Wooden trawler yearly upkeep costs verses fiberglass

I am rather surprised at how many forum members do not seem to understand that wood hulled boats can and do last for decades without superhuman effort.

Its not a super human effort , but even a tiny bit of neglect will eventually destroy a woodie.

NO leaks ever can be tolerated for even a short period of time.

" If you're the kind of person who sometimes lets things slide, or if you life is so complicated that time is sometimes just unavailable, then you should stay away from a wood boat."

This is correct , unless of course you keep the boat at a specialist boat yard for wooden vessels , and have the yard get on the leak, INSTANTLY.

The problem is ROT.

"Dry rot " requires a certain moisture content , and a leak will cause the wood to alterniatly be wet , then dry.

This means the wood WILL pass thru the rot moisture zone , at least twice with every rain shower , or deck wash.

Maintained wood is great , but unless the boat gets excellent care it will be an expensive disaster.

Best is a "man" aboard as was done in the past,,,,,

Plastic or wood. I've had more plastic than wood but a little crack in the glass could indicate a major issue below. Wood is the opposite. Large issues on the surface can be dealt with. How could someone not love this:

swampu said:

Plastic or wood. I've had more plastic than wood but a little crack in the glass could indicate a major issue below. Wood is the opposite. Large issues on the surface can be dealt with. How could someone not love this:

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I'm with you swampy!

Properly cared for, wood can last a long, long time.

Heck, I've head of a family that boasts about a real heirloom; a 200 year old axe that remains in regular use. Of course, the handle has been replaced 4 times and the head twice, but hey- it's still the same axe.

The better fiberglass builders have largely abandoned the use of balsa "cores" in modern construction. (Here's where everybody chimes in to list the exceptions to prove the rule....) A long list of failed stringers, decks, and (especially) window leaks in trawlers may be traced directly to the decay of wood members, and often these members are not visible or available for any type of preventive maintenance.

A carefully maintained wood boat is a thing of beauty. Something in which those with the temperment, the budget, and (up here at least) the preferred option of covered moorage can take pride.

Is a wood boat more work than a fiberglass boat? I wonder what we would discover if we compared the number of people who ever said, "This wood boat is too much work, I think I'll sell it and go fiberglass instead" to the number of people who have ever said, "This fiberglass boat is too much work, I think I'll get rid of it and replace it with a wooden one." Not saying that I know for sure, merely wondering what we would discover.

Chuck Gould said:

200 year old axe that remains in regular use. Of course, the handle has been replaced 4 times and the head twice, but hey- it's still the same axe.

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Funny you should mention this...

This statement was said about the timber boat I am rebuilding by BruceK on here. Hence now my boats name is AXE

Chuck Gould wrote;

"The better fiberglass builders have largely abandoned the use of balsa "cores" in modern construction."

I watched (night before last) most of a TV program called "Extreme Yachts". They showed some construction scenes of one or more of these ultra mega yachts and they were:

1. Laying up the underdeck covered almost entirely w bulsa core material.
2. Laying up some interior structure w a chopper gun.
3. Applying pre-fabed teak decks to a FG deck. I wish I could remember if they were screwing the teak down but can't remember. Perhaps it was a "pre-fit" as I don't recall any bedding compound either.

But it looked like business as usual to me. I must be missing something though because if I were rich I'd have several custom yachts and at least most of them would be wood.

And then Chuck says quoting an imaginary person ""This fiberglass boat is too much work, I think I'll get rid of it and replace it with a wooden one." More than likely he'd say "I think I'll sell this boat as it's too much work". The boat part v/s something else is closer to reality than "Eweew a wood boat".

PS is that how one spells the E word?

Here's some thorough information on a popular, modern coring that has replaced balsa for many builders

http://www.fram.nl/faq/how/Corecell_Brochure.pdf

Chuck Gould said:

Here's some thorough information on a popular, modern coring that has replaced balsa for many builders

http://www.fram.nl/faq/how/Corecell_Brochure.pdf

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Chuck - Thank you for info/stat-link on Corecell. Following is what I emailed N. America contact.

"I read stat sheet. Corecell seems a good coring material. I'd like to know where to personally view/purchase in San Francisco area? - Thanks, Art"

Core material is realy not the issue. Its the water penetration through the FRP . Kinda why hulls blister cored or not.

Vacum infused sound awsome but then so did FRP originaly so I be interested in how that works out in 40 plus years or so. Water expands contracts at different demensions than the FRP or wood.

FRP or wood , water is the issue along with lack of understanding of how to maintain either. Actualy the same can be said for metal and rock as well.

Find a good hull , machinery , and tanks, then choose the best deal based on the guts.

Boats will need to be maintained at some point at a cost.

Or not.