Head lining

millbeach

Well-Known Member
Joined
10 Apr 2010
Messages
314
Location
essex
Visit site
Gang.

I know this has been done many times, but some advice sought.

Replacing my head vinyl, well really putting old stuff back up, as foam underneath has crumbled away.

Will glue NEW foamback on to original vinyl, once cleaned.

What glue do i use to stick back onto fibreglass interior.
Bearing in mind, some of the vinyl has to be placed to awkward angles ie ,upside down,

THANKS..
 
I believe most suppliers of lining materials supply spray adhesives, e.g. Hawke House. A word of caution, though, is to open all available ventilation and work in short bursts or you can be badly affected by the spray. There is also a risk of fire or explosion with uncured adhesives so don't work on still days when the ventilation will be reduced, don't smoke or brew tea or switch electrics on and off.

If you can find it, use closed cell foam or it will crumble again.

Rob.
 
Another +1 for Hawke House Ltd http://www.hawkehouse.co.uk/

I used them for all the materials when I replaced the lining in my boat.
They recommended a brush on contact adhesive on the grp and a spray on adhesive on the foam. See "SAF111" and "Trade Tak" on their website.

However, I tried replacing just the foam and reusing the vinyl on a small section. It was not satisfactory so good luck with that idea. I'd suggest the minimum amount of adhesive on the foam.

When using a solvent based adhesive in the confines of a boat good ventilation and an a "organic vapours" respirator mask are essential.

HH can supply the mask. See "Respirator mask" on their website.

They also supplied me with a very useful hints and advice leaflet
 
I believe most suppliers of lining materials supply spray adhesives, e.g. Hawke House. A word of caution, though, is to open all available ventilation and work in short bursts or you can be badly affected by the spray. There is also a risk of fire or explosion with uncured adhesives so don't work on still days when the ventilation will be reduced, don't smoke or brew tea or switch electrics on and off.

If you can find it, use closed cell foam or it will crumble again.

Rob.

+1! I went to visit a Motorcycle Glove manufactuer in Reading once. The linings and padding was held in place with "Evostic" type impact adhesive which was transferred from 25 litre drums into small pots, The two guys doing the transfering-a couple of very large turbaned Punjabi's- were off their faces, giggleing and laughing with the effect of the fumes from a fresh drum of glue. That was when I realised what the kids saw in glue sniffing!
 
As any Westerly owner will tell you, this is a b**** of a job. The best ( and most expensive) long term solution is to get a professional to do it. However, if taking the DIY route: Yes Hawke House for the materials. Glueing new lining to the old may get over the problem of cleaning down the bare fibreglass and avoiding the lumps and bumps that usually appear, but I guess there could be a risk that the additional weight of the new stuff could pull the old lining down. On my boat all the headlining is now in the form of removable vinyl covered thin ply panels that in my view makes a better job and also enables cables etc run across the coachroof to be accessed more easily.
 
On my boat all the headlining is now in the form of removable vinyl covered thin ply panels that in my view makes a better job and also enables cables etc run across the coachroof to be accessed more easily.
Also a water based PVA glue can be used ... no smell and no harmful fumes.

Again HH can supply a suitable one.
 
Also a water based PVA glue can be used ... no smell and no harmful fumes.

I was told by a professional to always use a water based adhesive when sticking to GRP as this is where the cold bridge and hence moisture occurs .
 
I was told by a professional to always use a water based adhesive when sticking to GRP as this is where the cold bridge and hence moisture occurs .

Not sure I see the connection between the "cold bridge" and using a water based adhesive
... important that it is water resistant though!
 
Not sure I see the connection between the "cold bridge" and using a water based adhesive
... important that it is water resistant though!

The COSH sheets for many none water based adhesives require a very low RH in the base material and since the cold bridge and hence moisture will occur within the GRP presume the thinking is that there could be failure of adhesion particularly if carried out on a damp/humid day.
 
I was told (unless I misunderstood) that Hawke House or someone did a foam that was self adhesive.

I think the o.p. meant that he was re-using the vinyl on new foam rather than sticking new foam and vinyl to existing. It is what I have done on one or two areas. A useful ploy if you only need to repair and can't get the original vynil.
 
I do not envy you!

It is a b1tch of a job- cleaning off the old foam residue is the hardest part.. I used a wire brush both powered and manual and an electric scraper I got from Lidl which worked a treat.

Try and get 'real' evo stick adhesive - the environmentally sound stuff is rubbish and never seems to dry properly. Use LOADS more glue than you think you'll need and leave it to dry thoroughly - you'll need to be VERY accurate when sticking it on though.....

Heavy Duty velcro tape is easier to apply and cuts down on the ammount of large glued areas that are difficult to hang, strips of this can be glued onto the hull and deckhead much more easily than gluing the lining on.Simple measurements will line up the velcro glued onto the back of the lining - another job that can be done at home.

