Removing a teak deck to revert to GRP

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cressers

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Hi,

Looking at a 2nd hand boats around 20 years old many of which come with teak decking. At some point these will be end of life (also they add weight and maintenace burden) should the deck expire is it possible to take back to the grp or is replacement (including plastic products) needed.
 
First thing to check: what's underneath the teak?
Is it teak screwed in or glued on GRP or is there a layer lurking underneath?
My previous boat was teak on marine plywood on GRP.
This layer of ply (unknown to us) added a HUGE extra cost to the project.
If it's teak on GRP, you will need to find out how thick the GRP is.
This will in a large part determine you r options with what you can replace the teak.
If the GRP is quite thick, the world is your oyster.
However, if the GRP is quite thin, you will need something reasonably strong on top to maintain structural integrity.
We were left with only 3-4mm of GRP an when you walked on it, you had a spring in your step.
 
Welcome to the forums!

It's usually possible to strip off an old teak deck, rectify the surface of the GRP, and then finish with deck paint, non-slip material, or a new teak deck (real or fake). But it is a lot of work, although you could do most of the preparation yourself if you're good at DIY.

Most teak decks were optional extras, so the GRP deck would have been strong enough on its own, if a buyer didn't order the teak option.

Some Scandinavian boats (eg Hallberg-Rassy) were only sold with teak decks, so secondhand buyers tend to expect a teak deck. Removing one of these is likely to reduce the value of the boat. Conversely, the cost of a new teak deck isn't recovered in a significantly higher resale value.
 
Thanks for the responses. Seems it was an option on boats I am considering e.g. sun odyssey, dufour calssic etc - therefore seems safe to assume it is aesthetic rather then functional. Ideally previous owner will have replaced with plastic alternative and not reflected in purchase price! Important to understand potential costs before jumping into boat ownership.
 
Do not underestimate the amount of work involved in removing the old deck. some boats like the ones you are looking at have glued decks, some on ply backing. This was never intended to come off and may mean serious power tool working to remove both the wood and adhesive. However, they are often only laid in areas where there are no fittings, unlike more traditional individual strip decks which were laid first and then deck fittings bolted through afterwards. Not only does this sometimes allow water to get in, but massive work to remove all the fittings before you remove the old deck.

So if it does look like you are the one who is going to face the job, discuss with your surveyor the method of construction and any advice on best way of tackling removal.
 
pvb said:
Welcome to the forums!

It's usually possible to strip off an old teak deck, rectify the surface of the GRP, and then finish with deck paint, non-slip material, or a new teak deck (real or fake). But it is a lot of work, although you could do most of the preparation yourself if you're good at DIY.

Most teak decks were optional extras, so the GRP deck would have been strong enough on its own, if a buyer didn't order the teak option.

Some Scandinavian boats (eg Hallberg-Rassy) were only sold with teak decks, so secondhand buyers tend to expect a teak deck. Removing one of these is likely to reduce the value of the boat. Conversely, the cost of a new teak deck isn't recovered in a significantly higher resale value.
Click to expand...

Not all HRs were Teak decked.

P6170073b.jpg
 
My hr352 had it's teak deck removed and had a plastic/ cork teak effect carpet put on in its place before I bought it...water poured in through many of the old screw holes...

I took this off sanded the substrate drilled with a conical bit and englarged the million (slight exaggeration) holes and filled with fiberglass filler and painted the lot with interdeck...worked out fine....I think the most important thing is that the sandwich material is non rotting (not plywood or balsa)

The deck on my previous boat was balsa cored and went to mush in places (Dufour 35) I would not buy a balsa cored boat with a teak screwed deck. .unless I intended to replace the teak...
 
If it's glued on & the fibreglass is substantial enough on it's own I wouldn't let a teak deck put me off a boat. As pandos says though, if it's screwed and especially if it's screwed into a sandwich I would not consider it. Also avoid if keeping the boat somewhere hot. Most boats don't have teak decks though...
 
pandos said:
Just to clarify, in my opinion screwed into a sandwich is fine...once the core is not plywood or balsa or something which will rot
Click to expand...
I agree. It is also worth noting that on some teak decks that are fitted to a cored deck, the screws do not go into the balsa or foam sandwich section. My deck had high quality hardwood ply strips laid in to the Airex core. This was for the screw fixings. We removed our teak deck and laid two layers of 300g cloth over the grp deck to seal the 2500 screw holes permanently. The deck was then filled and faired before painting with Awlgrip.
 
Having done this job, two recommendations are: Do the job under cover and make sure there is enough space so you can work at waist height from a scaffold tower. Oh, and don't underestimate the amount of epoxy you'll need for filling and fairing.
 
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