sdowney717
Guru
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2016
- Messages
- 2,264
- Location
- United States
- Vessel Name
- Old Glory
- Vessel Make
- 1970 Egg Harbor 37 extended salon model
OK, I found the PASSAGEMAKER article that I wrote:
[FONT="]Teak Deck Leaks[/FONT]
[FONT="]Written by Charles Culotta [/FONT]
[FONT="]Published in the Spring 1999 issue of [/FONT][FONT="]PASSAGEMAKER[/FONT][FONT="]. [/FONT]
[FONT="]My 1981 Chung Hwa 45 is overloaded with teak and most regrettably teak decks. Regrettably because by the very nature of their installation they must leak over time. Think about it, approximately every twelve inches a screw is driven through the teak and fiberglass into the plywood underlayment. This process breeches the glass thousands of time and over the years, given the pounding that a boat takes, it would be almost inconceivable that such a deck would not leak.[/FONT][FONT="]Teak Deck Leaks A Modest Proposal[/FONT]
[FONT="]I have had CC Rider since 1985, so I am intimately acquainted with her. Those of you who do your own maintenance know full well what I mean. When several leaks manifested themselves last year I went to work.[/FONT]
[FONT="]My quest to find them was quite an experience unto itself. I used a Dremel tool with a grinding wheel on the underside of the side decks inside of several cabinets. This was at the inside edge of the deck. On grinding through the glass I found water or at least dampness in the plywood. A bad omen to say the least. Since the small holes I ground out are hidden from view I left them open so that any subsequent leak would be evident and not accumulate in the deck core. By process of elimination I excluded the window frames-teak of course. This left the decks. I pulled up a half dozen planks and re-glassed the area under them to no avail.[/FONT]
[FONT="]In some places where the teak meets the cabin side I found a very small crack or space that water could enter so I used a hypodermic needle to inject a product called CAPTAINS CREEPING CRACK CURE. Unfortunately this was not the source of the leaks or not all of them anyway. This stuff works wonders for hairline cracks that are too thin for thicker products. It looks like and has the consistency of milk. This process was also used on the window frames in any hairline crack I could find just in case there was water intrusion and it was making its way to the deck core.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I inspected a number of similar boats with the problem and the various remedies utilized to fix them. These ranged from painting on a two-part epoxy to ripping the whole deck up including the entire plywood core and reglassing. We are talking some big operation.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I took notice of the spray on truck bed liners and contacted several shops that do the work. Even if they were not interested in the job I asked a lot of questions. One product called PROLINER was excluded from consideration due to the fact that it is very sensitive to humidity in its application. A coating produced in Houston, Texas by Performance Coating Specialists 800.821.8820 became the product of choice. I mailed several small pieces of teak to them for coating with hree similar but different products sold by them. We easily decided on SPEEDLINER over the others. The main reasons being the nonskid properties.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Another concern was adhesion. If it would not stick then it would not work. Upon close inspection this did not appear to be a problem at all. Next was to determine the type of application. I ruled out rolling or brushing it as the non-skid properties would be lost. An aside, you DO NOT need to add nonskid granules to this stuff. Trust me, applied properly it is as non -skid as teak is nonskid. Then I had to consider where would I have the demarcation line between the SPEEDLINER and the surface of the boat. I decided to extend it across the deck and up the fiberglass approximately two inches. That is two inches up the cabin side and a like distance up the gunnel side. This would give me a good seal where the teak meets the cabin and along the outer edge of the teak at the gunnel. Note that on CC Rider the teak deck stops about two and one half inches shy of the gunnel forming a gutter for water to run to the scuppers.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I removed all readily removable deck hardware such as deck pipes, hose bibs and the like. Fuel, water and waste deck fittings were not taken off only because access to the underside of the deck was not readily possible for all of them and for appearances they needed to be treated the same.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The next step entailed deck preparation. On the weather deck I drilled numerous holes into the plywood core through which I used a turkey-basting syringe to inject a two-part epoxy. These holes were then sealed with polysulfide. Be careful not to penetrate the glass on the bottom side of the deck. I suggest that you mark your drill bit with tape to prevent this and it makes the drilling faster and less worrisome.[/FONT]
