Bought a newer Seafarer today. Just needs new bulkhead

[82seafarer]

Well its official ! Picked up a newer Seafarer today. My old one is an 82 and this one is an 89.
The transom looks solid and the boat is very clean.
The only issue I see is the port bulkhead is rotted on the bottom. Does anyone have any ideas how to replace it or has repaired one before ?
I guess it's just plywood with glass over it.

The rest of the boat is great and it has an anchor hatch and it is more of an almond color I like. Plus it has small tackle boxes below the seats !

Not sure if there were any other improvements but would love to know......Ed.

 

[VeroWing]

If you can post some pics of damaged area, there are members here that have done bulkhead/stringer/transom repairs/replacements, and can offer advice. Usually the biggest problem is gaining access to damaged area. Once there, then it's a matter of removing bad material and replacing with new, making sure repair/replacement is waterproof, strong and glassed in properly.

 

[DennisG01]

Are you positive the soft area/rot is limited to just that section? Not to scare you, but here is a couple quick pictures of what I'm doing that might help you understand the basic structure. This boat was originally a stern drive, which is why the back end is structured a little differently, but you probably get the idea.

This is looking aft.


This is looking forward.

 

[ric2352]

Don't get me wrong...people have their reasons....but..why did you buy that boat? Same hull? Not SeaV2? Better, newer power, amenities?.....I'm just curious. I did a similar thing, selling my 89 Overniter for a 95 208 with the same engine, low hours and I wanted the SeaV2 hull...I like the size for what I do. The one I sold was in better shape than what I bought, but she looks good now. People scratched their heads abit, but I'm happy. Thanks!

 

[82seafarer]

Actually the transom in my 82 is bowed out from being wet, (there are no cracks or signs of structural failure). This one came with a gorgeous trailer (2 sets of brakes) that is like new and a newer nicer boat. Plus the transom looks good. It is probably still wet in areas (as most 25 year old boats are) but I am going to try and dry it as much as I can before switching motors. Plus it was super cheap.
So far only the bottom of the port bulkhead below this teak shelves show signs of rot. I guess I can try and check other areas.

 

[jbrinch88]

Buy a sheet of starboard and replace both the port and starboard bulkheads. It'll last forever and never rot out on you. I do this to all the older Grady's I buy and flip. Here's my recent 1988 22' seafarer i have for sale:

 

[DennisG01]

Are you referring to the area that JBrinch88 showed? You weren't very specific with which area of the boat was soft. "Typically" a bulkhead describes a lateral support or partition between compartments below decks. I took a guess. I'm still not totally sure what you're referring to, but if Jbrinch has it right, then his advice is relevant and valid. Another option, depending on how far up it extends (and the extent of damage done) is to trim just a tiny bit off the bottom edge to allow some air movement... In hopes that the rest will dry out. An "in between" option would be to rebuild just the damaged area.

 

[Grouper Duper]

My cabin/helm wall was rotted at the bottom, and I suspect that's what you mean. I replaced it all with StarBoard just like JBrinch88's photo. It wasn't all that hard, and should last the life of the boat.

 

[82seafarer]

There is a big rot hole in the bottom of the port side bulkhead. Almost like if a passenger was sitting in the seat and kicked a hole in it with his boot. The driver side is solid but the bottom of the port side is rotted. I may do a quick fix for now and then replace it in the winter like you guys said.

 

[Grouper Duper]

I forgot I had saved this thread from when I did mine:

viewtopic.php?t=6960

Lots of help there!

 

[82seafarer]

Holy crap ! That's some serious EXPERT work you did there. That wiring is amazing! The bulkheads look great too.
I like the look of my older 82 bulkheads with the darker woodgrain on the bottom. They also were solid as a rock. It kind of broke up all the WHITE everywhere.
I will try and follow your lead a little on the bulkhead wiring. I need to really go over the jumbled mess and add some new fuse boxes and wiring there like u did.
Not sure it will look like yours though.
The grady bracket looks awesome too.
Great work !

 

[Grouper Duper]

Ooops, I didn't mean to make it sound like that was MY work! It's just a thread I referenced when I was working on mine; though I agree it was great work.