spcormack

Preparing and Laying the Deck

Once the fittings were off the deck itself was handed over to Chris Ings the boatbuilder. The whole deck was skimmed with a router, about 5mm below original top face, this was about the lowest wear. The fastenings were then “graded” based on quality and depth using a shape code system so as to make an informed decision on whether to go deeper and estimate the percentage of fastenings requiring to be replaced. It was decided to go to 8mm below original top face requiring some additional fastening replacement but reducing the final new deck height and so minimising knock on effects.

Around 30% of the fastenings were replaced either because they were wasted or protruding too high, this was done with stainless screws. It was also decided that the first seam at the covering board should be dug out and re-calked traditionally as this join would not be covered by the ply. The 4mm marine ply was fitted on a mastic bed to allow movement between the original planks and the new deck. The ply was also close nailed to ensure it had good pressure on the mastic.

Deck ply down and first teak planks in place

The planking was then begun from the covering board with a 5mm seam. the 8mm router and addition of 4mm ply and 9mm teak left the new deck higher than the original but close enough not to cause too many issues. It took a month or two to get the planking done, it was often too difficult to get the shed warm enough for epoxying the teak to the ply but during this time I did a lot of work internally in the areas not normally accessible such as behind the fuel tanks and electrics.

Aft deck complete, very tricky curved short planks inboard

As the deck got close there was pressure on to get all the removed fittings back to Chris, cleaned up and ready for refitting. and as the weather improved the varnish work could progress, the coachroof sides had been stripped back and the cochroof itself had new woodwork.

Coachroof woodwork going back together, original handrails and dinghy chocks

The coachroof was ply then glass with a polyester fine nonslip finish to look as close as possible to the original canvas so no patterns or heavy duty grip.

It was a joint effort with Chris, Alison, myself, and my brother to get the fittings back on. It is a more reliable process with clean fittings and new fastenings but there are a few more specialised tools required for getting access and a tidy finish.

The whole task was pretty successful, reasonably on time and budget. It took around 140 working days excluding work at home scraping woodwork and cleaning fittings so probably an additional 15 days.

There is not that that much I would do differently, it would be nice to have a warmer environment as that caused delays even with two gas jet heaters but there are few better facilities. The materials all appear good, teak from Robins which was graded by Chris at the start to separate out maybe 5 planks and a few sections which were not of suitably high standard. We went for butt seams because I think it makes the finish more real in a world of good fake teak and also I believe it is a more reliable finish. The original deck had scarfed buttless joins, very neat, but they all leaked as there is no calking between and the glue only lasts so long.

We didn’t remove the winch blocks which are not original and sit on the original deck so the detail around them is now not true to construction but I don’t mind and you would have to try very hard to notice anything out of place.

Leaving the yard, straight to Millport, jackstays not fitted yet!

Removing the Fittings

It is a scary prospect to start removing fittings which have never been off in almost 70 years but a start has to be made. First skills practised were clearing paint from screw heads.

1504973886341 — Alison removes her first bolt!

The under deck bolts were generally in good condition but this was not the case within the wood. Significant dezincification had occurred around the fitting-deck boundary so that there was almost no strength in the fittings.

The bolt in the photo was a tiny area of shiny bronze in the centre but otherwise it is just copper-rich soft particles. This was to be the theme through most deck fittings with bronze fasteners which had never been removed since build. Having said that the cleats took a lot of work with a crowbar and lever to get them free.

It would appear that many of the fastenings may have had a high zinc content (>15%) and the fresh water trapped between the deck and the fitting caused plug-type dezincification.

The iron fittings have fared better with minor outer surface wastage. The runner hooks and mainsheet eyes can be retained for refitting.

There was a bit of a puzzle removing the cockpit fuel tank, it was obvious that the inboard panel was designed to be removed but it had not been so for many decades. It turned out it was a simple and clever retaining lugs and I am unsure if there was actually any mechanical fasteners holding the panel in place. There were various bearers and spacers holding the tank in place.

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The cockpit tank was planned to be removed but we ended up removing the aft starboard tank through the lazarette. The deck fitting would not unscrew from the threaded pipe from the tank and the threaded pipe was welded into the tank top. Being in the deck and with diesel residue I made the surprisingly sensible decision not to apply heat and so cut the pipe, we will have to get a new filler pipe attached and refit the tank.

