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Faux Teak Project - about to begin


DonT

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So, as it seems to not want to turn to winter here in Utah, I decided I'd take a quick peek at what it's going to take to get the carpet out of my '98 sunsetter and begin the Faux Teak flooring project.  At lunch time today, I checked one corner of carpet, to see if I'm going to be fighting it coming out in small pieces - or in larger sections.  At least on this side, it looks like I'll get lucky....from both a removal perspective and in creating my templates for cutting the EVA material.  While I have a grey sample in the pic, I'm going with a light brown to give the interior a bit more color other than greys and off-whites.

I intend to document my progress over the next month or so....order for the flooring will probalby go in within a week or two.

My project plan (without any dates/times) will follow:

1.  Removal of drivers seat and doghouse

2.  Removal of existing carpet

3.  Remove the remnants of the backing & glue  (Sanding, solvents - probably a combination of the two - although I prefer not to use any chemical which will make me loopy)

4.  level the 2 low spots in the floor

5.  Coat w/ Kiwi Grip  (x2) -  If it weren't for the low spots which require filling, and a few other things, I probably could have gotten away without this step.  But if I'm going through all this effort - better do it right.

6.  Create the masonite/hardboard templates from the removed carpet sections

7.  Cut / Route the EVA Faux Teak to size from the pre-fitted masonite templates

8  Install & enjoy.

Hopefully I can get this all done by April Fools Day  -   Since I'll be working on nice saturdays since I don't have an indoor location, I'll be dependant upon the weather gods.

Sunsetter Start 2132018.jpg

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I don't want to put a damper on your plans, but I started in late November and just now getting ALL of the carpet out...granted, I am killing several birds with 1 stone here (e.g. doing/discovering several projects at the same time) but to give you an idea of time invested I've been keeping track of my hours and as far as carpet removal only is concerned, I'm up to 56 hours but that also including time to remove carpet from the seat bases, helm console, and bow area.  I'm probably not the fastest worker, so YMMV.  Having said that, here are my 2 cents:

  • Don't be surprised to find a few areas of *ahem* interest that were previously hidden by the carpet.  I have added a few extra projects due to what I've found...
  • Be prepared (and unafraid) to lay down some fiberglass resin.  It's not a big deal but in addition to the low spots that you've already identified you'll probably find other areas that need it after removing the carpet.  For your application, a flat floor is a must.  Note that removing the carpet will add gaps between the tank cover and the floor; mine was 1/4"...
  • KiwiGrip: good stuff.  You'd have to put something down on top of the fiberglass anyway, so good choice.  I'm doing the same, but laying Deckadence over it.
  • Be prepared to repair or replace the tank cover if it is aluminum honeycomb.  I opted to repair with the fiberglass resin since I had it on hand.
  • I used around 5 gallons of Sentinel 747 Plus adhesive remover.  Works great, especially if given time and warm temps...but there were definitely some problem areas that were either very thick or just so old and dry that the adhesive remover wouldn't immediately work on it, so for those I resorted to the plastic and at times metal scraper.  Pick up the goo (melted carpet adhesive) with Zep absorbent.  Gloves are a very good idea.
  • You're going to find things on your boat you din't know about, most unrelated tot he carpet, so be prepared for budget creep.  The good news is she'll be good as new when done. 
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@formulaben  Thanks for all the feedback....good news - I don't have a tank cover;  Sunsetter LX is a DD.  Not afraid of resin - been doing that type of work on boats for quite some time.  I'm also lucky that I don't have seatbases to worry about either.  I'm keeping the carpet (at least right now) up the gunnels and along the bottom of the dog house.  I think the biggest challenge will be the ski locker edges, when I remove the carpet, the aluminum trim may need some shimming.

And of course, getting rid of all the glue residue/carpet backing that remains attached to the floor will be the ugly part.

and yes - I always expect budget creep

 

 

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My gaps are behind the dog house - where the floor panel that lifts for access to the steering cable, HDS, etc.

There is also a "joint of some kind that has been rudimentary filled between the stringer and the floor that I'll even out.

So my plan is along the lines of:

1.  use a filler (since I have to level it anyway) of either bondo or an high density filler w/ West System epoxy to get rid of that uneven joint.

2.  With that, I'll sand and prepare a "gel coat" like surface - it will be resin, but sanded smooth

3.  Since I intend to coat the entire floor w/ Kiwi Grip, that will give me a finished surface that had edges similar to molded fiberglass -  and treat any joints similar to the attached picture.

