New finish for bulkheads

[Groathill]

Another option which you actually hinted yourself, is to glue on 3mm oak plywood. This plywood treated with some kind of whitewash before final treatment with oil would both give a much brighter feel and still keep the "wood feeling", far better than the hard and somewhat artificial impression of formica. Another visual change you could make with this method is to change the orientation of the wood structure in the ply from vertical to horizontal as you now can see in more modern sailboats. In my 1980 vintage sailboat with vertical teak plywood and teak trims, I have changed all over with whitewashed oak with horizontal orientation and I ended up with a cheerier brighter interior instead of the old gloomy dark basement feeling. Combining a new brighter interior with modern LED lights have dramatically changed the interior of my boat designed and build in the days when there less use use of daylight through a lot of deck hatches and window panels.

[GILow]

I'm with those that caution against too much formica. Our boat has too much, it's ok in small amounts but feels cheap and nasty in the big sections.

In fairness, it is VERY practical. But I suspect the weight would be a problem on a tri.

[Patrigo]

Check out Flotex. A very high teck product. Read fully its technical attributes. I have used it for 27yrs, sole carpet, panelling, headliner, with a vast range of colours/patterns. It gives a "different" finish.

[andreas.mehlin]

Originally Posted by GILow

I'm with those that caution against too much formica. Our boat has too much, it's ok in small amounts but feels cheap and nasty in the big sections.

In fairness, it is VERY practical. But I suspect the weight would be a problem on a tri.

About the weight, yes that is an issue. Off course we would like to keep the weight down, and if there are good options we would consider that.

How about adding vinyl panels? Maybe in some combination with other material.

[David B]

Originally Posted by andreas.mehlin

We are right now in a total super refit, here in Mexico, of our 44 ft trimaran.
Planning to put new finish to the bulkheads. We want to brighten it up and have been thinking of adding formica.

Has anyone here put formica on the bulkhead? Did you first apply the formica to a thin plywood or directly onto the bulkhead?

Do you have any other suggestions what to use?

Depends where. If the bulkhead is in a utility area such as the galley, then a lightly textured melamine laminate such as Duropal or Formica might be appropriate. Then you would fix direct with an impact adhesive.

If however, the bulkhead is in the saloon area, then consider a vinyl-faced effect with wide strips of thin ply fixed to the existing bulkhead horizontally. This can look very swish.

Just some ideas to consider.