[FONT="]In the years that I have had her I have not renewed the polysulfide so the sun had expanded it or the teak was worn enough that the polysulfide was well above the teak. I treated it two ways. On the weather deck I sanded the entire deck with 80-grit paper on my DeWalt 4-inch grinder. Remember this is to be covered with a three sixteenth layer of material so a few circular marks are of no consequence! This was a very dusty operation, wear eye protection and a cloth mask. If you have a Samson post examine it carefully from inside the boat. This is a guaranteed place to leak and it may not show due to the possibility of the water not running down the post but right into the core. I found this condition and strengthened the fore deck by use of a 2x4 placed under the deck and lag bolted to the Samson post. A dado was cut in the 2x4 and it was jammed tight up against the deck. It extends almost to the edge of the deck simply to make it easier to fit into the space that was available. This was installed because the deck had a small amount of flex with no underlying support and would have been added in any event and not just for the coating.[/FONT]
[FONT="]On the bridge I decided not to sand but I did sharpen a 1-inch putty knife to a razor edge and skinned the polysulfide down even with the deck. This left a hint of the lines between the teak boards. It is a matter of taste. My recommendation is to sand the entire deck including the polysulfide.[/FONT]
[FONT="]More grunt work, thoroughly clean the teak. Over the years I have tried every cleaner that I could get my hands on and the clear winner is: copious amounts of bleach, detergent and oxalic acid. Don’t go buy the expensive teak cleaner just for the oxalic acid. Get ZUD at your grocery store. It is a powder, cheap and works like gangbusters as its main ingredient is the everpowerful oxalic acid. Sprinkle the ZUD on the teak liberally and I mean liberally then use a stiff deck brush not one of those soft ones with which you wash the boat; scrub with a vengeance, twice because you want all oil off the surface in preparation for the primer. Again, don’t worry about gouging the teak because it will be covered.[/FONT]
[FONT="]It was now time for the application process to begin. The first step was masking. There is some overspray but not as much as with paint. An aside. I mentioned that I did not remove the deck fills therefore they must be dealt with at this point. I suggest that each cap be removed, a turn of masking tape be applied around the threads, screw it half way in and cover it with tape. This will give the SPEEDLINER a good leak proof seal with the fittings. Since the word "diesel", "water", or "waste" will be obliterated, have small plastic placards made and attach them next to each fill on the cabin side. Back to the samson post. I masked several inches up the post so that a seal would be achieved above deck level. This product does have some elasticity so I so not anticipate a problem when stress is applied to the post.[/FONT]
[FONT="]A primer was applied and then two coats of SPEEDLINER were sprayed. The tape along the edge of the product must be pulled up BEFORE the product dries inorder that there is a sharp line. I suggest several rows of tape so all of the masking need not be removed between coats. The second coat of the SPEEDLINER is the texture or non-skid coat.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The astute reader quickly recognizes several problem areas. First is the need to get around the deck to pull up tape while the product is not yet cured. Some thought must go into this but an agile person should have little problem negotiating the top of the gunnels and the edge of the bridge. Next is the need for a dry spell once the masking is done. Unfortunately we have no control here but painters work around that every day.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Go forth and investigate. That is it. You may walk on it the following day. The feel is slightly soft and the nonskid is apparent. When it is wet it is about as slippery as teak. To try it, find a pickup truck and walk around on it! I am satisfied with the product in its looks, performance underfoot, and leak sealing properties.[/FONT]
[FONT="]NAVIGATION INFORMATION[/FONT]
[FONT="]I now suggest that you consider a product by DANIELLO Corp. 888 370 4333 that may be applied by the consumer. This is not to say that the spray on bed liner does not work, it does.[/FONT]
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[/FONT]I would love to see your pictures. But I cant.
Does it have a shiny gloss appearance?
