Alternatives to bungs for teak deck

[ksamnic]

The teak decks on our 1991 Nauticat 38 are shot. Time and poor/incorrect maintenance has them worn down to at most 60% of the original thickness. The seam caulking is mostly loose, and water gets under the teak (when we walk on the deck in rain we can actually see water come up in between boards).

The teak is factory fastened with screws and some sort of very poor adhesive under the boards. If I remove the screws I can pry a strip up with minimal force and a small scraper or pry bar. The deck is not cored, and the water does not leak into the boat - which is the only good thing!

Many screws heads are showing, as the strips are so thin that the bungs/plus are no more than veneer thickness - maybe 1mm to 2mm (max).

We understand the options of teak removal, replacement, and other options for non-skid etc.. However right now we do not have time or finances to do the job properly, so we would like to try and do some repair and maybe get a few more years before total re&re.

I have found that the teak boards/strips can be reattached firmly by removing the old (#8 pan head) screws, countersinking another 1 or 2mm, and installing #10 flat head screws. The challenge is that there is very little 'sidewall' in the holes for gluing in plugs/bungs. I have tried a few kinds of glues, even epoxy, but the plugs pop out within a year, as they are just too thin after trimming.

So now I am considering other alternatives (to using bungs) to cover the screws stop water from getting in around them, such as
- just fill holes with epoxy
- fill with some kind of gray waterproof wood filler
- use something like a gray SIS 440 deck caulk

Ie - something that can be sanded or trimmed flush and won't look too ghastly.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

Is this just a dumb idea?

[AKA-None]

Whatever you fill the plugs with should be removable or you just added more work

[psk125]

You are finding out why people run away from worn out teak decks. Re-screwing the teak is likely going to create leaks, even if it hasn't yet. As you have already learned, re-screwing is not going to last long because the teak is too thin. It will all have to come off eventually, so the question becomes when, rather than if. Now would be the time to research replacement surfaces instead of wasting time (and money, even if it's a smaller amount) on patchwork.