cabin sole

[Bdozz]

My boat had a teak parquetry floor over a plywood sub floor, before i got the boat she was stored outside on a cradle for several years and at some point the cabin had filled with water over the floor. The floor was covered long enough that several of the teak tiles had come off and several more had moved and it was also very moldy. I have taken all the tiles out and used some adhesive remover to get most of the floor glue off now I have to figure out what to replace the teak with. The tiles were about 1/4 " thick. I have read many threads about different woods to use, fake teak and holly, composite flooring and what not, but I would like it to be more of just a plain white floor, something easy to keep clean with maybe some non skid strips or something. I had thought about just glassing over the plywood, but I will not be able to totally strip the old adhesive off to get a good bond, and if it is not close to 1/4 thick my trim pieces will not fit back on decent. Any suggestions?

[model 10]

There is an underlayment sold at lumber stores in the US that is a hardwood of some sort and 1/4" thick. Usually the pieces are 3'x5', or something odd like that. I could see gluing that down and then painting, or varnish.

Why don't you put the parquet back?

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Guy

...Why don't you put the parquet back?

...This...

[Bdozz]

I had thought about putting it back but it stunk so bad from mold and diesel fuel , and so many pieces were already pulled out that the rest of them moved , and I don't really like the parquet, its to busy to me or something.

[Steadman Uhlich]

Cork!



https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011403...ork&gsc.page=1

[sobraon]

I laid an Iroko and Koto sole whilst cruising on the boat and wrote a how to page on our website

New Cabin Sole - Blog Article View It really wasn't that hard.

If you want a white or light coloured sole I would recommend just using a light 1/4" hard wood timber like ash or koto. Most lumber yards will have a good selection and should be able to supply ready to lay in 1/4" x 2" boards. You don't have to go to the same detail as I did with margins and highlight accents, however once you get started it really goes down quickly.

I investigated a lot of other alternatives like composite and vinyls tiles that have become popular in light weight catamarans. To me the problem was they looked exactly like "vinyl". They cheapen the look of the interior and would not be 1/4" thick. On a modern cat interior it sort of works, however I saw it on a Irwin 54 with vinyl strip timber look tiles and it just looked cheap.

There are a lot of miss conception about soles. You do not need to use teak. Any durable hardwood is acceptable. The sole doesn't need the water resistance of an outside deck as you will put some kind of finish on it. Also gloss finish opposed to non skid is debatable. I have had the high gloss finish now for over 5 years. Sailed thousands of miles and never once slipped on it. In fact I think the higher the gloss the more grip it gives a bare foot. I also think it looks far superior to a non skid finish.

Boats have a certain look about them, have done for years, if you try to reinvent the wheel you almost always get it wrong.

Have a look at the Hoek Yacht website for inspiration like I did. Apart from some amazing boat porn there are some beautiful interior photos of light timber soles.

Good luck with your project.

[slowpoker]

I recently removed all of the original cabin sole on my Catalina 36 which was delaminating ( plywood with teak and holly veneer was coming unglued from the plywood).
Went to a solid wood floor distributor and bought pre-finished hardwood floor in slats that snap together. These are guaranteed for 50 years, solid wood so no more delaminating, glued the slats together with water proof glue and looks super marvelous, with the slats going fore and aft as the teak and holly were. Fits the curvature of the cabin sole if there is a curve to it.
Used Brazilian mahogany and it smells wonderful too!. Cost about $1.50 sq. ft. Easy to cut and match each slat. Screwed the finished cabin floor to the existing fiberglass under sole, in proper places. Just do not snug up to the sides all around too closely as the wood tends to expand and may squeak or tend to buckle.
Highly recommended.
How would you fit a sheet of plywood through the companionway hatch and cut and trim it inside the cabin??
Slowpoker

[robwilk37]

im considering a troweled-on pebble/epoxy cabin sole. good grip, water proof, quick and easy to put down... let the flame throwing begin

[slowpoker]

Nah; Difficult to remove bubble gum melted into those pebbles in the summer.

[paulajayne]

Originally Posted by sobraon

I laid an Iroko and Koto sole whilst cruising on the boat and wrote a how to page on our website

New Cabin Sole - Blog Article View It really wasn't that hard.

If you want a white or light coloured sole I would recommend just using a light 1/4" hard wood timber like ash or koto. Most lumber yards will have a good selection and should be able to supply ready to lay in 1/4" x 2" boards. You don't have to go to the same detail as I did with margins and highlight accents, however once you get started it really goes down quickly.

I investigated a lot of other alternatives like composite and vinyls tiles that have become popular in light weight catamarans. To me the problem was they looked exactly like "vinyl". They cheapen the look of the interior and would not be 1/4" thick. On a modern cat interior it sort of works, however I saw it on a Irwin 54 with vinyl strip timber look tiles and it just looked cheap.

There are a lot of miss conception about soles. You do not need to use teak. Any durable hardwood is acceptable. The sole doesn't need the water resistance of an outside deck as you will put some kind of finish on it. Also gloss finish opposed to non skid is debatable. I have had the high gloss finish now for over 5 years. Sailed thousands of miles and never once slipped on it. In fact I think the higher the gloss the more grip it gives a bare foot. I also think it looks far superior to a non skid finish.

Boats have a certain look about them, have done for years, if you try to reinvent the wheel you almost always get it wrong.

Have a look at the Hoek Yacht website for inspiration like I did. Apart from some amazing boat porn there are some beautiful interior photos of light timber soles.

Good luck with your project.

You did a very nice job there.