]

Mine are 1.5" wide. I went with western red cedar. Thickness is 3/8", cut to length. I planned these battens down from 3/4" thickness. I had to predrill the holes in each batten otherwise they would split.

I used a 1/4" round over bit on the visible edge to closely match the teak battens that are already in place.

I used marine ply from homedepot, ripped 2" wide furring strips and used thickened epoxy to secure them in place. Used screws to hold them in place until the epoxy cured. Filled the holes with Thickened epoxy once screws were removed.

As for the battens themselves, I used SS machine pan head screws...#8. Bought from homedepot.

I do enjoy the wood look and feel of the battens. I've finally figured out how I am doing the lighting which means I can now finish it. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have or give you feedback on any details of mine. I will also be using a Danish oil as my finishing surface.

On a side note, if you pursue this method, your going to have to figure out how to make sure everything is aligned if you have breaks like i do. If you don't it visually wont be appealing. I learned this the hard way as I went through a large section of installing it and it turning out to be of center by about a half inch and that causes the eyes to drift from one section to another.

Here's photos of mine.Attachment 189336Attachment 189337Attachment 189338

[Gene Neill]

Originally Posted by chowdan

Mine are 1.5" wide. I went with western red cedar. Thickness is 3/8", cut to length. I planned these battens down from 3/4" thickness. I had to predrill the holes in each batten otherwise they would split.

I used a 1/4" round over bit on the visible edge to closely match the teak battens that are already in place.

I used marine ply from homedepot, ripped 2" wide furring strips and used thickened epoxy to secure them in place. Used screws to hold them in place until the epoxy cured. Filled the holes with Thickened epoxy once screws were removed.

As for the battens themselves, I used SS machine pan head screws...#8. Bought from homedepot.

I do enjoy the wood look and feel of the battens. I've finally figured out how I am doing the lighting which means I can now finish it. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have or give you feedback on any details of mine. I will also be using a Danish oil as my finishing surface.

On a side note, if you pursue this method, your going to have to figure out how to make sure everything is aligned if you have breaks like i do. If you don't it visually wont be appealing. I learned this the hard way as I went through a large section of installing it and it turning out to be of center by about a half inch and that causes the eyes to drift from one section to another.

Beautiful! And great info. Thank you!

[Cheechako]

I used wider strips on the overhead with Port Orford Cedar on the boat I built. But that area is pretty flat with no compound curves.

[chowdan]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

I used wider strips on the overhead with Port Orford Cedar on the boat I built. But that area is pretty flat with no compound curves.

I really like the wider look. Makes less distracting lines above.

Looks like you used T&G? What sealer did you do?

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by chowdan

I really like the wider look. Makes less distracting lines above.

Looks like you used T&G? What sealer did you do?

They were not T&G, just about 3/8 thick white cedar I had milled from boards. (1982) I spray finished McCloskey's Man 0 War exterior varnish on them with an airless household sprayer before installation. Like 3 thick coats!
So I fitted them all in place, then removed and numbered them. Then sprayed and finished them and reinstalled!
Looking at that pic now it's amazing how dark they are. The cedar was white/yellow in color, but that exterior varnish has UV agent in it that is darker than interior varnish. I should have used that.
That cedar had so much oil and perfume in it it made my eyes water cutting it.

[Cheechako]

The boat was for sale up here I think last year and the broker photos showed it still looked very good 35+ years later!

[rsn48]

I lived in RV's on and off, first to save rent money and put saved money aside to purchase a home, secondly when doing two seperate large renovations to our home, cheaper than renting, and trying to find a place that would accept pets. And I have been RV'ing on and off for some 40 years.

In the "old days," RV manufactures made their RV's in the style of a boardroom, lots of dark wood. Airstream was one of those manufactures. Over time, people who used their RV frequently found these interiors too dark. I find older boats widely covered interiorly with mahogany or the like woods to be much too dark, especially sailboats that have limited small ports.

In bright sunny climates this may not be much of an issue, but in the Pacific Northwest and Coastal British Columbia and southern Alaska, especially in off season sailing, I just don't enjoy the darkness in the dark wood cabins.

If you go to a current RV show, you will find most of the travel trailers, fifth wheels and motorhomes are all using lighter coloured wood.

By the way, for those about to undertake a refit, I highly recommend visiting an RV show, you will get lots of storage ideas, decoration inspiration, and gizmo's that will work well in the boating environment. For some reason, the RV industry is far ahead of the curve of living in a small space. I often watch those tiny home shows and wonder why the person just doesn't go get an RV which often has a much better layout, especially those larger ones with slide outs.

Can you imagine slide outs in a boat? I can. The latest early trend in power boats is to have the rear starboard and port hull area above the cockpit deck, slide out to create seating when at anchor. This opens up the cockpit, neat idea.

