1985 20' Overnighter - Soft Deck between helm chairs

[yesdear20]

Anyone have any experience with a spongy deck between the helm chair/boxes'? Cracks at the corner of the deck/helm chair boxes caused by the flexing were repaired, but the root cause remains. I am thinking of cutting a 6" diameter deck plate between the boxes to see what the issues are, but have not been able to find a diagram of what might be lurking below. Thanks for any clues.

 

[seasick]

Anyone have any experience with a spongy deck between the helm chair/boxes'? Cracks at the corner of the deck/helm chair boxes caused by the flexing were repaired, but the root cause remains. I am thinking of cutting a 6" diameter deck plate between the boxes to see what the issues are, but have not been able to find a diagram of what might be lurking below. Thanks for any clues.

It looks like your floor aft of the spot is 'removable most likely to access the fuel tank. If so, that is where I would start to look. Remove the deck cover and take a look. That hopefully will give you an better idea of what is going on. Cutting a 6" hole isn't going to help much since if there is rot and I suspect there is, you won't be able to assess the extent of the damage and if stringers are involved.

 

[yesdear20]

Thanks very much for the response. You are correct that the fuel hatch is removable; however, there is also a bulkhead at the sealant line, just aft of the soft spot, so there I don't believe that there is a view forward. I have had this hatch off in the past (it's been a while) but can take another look to see if I am misremembering.

 

[DennisG01]

I don't know if this will work for your boat, or not, but... Try taking out the storage boxes. Meaning, if the insides aren't solid glass, take the insides/guts out. If it's open underneath, that should give you pretty good access.

Keep this in mind (unfortunately)... soft spots are ALWAYS bigger than they appear to be.

 

[yesdear20]

Roger that. Thanks!

 

[Doc Stressor]

It's unusual to find a Grady of that vintage that does not have soft spots in the floor. The floor is a fairly thin layer of fiberglass on top of marine plywood encapsulated in epoxy. The epoxy cracks over time and the wood rots because of moisture seeping into the plywood. The fix is not simple. You need to saw the deck out and replace the plywood. Unless you are handy and have a lot of time, it would be best to let a professional do the job.

Rotted floors, transoms, and stringers are why most older Gradies die.

 

[yesdear20]

Thanks for the input. Repairs of this type are not in my skillset - I have owned this one since 2004, and have had the transom replaced. Love the boat but some of these issues are like pulling a thread...

 

[captainhalfast]

I have used this trick to buy MANY years on soft spots. Find an old aluminum highway sign... cut it to the size between the seats... round the corners. wrap with black marine carpet and marine carpet glue - placing about 1.5 imches underneath, glue a small peice in the center underneighth also. screw corners down with ss screws with finish washers. I have also done this with entire sheets of exterior plywood (completely rotted floor) painted with enamal paint and covered w/ carpet .. quick fix that lasts many more seasons. Done. Its like a giant washer for your boats floor. I love two hour fixes .... leaves more time for boating.

Captain Halfast

 

[Lt.Mike]

Removing the hatch over the tank won’t tell you anything about the area in front of it as there is a bulkhead under that set of deck screws. You’d really have to carve things up to get at that wood. I’d say if your not falling through the deck, reseal the deckscrews and live with it.
If the cover over the tank is flexing as mine was you can repair that yourself. I did mine and it’s like a rock now.
Mike

 

[Fishtales]

I like the Capt's idea. If you have to do it, you'll have to make a big template and cut out as much as you can. Reinforce the piece and reinforce what you can after the piece is out.
You'll have to router the edge of both cuts and get smooth to add a bead of caulk like the floor deck. Not the prettiest solution, but you will get her fixed.

 

[SkunkBoat]

Another way is to install a rectangular hatch big enough for you to put in some reinforcement under the deck.

In other words, cut a big hole, reinforce the deck from below, and make it look professional by filling the hole with a pretty hatch.

Its an '85, you might find foam under there, maybe not.

 

[yesdear20]

This is the route I decided to take, SkunkBoat. The hatch was a good call. Allowed access to the bulkhead limber hole (which was clogged) and for thorough inspection. An liberal injection of GitRot into the plywood helped, as well as some additional reinforcement. No foam to speak of. Thanks to all who responded.

 

[SkunkBoat]

This is the route I decided to take, SkunkBoat. The hatch was a good call. Allowed access to the bulkhead limber hole (which was clogged) and for thorough inspection. An liberal injection of GitRot into the plywood helped, as well as some additional reinforcement. No foam to speak of. Thanks to all who responded.

now you got storage for a 12 pack....

 

[Lt.Mike]

I wouldn’t have wanted to carve into it but I’m glad it worked out for you.
Do you have any pictures of your project? I’d like to see what it looks like under there and how the hatch looks.
Mike

 

[DennisG01]

now you got storage for a 12 pack....

I knew you had an ulterior motive. Since your boat doesn't like to catch fish, might as well have some refreshments on board!

 

[yesdear20]

Lt.Mike: Boat is in storage and a nor'easter on the way! Will try to send some photos in the spring.

 

[Lt.Mike]

Since your boat doesn't like to catch fish,

Ouch!
:lol:

 

[DennisG01]

Since your boat doesn't like to catch fish,

Ouch!
:lol:

Yeah, just a little good-natured ribbing based on his "handle" on this forum I'm sure in real life, he catches more fish than me... as it seems like EVERYONE catches more fish than me!

 

[SkunkBoat]

Since your boat doesn't like to catch fish,

Ouch!
:lol:

Yeah, just a little good-natured ribbing based on his "handle" on this forum I'm sure in real life, he catches more fish than me... as it seems like EVERYONE catches more fish than me!

:<><
sorry to highjack the thread but its about done anyways I guess...

The Skunkboat name goes back 3 boats to a 1986 16' aluminum Sylvan. Had something to do with not catching fish and a dead blue claw crab that crawled into the bilge and died.
It is a term of endearment to us. That boat still fishes in Weiss Lake Alabama. The next SkunkBoat was my '84 Wellcraft V20 cuddy that I ran for 18 years. We learned to catch pretty good but we always flew a Skunk flag. I just moved up to an un-named 265 Express and haven't decided on a name. Have a few new ideas but I think its just going to revert to SkunkBoat. I post my fishing videos to Youtube/Skunkboat so its kind of stuck now.

 

[DennisG01]

I figured there was story - a good one! I say stick with the name for the new boat!