Teak deck maintenance. Replacing screw plugs.

[noswellplease]

Although my boat is old the teak deck is generally in fairly good nick. A number of teak plugs however are missing and the screws underneath exposed, and these I plan to tackle.
I found on board a packet of teak plugs which seem a bit long for the job so I guess I need to perhaps split these in half as they would be too deep. Is this the way to go? Also I got some water resistant wood glue but nothing special, will this be ok for the job? Any tips appreciated.... Russ

 

[markdj]

Sounds fine, you could use epoxy instead but there are plenty of waterproof wood glues out there too.

 

[noswellplease]

Do you mean using the epoxy without the teak plug. Guess the end result would take a little from the overall look?

 

[wotayottie]

when you use plugs, you put them in too long and cut back to flush with a sharp chisel. The decking will vary in thickness according to wear etc, and therefore so will the plug length.

 

[tillergirl]

Please don't use epoxy to glue in the plugs. Too expensive, over specified for the job and if you ever need to remove them you will have a nightmare. A waterproof PVA glue is more than adequate. There's one in a blue plastic bottle (not the green bottle which is for indoor use), I think made by Evo which you can get from any DIY store which has a nozzle and cap for simple reuse. It's white in colour but dries clear so there's no worry about marking. It also doesn't stain surrounding teak.

The plugs are oversize as much to aid handling. Dob of glue in the hole over the screw, insert plug and tap with mallet, leave to dry.

Then get a detail pullsaw or one sided detail saw from B and Q or Screwfix. The first has no protruding teeth at the side (like a trad English saw). Both having very thin blades you cut the plug flush with the deck (there is enough flex in the blade/handle to give you room for your knuckles!). The one side detail saw is slightly different to the pullsaw in that teeth protrude from one side and is marked 'this side up' so that the protruding teeth are upwards and don't score the deck as you cut. Do this well and you will probably have enough plug left to reuse. But do wait until the glue is dry so the saved plugs are for next time not the next hole to be done. As you get through the plug, put you finger gently on the plug and saw gently so as not to break the last bit of the bit you are cutting. Otherwise this might break off slightly under the surface and look less than perfect. Probably won't need it if your saw is sharp but a light sand can finish off the job.

I assume you have the right sized plugs for the holes? There are a variety of sizes available or you can buy plug cutters if you have a pillar drill and some off cuts of teak.

 

[Fergus]

I was told to use varnish to secure the plugs?

 

[chrisc]

Waterproof glue the oversize plugs in and then cut to length with a sharp chisel.

 

[markdj]

Last year we used waterproof glue to seal the plugs in and then a chisel to flatten. If he has any epoxy lying about and obviously doesn't want the screws coming out then a tiny amount can seal the screw and hold the plug in too.

Re, only using epoxy? why on earth would you do that and not use the wooden plugs?

 

[tillergirl]

Yes, that's the traditional way but I found it messy and not entirely reliable - operator error no doubt but the operator was the only thing I couldn't change - me!

 

[tillergirl]

Problem with epoxy is mixing up a tiny amount if there is only a few to do or pot life if there are loads.

 

[markdj]

A good wide flat chisel should be ok to use, hold it against the edge of the plug and going with the grain, give it a godd knock with your hand or a tap with a hammer being careful that the chisle edge is parallel to the deck and a little sand should do it.

 

[damo]

The other thing to bear in mind is that plug cutters produce a slight taper, so where you split the plugs may be an issue.

You could get a cutter the next size up (they come in pairs - one for the hole, one for the matched plug), take out the screw and drill a slightly larger hole. That way you know the new plugs will match tightly. Use a drill press for the plugs.

As has been said, use waterproof PVA, leave them overlength and trim with a sharp chisel (NB I find it best to cut them off slightly proud with a side saw or veneer saw before using the chisel, because it is easy for them to snap off below the lip of the hole)

 

[stephenh]

Some plug cutters produce tapered plugs - some don't....

The holes are already there so matched pairs of cutters and drill does not apply.

Be careful with your plug cutter buying if you go down this route, the cutters are usually imperial, if your deck is old the holes are probably 1/2" which is 12.5mm - don't buy a 12mm cutter as the plugs will 'rattle' and the glue line will be too wide. A plug of the next size up will probably split the plank and will drive all the glue out. Metric plug cutters used to be quite hard to source.

Don't use saws - when the glue is dry use a very sharp chisel and slice off the plug 2mm or so above the plank. Take a look at it and if the slope of the grain indicates that the plug might break off below the lip of the hole, as Damo says, easily done, do your second cut from the opposite side.

A very sharp, wide and heavy chisel is the best tool.

 

[damo]

My thinking behind redrilling was that it may be hard to get new plugs to fit old holes neatly - the lips may be crumbled or dented, and it may be difficult to get all the remains of the old glue out.

And another tip - round off the corners of the chisel very slightly so you don't put gouges in the deck; easily done unless the planking is perfectly smooth. (Or use a small block plane for the last last bit of shaving)

 

[Fergus]

why are the screws dome headed rather than flat? Doesn't seem to make sense..

 

[ccscott49]

You need to pull the screws and slightly deepen the holes before putting the plugs in, because that´s probably the reason the plugs have come out.

 

[damo]

The driver has deeper slots to work with, so there is less likelihood of damage to the screw head. No reason you can't use flatheads if you take a bit more care screwing them in.

 

[danielefua]

The driver has deeper slots to work with, so there is less likelihood of damage to the screw head. No reason you can't use flatheads if you take a bit more care screwing them in.

Whatever head type you prefer but be sure that it is not countesunk!

Daniel