Fiberglass floor repair

[emmitt]

I have a 1998 center console and over time the floor developed a couple cracks. I didn't notice the cracks since I don't keep the floor clean enough to see them.

The cracks have now developed a soft spot and need repair.  The soft spots are about 4 - 6" in diameter.

Is this type of repair something for a do-it-yourself or do I need to contact a professional?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

[johnr]

If you're handy, it isn't too bad of a job unless you are encountering stringers. If your floor has a checkered, non slip gel coat finish, you may have trouble matching up to it with the patch. However if it is a glassed and painted floor, it shouldn't be a big deal.

Plywood, Sawzall or jigsaw, glass mat, epoxy, grinder or sander and some paint should get it done.

[striperjohn]

Johnr is right. If you have rotten wooden stringers underneath that floor then you have a greater problem. A product called "git rot" is great for small areas. You can inject it in a small 1/4 inch hole and it flows into soft wet wood and turns hard. Epoxy is the main ingredient. Worse is if you have to cut that section of floor out and repair stringers. I have done it but it is a PiA job.

[Pete D.]

Yea floor and stringer repair is not for the faint of heart.

In my experience of restoring boats, the floor is the LAST thing to rot out. (Sometimes it can go first if the cracks in the glass have let water into the deck)

What type of hull are we talking about here?

I vote drill some core samples out of the transom up high, and maybe 1 or 2 below the water line. You can use a small drill bit and fill the old holes with an SS screw and 3M 4200. If the wood comes out dark and wet looking, the transom is wet and possibly rotten. This would also mean the stringers are probably gone.

Do you have stress crack where the transom meets the main hull? How about where the engine bolts onto the boat? If that transom is wet and the floor is soft, best thing to do would be either find a new hull (maybe with no wood in it) or pull the entire top cap off of the boat and repair all of the wood inside.

I have been a member on Iboats for a long time. TONS and TONS of brilliance on that site. Check em out they will guide you through the whole process.

[craddockcreek]

I second the iboats recommendation. Like this site, lots of people who are happy to help others solve problems and learn. forums.iboats.com/

[Happy Camper]

I tried to redo a 1990 model in 2010 ,it had gotten much worse than yours sounds,It had set in a covered slip with no lift since 1998 and had held some water in the hull all the time.I put it off to long and was a mess once I got into it.I got it done,was not happy with my work.
Guess what I'm saying is don't put it off,fix it now.Best of luck.