Try wherever possible to make plywood panels that you can take home to line - it is SO much easier than trying to stick lining up over head. These, screwed onto the deck head with plastic trim caps over the screw heads, are a neat and simple way to get a good job. Awkward curves can be glued up with the panels - both on overhead and vertical surfaces -fitted afterwards to hide the fiddly/messy bits at the end- if strategically placed.

Good Luck!
 
Replacing headlining

I also carried out this job a couple of years ago on my Beneteau.

I used the original vinyl lining and cleaned off the powdered foam, I then used the foam from Hawke house which has an adhesive backing on one side.
I spray glued the foam to the vinyl and then spray glued the GRP and used the adheisive backing side to stick it to the hull.
It all worked well apart from the forepeak where heat on the deck (I beleive) caused it to fail, I plan on re-sticking it with the contact adhesive on both sides so it can carry the weight of the foam and vinyl upside down.

I purchased all materials from Hawke house.
 
Thanks all.

Yes i know it is a pig of a job.
The foam backing has turned to dust, making the vinyl to fall away.
Have cleaned the vinyl of all residue, and also cleaned hull.(nightmare job).
Will stick new foam to back of vinyl using spray addesive.

Will prob use contact addesive to stick to hull..

One more question, would UNIBOND PVA addesive work?.

My boat an 1984 Jeanneau, been told this is very common to there make.
Though the vinyl has been up for over 27 years, also loads of lumps of glue on backing, so obvious previous owner keept sticking it up over the years.
 
One more question, would UNIBOND PVA addesive work?.
The waterproof version would be suitable for sticking onto removable plywood panels. Hawke House supply a waterproof PVA for that purpose... Tradebond WA40.

They still recommend a solvent based contact adhesive to stick onto the GRP.
 
Thanks Vic,

Yes i should imagine contact addesive is best,
As all the lining is direct stuck to hull, no wood involved.

Also loads of twists and turns in the toilet.
Some of the lining to be stuck over the sink.

Many thanks...
 
I believe most suppliers of lining materials supply spray adhesives, e.g. Hawke House. A word of caution, though, is to open all available ventilation and work in short bursts or you can be badly affected by the spray. There is also a risk of fire or explosion with uncured adhesives so don't work on still days when the ventilation will be reduced, don't smoke or brew tea or switch electrics on and off.

If you can find it, use closed cell foam or it will crumble again.

Rob.

Hawke house do a black foam which we are using as you are doing. HH also say that spray on glue is not satisfactory, and it is better to use a good contact adhesive. The new foam has its own glue already supplied, but doing it at this time of year is not easy as the hull will not be totally dry and whilst it will apear to stick - it will come loose pretty quick. So wait intil the warmer dryer weather comes.
 
Yes will prob wait for warmer weather, to aid sticking.

Might go with HAWKHOUSE double sided adhesive foam.

Not cheap, but man on phone says it does the job..

Have to measure up the area first on the vinyl at home..
 
The boat manufacturer makes no difference. After 20 years or so foam backed vinyl headlinings fail. The foam turns to black dust and gets everywhere. It was usually stuck in place by an operator with a compressor driven gun spraying liberal amounts of contact adhesive everywhere and then offering up pre-stitched and shaped linings.

Removing it is a hellish job. Unless you clean every last scrap of the old foam out you contaminate the new job. If you don't get rid of all the old contact adhesive then you can often see it through unevenness in the new job.

We stripped out the headlinings in cabins, saloon and all the cupboards aboard Cariad and scrubbed every last inch of contact adhesive away by hand using leather gloves and coarse wire wool. We wore out two sets of leather work gloves in the process.

The bare fibreglass was then painted white in preparation for reglueing new headlinings ...... I have not done that yet to a lot of the boat. We only use the boat in summer and fancy vinyl is not necessary. The white painted glass cabins are cooler than the forepeak that is lined. If I decide to do the job I will do it properly and that will involve making up panels of ply to be covered with the right materials ( non foam lined vinyl probably ) It makes the job probably 3 times as big but glueing stuff all over the nicely cleaned and painted hull and deckhead just goes against my every instinct!
 
Last edited:
As someone about to do some headlining this thread is a wealth of info, thanks all.

FWIW, I go with the ply backed option as well, easier to put up, take down and maintain.
 
I did the back cabin on my Westerly Storm after being quoted over £1000 by a pro.
After trying to stick large areas back I was getting frustrated at the poor finish and the mess, so I took the plunge and ripped the lot out. I took it home removed all the sponge lining, cleaned it, then set about cleaning the fibreglass. I bought a 5 ltr can of the SAF111 from Hawkeshouse, I decided to put it on both surfaces, and not to use the spay as it did not hold well enough in the heads.
Of all the jobs I have ever done on any boat this was the most frustrating. Trying to carry a large piece of vinyl covered in contact adhesive into a small space without it getting stuck, to itself, me or the boat was a nightmare. I nearly gave up, but glad I persevered.
The only thing I'd wished I'd done was paint the fibreglass dark, as removing the foam allowed daylight to show through a strip along the roof, but all in all not a bad job.
 
Top