Teak decks. Should I run away????

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by donradcliffe

The new deck was glued with no screws, and can't leak.

^This, in spades.
The Gougeon's book on using epoxy was recommending this way of doing a teak deck decades ago.
Their are some minor variations on the theme, but the end result is the same, no leaks, and no way to leak.
But, as with any deck, the penetrations necessary for all the fittings need to be carefully thought out.

[Na Mara]

The layup on a Regina 43 deck is massive. 1/2 inch teak deck screwed and glued to a 1/4 inch FRP - roughly 3/2 inch end grain balsa core - 1/4 inch FRP layup. There is no flexing in the deck. The screws go into but not through the Balsa core. The Balsa is laid in small cubes and is wetted out as part of the layup process.

I like balsa cored decks for many reasons but the screws into them are not a great idea and you wouldn’t do it that way today. Indeed Regina now glue there decks I believe.

[Na Mara]

Originally Posted by CarinaPDX

My deck is teak over sapele plywood, so removing exposed screws, counterboring lower, then replacing the screw with a bit of sealant (and new plug) is the proper, and durable, repair. Every decade or two the seams need reefing out and replacing, and any damaged or warn planks replaced before lightly sanding.

Greg

This is indeed the right thing to do with teak over wood or teak over solid GRP, and that is where the practice originated. The trouble is owners used to doing it this way then getting their hands on boats with cored decks.

[CapnBazza]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Looked a boat today and overall liked it a lot. A couple of things here and there but no potential deal breakers except............. the teak decks, decks screwed down with about 1000 screws.

Boat is 22 years old and the decks overall look ok but I found four screw heads showing where the bungs popped out and no room to put them back. Another dozen more or less that were half gone or ready to go. Overall maybe 5-6% of all the bungs were standing proud of the deck.

But none of the teak was cracked or split. None of the planks were loose or pulling up. All the seams looked excellent and with the exception of a single, small plank, looked like there was still plenty of wood.

My concern of course is leaking into the deck core with the resulting delamination, rot, headaches and big expense to remove, repair or replace.

First question, boat is very high quality overall. Might one assume or guess that the decks are very well bedded in the appropriate goop and even with a few missing bungs there is no way water is migrating into the deck core?

The underside of the deck is impossible to access due to very nice, permanently installed headliners so getting a good moisture test would be problematic from the top. Any suggestions on any non destructive way to determine if there is any wetness in the core? Maybe pull a couple of the offending screws and poke around in the hole?

Or should I just forget it and keep looking?

We had a beautiful World Explorer 45 and I’m sure that only 10% of the deck screws leaked. The problem was finding which of the thousands were part of the 10%. I gave up. The new owner removed the teak decks and all is good.

[kish]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Looked a boat today and overall liked it a lot. A couple of things here and there but no potential deal breakers except............. the teak decks, decks screwed down with about 1000 screws.

Boat is 22 years old and the decks overall look ok but I found four screw heads showing where the bungs popped out and no room to put them back. Another dozen more or less that were half gone or ready to go. Overall maybe 5-6% of all the bungs were standing proud of the deck.

But none of the teak was cracked or split. None of the planks were loose or pulling up. All the seams looked excellent and with the exception of a single, small plank, looked like there was still plenty of wood.

My concern of course is leaking into the deck core with the resulting delamination, rot, headaches and big expense to remove, repair or replace.

First question, boat is very high quality overall. Might one assume or guess that the decks are very well bedded in the appropriate goop and even with a few missing bungs there is no way water is migrating into the deck core?

The underside of the deck is impossible to access due to very nice, permanently installed headliners so getting a good moisture test would be problematic from the top. Any suggestions on any non destructive way to determine if there is any wetness in the core? Maybe pull a couple of the offending screws and poke around in the hole?

Or should I just forget it and keep looking?

Teak decks should carry a health warning;
"Do NOT Pressure Wash this Deck"

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by Oeanda

... I don’t know anyone who has re-decked with teak or any other wood, though that’s a nice dream...

I've seen it done quite often in third world countries where skilled wood workers can be employed cheaply and the wood is available.

I've even seen it here in Mexico.

But even then, it is a big job and usually expensive.

The results are nice, though.

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by wingssail

I've seen it done quite often in third world countries where skilled wood workers can be employed cheaply and the wood is available.



I've even seen it here in Mexico.



But even then, it is a big job and usually expensive.



The results are nice, though.

Do not underestimate the skill required to replace a teak deck. This is advanced woodworking. I know of a recent example of a 43 footer in Mexico where a $25k job went horribly wrong and had to redone.

Careful out there.

