Teak Deck Repair

The friendliest place on the web for anyone who enjoys boating.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Bennett Schneider

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2013
Messages
29
Location
USA
I am presently looking at a 1973 Marine Trader Eagle 40. The boat has teak decks. How do I determine the condition of these decks? I have already determined that all the black caulk between the teak needs to be removed and replaced but my bigger concern is determining if the teak itself is still in good shape. Also, I don't know if there is a "subfloor" under the teak or is it attached directly to the fiberglass. Since this is a Marine Trader, I am worried about what I might find under the teak.
Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Ben
 
Are there plugs missing from the screw holes securing the teak? Are there missing sections of caulk. Is the caulk pulled away from the edges of the groove? Are there signs of water entry underneath? The screws securing the teak planks go into a substrate of some kind, most likely teak sandwiched between 2 layers of fibreglass.
I redid my decks on my IG 9 months back. Big expensive job. I`ll leave the rest to the MT experts. I was lucky, I had foam substrate, except for 2 small areas of teak, which were both rotted. Surveyors use meters to measure damp.
 
Never heard of a MT Eagle 40. Eagle 40 yes, MT 40 yes.
 
Sorry. That's an Eagle and not a Marine Trader. Thanks for pointing that out to me. Any advice on teak decks?
 
Last edited:
You can have balsa, plywood or old packing crates in the substrate, but not teak.
Neglected teak decks mean the boat itself was neglected - walk away, there's more out there. Think about 30-35,000 to completely remove the teak, cut out the rot, replace the plywood, replace the fibreglass and finish it. More if it got into the wood in the cabin walls, bulwarks or interior.
 
Thanks XS. I've walked away. It's a shame. She's still a beautiful boat but just not worth all of that money to repair. If the rest of the boat was in good shape, I may have considered it but given all that's wrong with it just from the naked eye, it would be financial suicide. The search goes on.
 
You can have balsa, plywood or old packing crates in the substrate, but not teak.

Not quite, I redid my complete main deck two years ago, right down to the substrate. they were blocks of Teak 4"x 6", some so sodden you could push a screw driver right through.

It was a big job, however, technically not that difficult.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom