Headliner material

[sailingunity]

Yeah I know, give me the award for the 1000th post on headliners, but hear me out.

The current headliner in my boat is a rubbery material that is glued directly to the fiberglass, it is original to the boat (circa 1974!). In places it's falling down and has clearly been re-adhered a few times. Where it's not falling down, it's just ugly, so I'm looking to replace it with a more "proper" headliner using sheets of material fastened to battens. The material to use is stumping me a little.

I have 5, soon to be 6 kids, and while we don't live aboard full time anymore, I know that anything and everything has the potential to be colored on with crayon, markers, even permanent markers (how do they find those???). I need something that will be easy to clean. I know I do not want beaded board, or that speckled FRP panel people use in bathrooms (who wants to feel like they're in a bathroom all the time?). Interesting options I've found seem to be from the signage industry.

Expanded PVC foam: This can sometimes be found at home depot in 1/2" variants, but I would need something 1/4" or less. It seemed perfect: rot-proof, easy to shape and lightweight. The problem is a I had a friend who finished their headliner in this do an "ink" test for me, and found it very hard to clean off. This makes sense considering the sign industry loves this material for it's ability to take ink. $80-120 per sheet (1/8 or 1/4 thickness)

ACM sheets: Also for the sign industry, this is an aluminum sandwich as thin as 3mm. In the pictures I've seen of it, it looks pretty glossy, which would imply easy to clean but I certainly don't want a mirror image of the salon when I look up. Also, what happens when someone dents it? ($80 per sheet)

1/4" teak plywood: This is probably the most expensive option, as this probably runs 80 per sheet plus the covering. I don't trust myself to make the finish perfect, so you would need to add another 70 per sheet to affix formica to it. Fortunately, formica cleans very easily. ($150 per sheet)

1/4" BCX plywood: Obviously the rot resistance of teak is better, but at least with exterior glue it won't ruin it the same day a leak shows up. I would still need to cover with something (100 per sheet for the ply + formica)

Formica panels: I'm not too keen on the amount of weight 1/4" plywood would add to the boat. If there were a 1/8 or 5mm plywood option I'd probably pick it, but there is nothing exterior grade that I can find. Why can't I just velcro up some formica? But I'm not sure, it might just be a little *too* flimsy with no backing. Maybe just throw a single layer of lightweight fiberglass on the back? Cost is $70 per sheet.

I'm probably way overthinking, as usual, suffice to say that I'm sufficiently paralyzed by options! I've come to peace with the fact that I might just end up spending some money on a panel simply to see how it will work out.

[ggray]

Years ago I bought some 1/10 inch thick closed cell foam headliner material that worked very well. I bought it from Defenders but I don't think they have sold it for quite some while. It was shipped from a firm on the West Coast.

You might check with Sailrite.

[wholybee]

The headliner in my boat is quite nice. It is 1/4" board, with 1/4" of opencell foam glued to it, and vinyl, glued to that. Battens between the pieces hold them up. It has a nice soft upholstered look instead of a hard panel.

The board isn't plywood, it's more of a cheap particle board, but it seems to hold up to getting wet, as condensation was an issue before I added insulation panels directly between the headliner and the ceiling.

[sailingunity]

Originally Posted by wholybee

The headliner in my boat is quite nice. It is 1/4" board, with 1/4" of opencell foam glued to it, and vinyl, glued to that. Battens between the pieces hold them up. It has a nice soft upholstered look instead of a hard panel.

The board isn't plywood, it's more of a cheap particle board, but it seems to hold up to getting wet, as condensation was an issue before I added insulation panels directly between the headliner and the ceiling.

I do like the look of the vinyl, or the foam backed vinyl as well. I didn't consider it because of the kids - I need a solution that is somewhat bulletproof / impervious!

[sailingunity]

Visited Lowe's today. Their 1/4" BCX plywood was not flat enough to my taste. They did have expanded PVC in 1/4" thickness, I'm going to try some "marker" experiments with it to see how it does.

While I was there I also saw 1/4" polycarbonate panels, basically corrugated plastic with a somewhat flat surface on each side that I could bond formica to. So, rot proof, dead flat, still flexible but cheaper than teak ply at only $55 each.

That also made me think of something like Nidacore, 1/4" is only $38 a sheet, and if I'm covering it with formica anyway I wouldn't need to glass it.

[sailingunity]

One thing I did notice about this PVC panel is that it's a little soft. I had to go through 7 sheets of it to find one that wasn't dented in some way at the store.

[Rumpi]

The industry has developed anti graffiti protection in the form of films or coatings. I don't know wich one will adhere to your chosen substrate, but most of them do work as advertised, permanent marker can be removed with soapy water or a mild solvent. I would try some film samples on PVC board if I were you.

[sandy stone]

Have you looked at McMaster-Carr? I'm not saying they're cheap, but they do have an astonishing array of materials.

[wholybee]

Isopropyl Alcohol removes permanent marker from many surfaces quite easily. Other stronger solvents work on tougher surfaces. I've cleaned marker off painted walls with it. (glossy paint) Vinyl is probably also pretty easy to clean, and PVC most definitely permanent marker would practically wipe off with some alcohol.

I would get what you otherwise like, and not worry about kids getting it messy.

[Jim Jones]

Your thread is interesting to me as I am currently doing the exact same thing.

I am looking at those ACM panels as wall cladding. Brushed Aluminium seems to be a good one. I think the silver colour of brushed Aluminium would read as white. Not sure yet.

As for the ceiling - I am stumped as well. I dont want a soft vinyl material - prefer something hard. I am considering an opaque plexiglass about 3mm thick so that it can bend to the contour of the saloon roof (which has a gentle curve to it from port to starboard).

Following with keen interest in this one.

[Moosemiester]

I used plastic soffit strips. Cheap, ventilate well, easy to clean. When I tell people what they are they look at me in disbelief.

Can’t take credit for the idea, saw it on some You Tube channel.

Alan & Darina on “Sea Moose”
Currently Looping
You Tube: The Adventures of Yorksie and Me

[Bill O]

How about a smooth frp panel? https://www.menards.com/main/paint/p...178-c-8168.htm

Stuff is easier to cut/work with than formica, is very durable, easy to clean and comes in different colors. We have the bumpy white version attached to exterior door skin ply for headliner. The seams are covered w/teak strips for a classic nautical look.


edit: adding pic of headliner in aft cabin (usually don't just take pics of the headliner)

[AKA-None]

Look for the stuff used in rv headliners
Comes in sheets
Thin
Flexible

No source for you now but I’ve seen people use it

[s/v Jedi]

At the Lowes they sell a 5mm plywood that I use. For moisture protection I simply paint it (TotalBoat primer and Rustoleum Satin paint)

[sailingunity]

Originally Posted by Bill O

How about a smooth frp panel? https://www.menards.com/main/paint/p...178-c-8168.htm

Stuff is easier to cut/work with than formica, is very durable, easy to clean and comes in different colors. We have the bumpy white version attached to exterior door skin ply for headliner. The seams are covered w/teak strips for a classic nautical look.


edit: adding pic of headliner in aft cabin (usually don't just take pics of the headliner)

I've looked locally and all I can find is the kind with the stipple on it, which I detest. What we have locally at least is clearly meant to be installed with the stipple side showing, because the smooth side isn't all that smooth.