So here is how not to do it:

https://www.google.com/search?q=boat...RQDLYYgc8ci3M:

I searched "Images" for what I am describing and this is what I came up with, kind of dorky looking I agree, but... in the cockpit area, really a great idea. I came across this idea at the Vancouver International Boat Show but don't remember the brand of boat it came on so I have to show you this instead, use your imagination:

https://www.google.com/search?biw=19...blw5Y4BBVuHBM:

[Sand crab]

I'm a retired contractor/carpenter so here's my $.02.
The cheapest, easiest, fastest way to do this is to purchase those packs of t&g paneling at the home improvement store. Ours come in knotty pine or knotty cedar and the price is about the same, $20 per 14 sq. ft. You will not find real wood paneling for close to this price. Each stick is 8' by about 3" and 1/4 to 5/16" thick. I haven't used these in in a boat but have used it in a few projects and it looks fine if you like the knotty look. You can't blind nail it because it's so thin but that might work with a dab of Liquid Nails behind it. I have face nailed it with SS 1/4" staples. The staples almost disappear when you keep them with the grain. Stainless staples usually need to be ordered but the are there on eBay.
Good Luck

[Gene Neill]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

I'm a retired contractor/carpenter so here's my $.02.
The cheapest, easiest, fastest way to do this is to purchase those packs of t&g paneling at the home improvement store. Ours come in knotty pine or knotty cedar and the price is about the same, $20 per 14 sq. ft. You will not find real wood paneling for close to this price. Each stick is 8' by about 3" and 1/4 to 5/16" thick. I haven't used these in in a boat but have used it in a few projects and it looks fine if you like the knotty look. You can't blind nail it because it's so thin but that might work with a dab of Liquid Nails behind it. I have face nailed it with SS 1/4" staples. The staples almost disappear when you keep them with the grain. Stainless staples usually need to be ordered but the are there on eBay.
Good Luck

I've seen those packs of thin T&G and thought about using them. I'll give them a second look, in honor of your suggestion. FWIW, we are dark-wood people, so they'd have to be stained to roughly the color of the existing interior sapele. No big deal though. Thanks for the suggestion.

[Sand crab]

These guys did a van out of the stuff.
https://www.instructables.com/id/Ced...-van-interior/

[Gene Neill]

Update: the die is cast!

This week I took the long drive down to south Florida and came back with three sheets of 1/4" (6mm) marine grade plywood. It is a ribbon-cut Sapele veneer, over Okume base. Going with one-side veneer vs. solid Sapele reduced the cost by about 66%.

I have applied three coats of Petit Captain's #1015 varnish to the pretty side. Next I will flip it and apply a coat of penetrating epoxy to the back side. Then I will begin cutting it into strips and sealing the edges, and at some point I will probably add another coat or two to the pretty side, perhaps after the installation is complete.

I just love the way the light plays tricks with Sapele grain. It is actually iridescent, with the size and color of the grain changing right before your eyes as you look at it from different angles. It's going to break my heart to rip this wood to pieces. I will try to number the strips and apply them to the hull sequentially, in order to preserve the grain as much as possible.

I might have used a satin varnish, but the Admiral pulled rank on me:

[rbk]

For those wanting to lighten the interior and use inert waterproof materials, they make PVC wainscoting approx 5" wide, hide the fasteners in the tongue and through screw battens on the joints, countersunk and plugged. Also using foil faced products only achieves the stated R values (usually 6-6.2R/inch) if you keep a 1" air space in front of the foil face. Should also note that the foil face on most of those products are very impermeable (slightly more permeable than 6mil poly) and will trap moisture in between the hull and the insulation. Roxul makes a mineral wool sheet product now in varying thicknesses -

"ROCKWOOL COMFORTBOARD™ 80 is a rigid mineral wool insulation sheathing board that is non-combustible, water-repellent, fire-resistant and sound absorbent."

[Gene Neill]

Well, I'm a little bitter about photobucket eating tinypic and promptly deleting fifteen years of photos I've posted on the internet. But seing that CF doesn't allow photobucket links anyway, I think I'm not alone in my bitterness!


Anyway ...


I got the ceiling done. I just wanted to post followup pics and to thank everyone who offered advice along the way. Y'all are the BEST.

[Cheechako]

Nice!

I was lucky to salvage my photos off Photobucket and went to Imgur. Much better than PB ever was anyway.

[chowdan]

Looks great!

Originally Posted by Gene Neill

Well, I'm a little bitter about photobucket eating tinypic and promptly deleting fifteen years of photos I've posted on the internet. But seing that CF doesn't allow photobucket links anyway, I think I'm not alone in my bitterness!


Anyway ...


I got the ceiling done. I just wanted to post followup pics and to thank everyone who offered advice along the way. Y'all are the BEST.