The bolts for the fore stay plate were in good visible condition but due to the importance we will replace them also when refitting.

1505076494988 — Forestay plate bolts withdrawn

Much of the deck fittings required a hammer and punch style removal but the coachroof fittings required a more delicate touch. Alison learnt how to remove the plugs from the handrails. Although we rely on these rails to hold onto and tie the dingy on to etc, once they are removed they are very long and fragile as well as being difficult to replace so great care was taken in removing them from the boat and taking them home.

The fore boom track seems to have been reattached at some time as the screws in every 2nd hole came out no bother while every other one had broken heads.

Eventually everything was cleared from the deck and coach roof, this took about 10 days of work. The photo below also shows the boatbuilder’s first exploratory router skim.

Fix The Leaky Decks

To start the process of repairing the decks we had to work out what options are available what is viable and what we like

The decisions on how to proceed. . . .

In the Shed — Fittings removed and first exploritory routee

The decks have been leaking for a few years, last sanded and re-masticked in the 90’s. There is now no depth in the seams to sand any further and a few screws are protruding.

Isla Rose has swept teak decks onto five king planks at stem and stern. Planks were originally 1.5″ (38mm) but have lost about 6 to 10mm through wear, scrubbing and previous sanding.

While I enjoy the classic yacht we are a modern family with books, tablets, sleeping bags and toys aboard and we are not keeping a 40ft yacht to camp aboard under bin liners and moldy blankets. The fresh water was also beginning to affect the oak frames, fastenings and interior wood work. After much pondering last year we had to decide what remedial course to take.

We talked and listened to a lot of people. We decided then put it around to be shot down or developed. The ideas considered were:

Coelan seal over the top

Plywood over and glass

Lift the deck and fit a new one

Face with tek-deck type pretend teak

Lift the planks fit ply and new teak planks

Lift the planks fit ply and re-bed the original planed planks

Ply over and face with teak

The right answer depends on the yacht, the owners preference, available funds, longevity of the result, skills available and time. Below is our assessment based on our wishes for Isla Rose, use of the yacht, level of technical risk and budget.

Coelan will waterproof a deck and we considered this for a stop gap few years until we could afford more. After considering it was ruled out because the decks were in poor condition to start with so you would see the screws and rough seams. The result would be messy, difficult to remove, and not a long term solution.

I was never keen on this as I particularly wanted the teak decks rather than the canvas look which can be achieved and looks in the right period. If I could afford it I wanted teak.

We seriously considered this. It is costly, upsets the interior of the boat and involves scrapping all the good teak still on the decks.

The new plastic teak effects are great and we have this on the balcony at home. It saves time and cost but on a real wooden boat it is difficult to hide the edges and we were worried it would never quite look right. We could not find a similar project so decided the risk of not being happy was too much for the trouble and cost.

Ply with teak on top was really my favourate option, the ply can be pre-painted to the interior is all clean and new, there will be no seams to leak in the future and you have teak to look at and walk on. I’d did still involve scrapping the good teak on the deck, a lot of mess below, and a lot of cost. Technically this is probably the right option.

The idea of reusing the original planks came from someone on an unrelated stand at Southampton boatshow. It has been done before and there were tools available to cut round the screws. This seemed a good idea, we still have lots of teak in the planks so keep them, benefit from the ply layer, plane the planks to a uniform thickness and refit. Even replacing a few planks you don’t have to buy so much teak. This excellent idea was stopped following word from a boatbuilder which had done it and wished he never had. Discussions with our local boatbuilder brought up possible problems with the planks springing when removed, cracking, not being able to get them off without damage. He was still willing to give it a try, sample a few planks see how it went. The final nail was an experienced surveyor saying “Don’t be ridiculous”. The technical and unknown cost risks were too high.

So the outcome was to plane the deck down a bit, fit a 6mm ply barrier layer with 6mm teak on top. For the most part a known task, possibility of estimating time and money involved. Keeping the strength from the remaining teak seemed less wasteful, gaining the protection from the ply used as a flexible joint and the look and feel of real teak on deck. Most requirements ticked, still not that cheap.