Deck delamination repair

Kristian · Post by **Kristian** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 11:41 am

Hi all,

Our Shields has a spot on the foredeck about 1'x3' where the top skin has seperated from the plywood core. Looking at it through the clear bottom skin, the plywood looks the same as the surrounding area, and the little bit of core I took out seems dry. This leads me to think the core is ok, but Im not a glass guy, so I thought I'd out the question out there.

Any other ways to tell if I should replace the core? A local glass pro suggested I drill holes in the deck, tap in a long pipe or two and pour heated resin in, then put weights on the deck to clamp the repair. Will that even work?

Thanks

Figment · Post by **Figment** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 12:12 pm

Yeah, it could work, but I don't see the advantage.

The subsequent fairing and painting are the really time-consuming parts of the repair, and you'll have the same work on that end with this hot-resin-injection method as you would if you'd cut away the top skin and relaid it. As a bonus, you'd be able to REALLY see the condition of the core, and you'd be CERTAIN that the top skin achieved a proper bond.

Post by **Tim** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 12:57 pm

I'll second Figment's thoughts. That's a pretty large area to inject, and you'd still have questions about the core's true condition. Resin injection works best on very small areas, and especially when you're trying to preserve an existing deck surface without major repair/repainting/blending nonskid.

Since you're planning to repaint anyway, cut off the top skin and relaminate/fair/paint.

Ceasar Choppy · Post by **Ceasar Choppy** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 2:04 pm

If you cut off the skin and the plywood core is structurally intact and not rotten, you might consider drying it out and reapplying the top skin with epoxy. I did this with a friend of mine's bridge deck on his trawler.

Problem with drilling holes is that you never know what exactly is going on underneath and it is a real pain to go in again with all that epoxy if another a repair needs to be made in the future.

Jason K · Post by **Jason K** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 3:47 pm

I'll echo the recommendation to simply remove the top skin and rebond it properly.

I've been there and done that with the drilling method and, although I was trying to slap a band-aid on rotten core, I can promise you that is far easier and less destructive to cut off the skin in one piece. As Mike mentioned, you can properly inspect the core and you'll have less work rebedding the skin.

To rebed the skin, simply grind a bevel at the seam, like Tim did with the deck crack on Bolero, and lay down a few pieces of glass. The repair can be faired with thickened epoxy.