Peter

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by mvweebles

Do not underestimate the skill required to replace a teak deck. This is advanced woodworking. I know of a recent example of a 43 footer in Mexico where a $25k job went horribly wrong and had to redone.

Careful out there.

Peter

Certainly it takes a lot of skill. That is why it is often done in third world countries, like places in Asia. People there will work for years for what we would consider a low wage and they develop those skills. The best work I've ever seen is in Asia.

On the subject of $25,000 for a teak deck job? I would not pay $25,000 for any job on my boat. Geez! All I can say is that a fool and his money are soon parted.

[Mike Burch]

I would be deeply suspicious of any boat fitted out with head linings which could not be removed without destroying anything. That is simply not good practice, and would make me wonder what else the builder wanted to hide.

When combined with a screwed (in more than one sense!) teak deck, that would have me heading for the hills.

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by wingssail

Certainly it takes a lot of skill. That is why it is often done in third world countries, like places in Asia. People there will work for years for what we would consider a low wage and they develop those skills. The best work I've ever seen is in Asia.



On the subject of $25,000 for a teak deck job? I would not pay $25,000 for any job on my boat. Geez! All I can say is that a fool and his money are soon parted.

$25k usd for a teak deck on a 43 footer is a steal. In US or adjacent areas where teak is an exotic species, teak is running over $40 usd per board foot. There is a lot of waste in doing decking, pluis all the sanding and caulking materials. I suspect that $40k to re-deck a 43 footer isn't outrageous.

Whether your boat and/or your circumstances warrants a $25k repair is a different matter.

Peter

[MicHughV]

Just a thought to the OP.....

Years ago, I had a steel boat. The decks were painted white with a grit addition for non-skid. That worked ok, unless I dropped something on the deck.

Then I discovered "Treadmaster". This is a flexible panel made of some kind of rubber/cork matrix and is about 3/16" thick with a diamond tread cut in the top.

You want " non-skid" ? this stuff is unbeatable. You can drop anything on it without worry.

I don't remember the size of the panels, but seem to recall around 4'x3'. It comes in various colors.

It gets glued on the decks with a one part epoxy glue.

You could, as an option, remove the teak decks, and place the treadmaster on top, without worrying about filling holes, sanding them smooth and re-doing the deck with paint and grit.

I redid my whole boat with this stuff. I made patterns out of paper, placed on the treadmaster panel and cut with a pair of stout scissors. I left about a 1" gap between panels to allow water to run off between panels. It cutes very easily, so cutting corners, chamfers, etc, is simple.

An additional feature, it provides another 3/16" insulation against the sun, so the interior of the boat is a tad cooler.

I had this stuff on my boat for the better part of 10 years without a lick of trouble.

I wanted the diamond tread to look uniform, ie, parallel to the boat center line, so I cut each piece with this in mind. The end result came out looking quite stunning....ahem....if I say so myself...

The whole process went remarkably quick. The same paper cutout can be used for both sides of the deck, by simply flopping it over.

Google "Treadmaster" and you will get all the data there.

I

[Boatyarddog]

Originally Posted by Bowdrie

^This, in spades.
The Gougeon's book on using epoxy was recommending this way of doing a teak deck decades ago.
Their are some minor variations on the theme, but the end result is the same, no leaks, and no way to leak.
But, as with any deck, the penetrations necessary for all the fittings need to be carefully thought out.

The most difficult part of repairing my cock pit teak was removal without destroying the existing teak strips.

Mostly, just used a sharp wood carving chisel, quarter and half round.
Used an undersized drill bit on some bungs, and the wood screw trick, screwing a smaller diameter screw into the middle of the bung worked in a lot of instances.

Mark those pieces so they don't get mixed up. Photos work well too.

You can then carve out the bung to expose the screw head, remove these as best you can, then, for the ones you can't remove you can use a Fien Tool to cut the shank of the screws under the strip, a softer form of sawsall, https://feintools-online.com/7229676...SABEgJCgfD_BwE
Seems like a lot of work but, if you've got the time.

Then prep the area you want to replace, if it's soft you'll need to either recore or dry it out and make sure its sound.
Then I used Teak Deck Systems Epoxy and it turned out great, you can just leave the screw tips you've cut off in the work.
Simple 2 Part teak adhesive.
Hope this helps.
Boatyarddog

[mako]

The PO of my previous boat covered the entire deck with a rubberized polyurethane coating. Fantastic!

[Boatyarddog]

Originally Posted by kish

Teak decks should carry a health warning;
"Do NOT Pressure Wash this Deck"

Oops, salt water scrub as maintainance.
Boatyarddog

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Boatyarddog

Oops, salt water scrub as maintainance.
Boatyarddog

And scrub across the grain, not with it, to avoid excessive pulp loss in the timber.

Jim