Light weight celling finish options. Woof plank wood

[dohcdelsol93]

Im restoring a 1978 carver santacruz 26 footer. She doesnt need any real wood on the celling making her any more top heavy. Has anyone ever used vinyl wrap graphics for the celling? I want it to look like tongue and groove without the weight. Maybe pvc? Linoleum?

Im open to ideas. I want the look with keeping weight down.

[john61ct]

Balsa or luan ripped

Peel and stick laminate

Fake wood FRP

[belizesailor]

Formica w wood stripping to secure and cover seams...looks good, inexpensive, mold & mildew resistant, easy to clean.

[barnakiel]

3-ply plywood easy to shape and good choice of colours. Fitting easy if your roof is sandwich construction.

Cheers,
b.

[KP44]

Originally Posted by dohcdelsol93

Im restoring a 1978 carver santacruz 26 footer. She doesnt need any real wood on the celling making her any more top heavy. Has anyone ever used vinyl wrap graphics for the celling? I want it to look like tongue and groove without the weight. Maybe pvc? Linoleum?

Im open to ideas. I want the look with keeping weight down.

My shipwrights have used what they call "door skin". Thin wood veneer that is used on the face of doors or walls. No weight and looks like wood.

[KP44]

Looks like wood because it is wood. What I meant was, it looks like a wood ceiling.

[john61ct]

Do they just put it up in 8x4 sheets with a strip between, or get a board paneling look?

[KP44]

I never had a spot that was 4 x 8 without borders of some kind. They cut to fit. And it covers all the little places where I countersunk backing plates or washers to install something on the deck.
For a large area, I'll bet 1 x 8 or 2 x 8 pieces with a decorative strip covering the joint would look good.
The stuff is only about 1/8" thick and almost no weight. They call it door skin.

[Tayana42]

Take a look at this product. It may be what you are looking for.
http://www.sintrapvc.com/

[Mike Banks]

I know you stated at the putset that you did not wish to add aby timber to the saloon rioof, but bear with me, Others may have a similar dilemma, and may live in a hotter or colder environment.

I am not one who thinks that stick-on stuff is adding any value or use to the vessel besides an ersatz finish. What I do, for what little it may be worth, is to make 3mm marine bonded epoxy-saturated plywood panels.

You can face these with ersatz finishes if you wish. These panels are fairly lightweight and allow a gap between the deck and saloon ceiling--which I fill with aluminium/foam/fibre sandwich insulation cut to shape. It comes on a roll about four feet wide, but often builders will let you have remnants or off-cuts very cheaply. Since you are sticking this to the plywood, any odd shapes can be cut to fit.

What you can do if you want a planked finish is run a very light setting parallel v-grooves using a v-blade in a router. If you want to do this--go to 4mm ply and allow one mm for the grooves.

Lets face it--any fool can be uncomfortable. The extra insulatiion stops most of the condensation in cold areas and surely keeps the cabin more livable in the tropics. It is also much quieter inside during heavy downpours.

The insulation is most important and is not very expensive. Think of it as a bonus, but you will have the extra costs of the epoxy sealer for the plywood panels, and they have to be flat and lying on a level surface level when you seal them. There is also a time factor--the sealer takes a while for the fumes to dissipate so the panels need to be prepared some time before fitting.

You can fasten the panels with "Liquid Nails" but I prefer to fasten them between the beams with a small finished wooden batten screwed or glued to the side if the deck beams either side so that the panel can be slid out to add wiring etc. It looks finished and original too.

In my case I always epoxy-seal all of my marine plywood destined for permanent fittings almost as soon as it is delivered. I can then use it for whatever purposes. For this job go first class. Use epoxy and let it air right out before fitting.

Only when I buy cheap ply to make a sacrificial temporary mould for fibreglassing do I not bother with epoxy sealer. Then I just use ordinary sanding sealer.

[UNCIVILIZED]

If you want to go super light, & get that TNG visual effect thing going. Get some Western Red Cedar (24lb/cuft), & machine it into strips say 2-3" wide, & 3-5mm thick. After which you bullnose both edges of each strip. Then, on a work bench, lay down & wet out some 8oz glass cloth, & bond the strips to this, one butted up against another. It'll yield a light weight panel that you can pre-finish, & then cut to fit the space where you want it. Shouldn't weigh much more than doorskins, if even that.

Note: If you choose any of the options suggested involving wood, you'll be doing yourself a huge favor if you pre-finish them. As varnishing upside down sucks!

[Cheechako]

Most plastic products are heavier than wood, especially if you use light wood like cedar. White cedar is very nice. Did that on my 31 footer. After prevarnishing it was like a golden ceiling!

[evm1024]

I got turned on to komatex by a local boat builder.

https://www.professionalplastics.com/KOMATEX

I've been using it for the headliner on my boat.

[Sailorbob8599]

I'm not familiar with 'white' cedar, but I am partial to 'yellow' cedar (maybe the same?); a wood commonly used in the boat building industry in the PNW. Just make sure it's top grade.
When I built my current boat, I used 2" x 3/8th. T&G yellow cedar available at the local cedar mill store. Only after it was fully completed did I become disenchanted with the many blue-grey streaks that were evident on the surface of a great many boards. I felt sure someone would believe there were water leaks in the deck seal.
On complaining to the supplier, I was told it was the highest quality product available to the domestic market and I should consider it as "character" in the finish. He also told me all their #1 quality is exported to Japan and not available locally even at a higher price.
After he'd gone away, an older fellow sidled up to me, introducing himself as the 'yard man'. He told me the Japanese buyers always had an inspector check out the product prior to shipping and, just occasionally, (he) would reject a 'sling' of lumber to keep them (the lumber company) honest. This rejected lumber would then be sold on the domestic market.
How would a fellow know about this? i asked. "Hmmmm, I guess someone would have to tell you he said." Could someone let me know? I asked, slipping him a ten spot.
Sure enough, a month and a half later, he called me to let me know 'my' wood was there. I picked it up immediately, giving the yardman another ten spot for calling me. it was beautiful wood, not a blemish to be seen anywhere. It's now installed throughout my boat. Lovely wood to work with too.
All interior ceilings have yellow cedar T&G right down to the waterline. It is attached to 3"w x 1/2" thick, plywood 'ribs' spaced 18" apart. I installed 1/2" thick 'Ethafoam' (a closed cell insulation) between the ribs, resulting in an extremely comfortable cabin. No condensation and a warm interior. The smallest heater keeps mold & mildew at bay and a very cosy cabin in winter months without a high hydro bill every month.

[hsi88]

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Royal-Mould...Plank/50083002

PVC bead panels. Looks nice, waterproof.