US Yacht 25 Sole Rot / Replacement

[bigben00]

Greetings! First off, I'm about as new as you can be in the world of sailing and boat ownership (so forgive the gap in vocabulary). I figured why not start off with a challenge and purchase a 83 US Yacht 25 that I knew needed some work. Little did I know the sole was rotted.

I'm looking for a little bit of guidance here as I've never put my hands on any of this kind of work. The cabin of the US Yacht apparently sat with some water in the cabin for a good amount of time. As a result, the sole plywood was waterlogged and rotted to the point I could pull up in chunks with my hands. After removing the plywood, I discovered the fiberglass below was missing in spots and the additional wood core between the fiberglass hull and top fiberglass layer was gone and/or rotted. The boat has a shallow hull and bilge with no supports or "stringers" present besides a few 1/2'' boards the plywood was sitting on above the bilge.

As you can see in the pictures, the bathroom area has the most damage (there is a leak through the widow port here as well). Do I need to use a multi-tool and cut away remaining top layer of fiberglass?

I honestly have no clue what to do at this point.... Appreciate any guidance.

Ben

[CSY Man]

Looks ugly.
Clean everything, dry everything, then decide on repairing and if the expenses and labor are worth it.
If not, advertise Free Boat and get a signed Bill of Sale and get better.

[TrentePieds]

Well, Ben. You say: "Appreciate any guidance."

I really hope you mean that :-)!!

The repair costs will far exceed what you will pay for a GOOD 25 footer, or even a 26 footer. Or even a 30-footer. Ready to sail.

I would, if I were you, chalk up the purchase price to tuition fees. Them's hard bananas, I know, but I really do believe that that is the wisest thing for you to do.

Something you may not know is that the "last owner", i.e. a man who tries to repair a boat, but then gives up on it, is, in many jurisdictions, legally responsible for the disposal cost of the wreck.

Next time you buy a boat, talk to us about it BEFORE you sign on the dotted line.

All the best to you.

TrentePieds

[wyb2]

It looks bad. Before you decide/do anything, try to find someone who has some knowledge on these specific boats.

These were built by Bayliner, not a company known for sparing no expense. I’d be a little surprised if they built these with a structurally cored hull, that sort of thing tends towards more expensive, performance oriented boats. I don’t know though.

If the core is structural, the boat is either a full rebuild or a lost cause. If it’s there for some other reason, maybe not. You really need to find someone who has some understanding of the construction.

If you do end up trying to fix it, the first step is fix the leaks.

[bigben00]

I appreciate everyone's candid replies as I truly am a beginner and have no idea what I have! I walked it down with a few men in my sailing club yesterday. They more or less said I could take on the project of removing remaining top layer of fiberglass and underlying wood, replacing plywood, and re-fiberglassing over the top. OR they said I could see if I could trade it for someone wanting a project...haha.

I do not believe the core is structural at all. I'm actually taking the boat out for the first time today. It's currently on the water in a slip and everything else on the boat is functional to my knowledge.

[Spot]

Hi Ben,
I am working on a boat that had a flooded cabin due to a cracked cockpit drain hose that the accumulated water found its way into the fiberglass capped plywood structure that supports the keel of the boat. If you look for posts I started there is an old long thread and few short newer ones with more focused topics. The repairs have kept me from quite a bit of sailing. I am past a year since my last sail with that boat but looking like I will be able to splash in about a month.

My advice would be to clean and evaluate, would probably wear a mask and gloves for the first time through cleaning everything (my boat had mice, so it had droppings, so Hanta virus was a potential issue). My concern would be any seeping damage to floors and bulkheads.

Hoping it works out for you.

[Fore and Aft]

BigBen00 I once deliberately took a good sole out of our Triton 24. I was after the extra 3 inches headroom. All I did was grind the bilge, glass in a floorboard over the keel sump, then flo coat the whole area including 4 inches up the settee sides. Then I glued non skid vinyl patches on the flo coat.
Cheers