Teak decks. Should I run away????

[skipmac]

Looked a boat today and overall liked it a lot. A couple of things here and there but no potential deal breakers except............. the teak decks, decks screwed down with about 1000 screws.

Boat is 22 years old and the decks overall look ok but I found four screw heads showing where the bungs popped out and no room to put them back. Another dozen more or less that were half gone or ready to go. Overall maybe 5-6% of all the bungs were standing proud of the deck.

But none of the teak was cracked or split. None of the planks were loose or pulling up. All the seams looked excellent and with the exception of a single, small plank, looked like there was still plenty of wood.

My concern of course is leaking into the deck core with the resulting delamination, rot, headaches and big expense to remove, repair or replace.

First question, boat is very high quality overall. Might one assume or guess that the decks are very well bedded in the appropriate goop and even with a few missing bungs there is no way water is migrating into the deck core?

The underside of the deck is impossible to access due to very nice, permanently installed headliners so getting a good moisture test would be problematic from the top. Any suggestions on any non destructive way to determine if there is any wetness in the core? Maybe pull a couple of the offending screws and poke around in the hole?

Or should I just forget it and keep looking?

[boatpoker]

Pulling 5 screws will tell you all about those 5sq inches.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

Pulling 5 screws will tell you all about those 5sq inches.

Well of course that is correct.

But the idea is that pulling the five screws that appear to be in the worst shape to inspect that area of deck, then one might infer that there could be a good chance that the rest of the of deck would be at least as good if not better condition than the deck around those five.

Assuming that isn't the case, then how about a suggestion on a better method to determine the condition of the deck and core.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Well of course that is correct.

But the idea is that pulling the five screws that appear to be in the worst shape to inspect that area of deck, then one might infer that there could be a good chance that the rest of the of deck would be at least as good if not better condition than the deck around those five.

Assuming that isn't the case, then how about a suggestion on a better method to determine the condition of the deck and core.

The only way I know of, you have already discarded ... The headliners have to be removed for the deck to be sounded and metered from the underside.

Removing just a few screws is a bet that depends on your risk tolerance.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

The only way I know of, you have already discarded ... The headliners have to be removed for the deck to be sounded and metered from the underside.

Removing just a few screws is a bet that depends on your risk tolerance.

It's not that I discarded the idea, it just is not possible. It would require destructive removal of the headliner and I'm pretty sure the current owner would not be to thrilled with the idea.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by skipmac

It's not that I discarded the idea, it just is not possible. It would require destructive removal of the headliner and I'm pretty sure the current owner would not be to thrilled with the idea.

If all else fails run the meter over the headliner, moisture may show up but be aware that running it over metals or electric wires behind the headliner will also read as high moisture.

[DMF Sailing]

Originally Posted by skipmac

Looked a boat today and overall liked it a lot. A couple of things here and there but no potential deal breakers except............. the teak decks, decks screwed down with about 1000 screws.

Boat is 22 years old and the decks overall look ok but I found four screw heads showing where the bungs popped out and no room to put them back. Another dozen more or less that were half gone or ready to go. Overall maybe 5-6% of all the bungs were standing proud of the deck.

But none of the teak was cracked or split. None of the planks were loose or pulling up. All the seams looked excellent and with the exception of a single, small plank, looked like there was still plenty of wood.

My concern of course is leaking into the deck core with the resulting delamination, rot, headaches and big expense to remove, repair or replace.

First question, boat is very high quality overall. Might one assume or guess that the decks are very well bedded in the appropriate goop and even with a few missing bungs there is no way water is migrating into the deck core?

The underside of the deck is impossible to access due to very nice, permanently installed headliners so getting a good moisture test would be problematic from the top. Any suggestions on any non destructive way to determine if there is any wetness in the core? Maybe pull a couple of the offending screws and poke around in the hole?

Or should I just forget it and keep looking?

Oh man I would so run away.
But I have a teak phobia...let the more experienced teak owners speak for teak...

[Emmalina]

If its a screwed down deck I would forget it as it has already been sanded down to the maximum according to your bungs popping out and 22years . It may not leak now but in a few years .... I have a glued deck and still have problems with infiltration and mine is 15years old !

[Oeanda]

I’d drill out some of the plugs and poke around in the most likely problem spots, to see what you can find out about the core and whether it is soft and spongy, or solid. If the core seems mostly sound, the deck feels firm, and the teak is good (which it generally is because it’s the last to go) then you have time to think about future options like covering it all over. Either with teak, plywood and fibreglass, or a few options in between.

[bergius]

The boat we bought last May has a teak deck in similar condition. We talked to some professionals about the price of getting it replaced, and then got about half of that reduced from the purchase price.

We’ve already removed teak from the cabin top. This was the most urgent job as it was leaking quite badly (all 500 screws had been tightened so far that they were completely through the roof). This project took 8 days, though most of that was drying time for the various layers. We removed the teak, cleaned up and sanded the surface, filled all screw holes with epoxy, then painted a few layers (undercoat, perfection, kiwi grip).

The rest of the deck is still the cracking, too-thin teak. We’ll have to remove it all, but it has slightly less urgency.

So, teak is a pain in the butt, but can be removed yourself. If you like everything else in the boat, then go for it, but try to reduce the price.

[Jim Cate]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

How anyone could read that post and then buy the boat in question is incomprehensible to me!

Jim

[Fore and Aft]

Skipmac I surveyed a yacht last week that has a good reputation. The teak decks were in similar condition to what you describe. Inside a couple of the lockers you could see the deck core had deteriorated. Yet the outside looked fine and didn't flex when my 100kg dad bod walked over those areas.
Cheers

[goeasy123]

What make a model of boat is it?

[Group9]

I watched a neighbor pull the teak deck up on his Grand Banks and repair the damage from leaking screws a few years ago.

Until then, I had always had a romantic love of teak decked boats ( and, had come close to buying a couple). Watching that cured me.

[Bellinghamster]

I owned a Grand Banks with a teak deck that was screwed down, worn out and leaking. Granted it was build in 1973, but the same outcome is inevitable after time. Never again for me, thanks.