4.  Failing that - I may get an aluminum tee molding for right there - similar to what I see around the ski locker hatch

We'll see how all this goes and adjust.

check out what @nosnarb did on his echelon - my floor is slightly different  

 

image.thumb.png.9deaa3c419bbcfd0fec9ee3f3c6944be.png

 

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Big first day today -  doghouse out, drivers seat out, carpet out

carpet glue/backing residue has been removed from the back up to the ski pylon....ran out of gas to finish it all.

Attached is a pic of the progress.  Funny thing though, there are 4 square "patches" that are high spots on the floor.  Not completely sure what I'll do there, but in all liklihood, since I need to do some filler work for some low spots, I'll just feather those high spots out a bit farther to make them less noticeable.

Sio the next steps are:

1.  Finish removing the glue residue

2.  clean/degrease 

3.  level

4. Kiwigrip -  I'm thinking about black, as with a brown/black teak, any slight gaps will be less noticeable than a light color.  

 

Sunsetter_carpet_out_-_glue_removed.thumb.jpg.ad94f6c56edecb388cf0b1cc7c701b79.jpg

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3 hours ago, Bozboat said:

Might as well replace the exhaust hoses, fuel lines, and whatever else you can while you have her stripped down.

Already planning on fuel lines, good suggestion on the exhaust hoses 

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  • 1 month later...
martinarcher

Nice!  I'm so conflicted on this project for my Sunsetter.  I love the way it looks but just not sure how to handle the carpet up the sides of the boat.  It looks so good on the boats with gelled sides I've seen so far.

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6 minutes ago, martinarcher said:

Nice!  I'm so conflicted on this project for my Sunsetter.  I love the way it looks but just not sure how to handle the carpet up the sides of the boat.  It looks so good on the boats with gelled sides I've seen so far.

next time I open the boat up -  I'll take a pick of my under the gunnels -  Since the carpet was still in great condition, I kept it as carpet.

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1 hour ago, martinarcher said:

Nice!  I'm so conflicted on this project for my Sunsetter.  I love the way it looks but just not sure how to handle the carpet up the sides of the boat.  It looks so good on the boats with gelled sides I've seen so far.

As soon as I pulled the floor carpet I knew the sides had to go.  I even removed carpet under the helm and in the observer's compartment.  Right now I have an empty shell of a boat...as soon as it is done there will be pictures.  I'm using the KiwiGrip to paint on the sides, but without the texture roller; in areas of interest (above cup holders, around helm, etc.) there will be GatorStep and/or vinyl trim.  Can't wait to get this done.

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martinarcher

Nice.  I'm going to have pictures of option A and option B to pick from. 

I'm usually the one posting pics of boat projects....remodeling a house we bought is killing the boat fun but at least I can let you guys show me the way on this one.  :thumbup:

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 4/2/2018 at 1:11 PM, formulaben said:

As soon as I pulled the floor carpet I knew the sides had to go.  I even removed carpet under the helm and in the observer's compartment.  Right now I have an empty shell of a boat...as soon as it is done there will be pictures.  I'm using the KiwiGrip to paint on the sides, but without the texture roller; in areas of interest (above cup holders, around helm, etc.) there will be GatorStep and/or vinyl trim.  Can't wait to get this done.

@formulaben Do you have a thread going? I want to do this project but have been hesitant cuz I’m not sure what to do with the carpet on the gunnel/motorbox/sear bases.

I’d love to see some pics.

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1 hour ago, braindamage said:

@formulaben Do you have a thread going? I want to do this project but have been hesitant cuz I’m not sure what to do with the carpet on the gunnel/motorbox/sear bases.

I’d love to see some pics.

There will be soon, hopefully by Memorial weekend, but I'm not completely optimistic yet.  As for the carpet, I stripped everything off.  I bought 1/4" closed cell foam and my choice of vinyl (and the requisite SS staples, air stapler and staple removers.)  I've already wrapped an inconspicuous helm trim piece to test my skills.  I think it turned out great...definitely exceeded my expectation for a first try.  Anyway that is the plan, cover the pieces in vinyl, paint floor and sides with KiwiGrip and place some GatorStep and vinyl trim in select places. 

I took the cupholder "shelf" and vertical part that holds it and I literally have them sitting a few feet from me in a sea of vinyl in my living room right.  I had to get a new 3" wide piece of HDPE since the factory screws were placed so high on the old piece that they deformed it, but not a big deal.  I've got those pieces all set to apply foam and vinyl to here shortly.  For the seat base, I had to fill the "slots" that are machined out of the HDPE to allow it to curve.  I will put foam on the side that faces the lounge, but only straight vinyl on the side that faces the cooler/storage area.

For a preview, here is a folder of the trim piece I did.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1pPYn8osl1MkExW8SqmW7ralKIQEpfb1H

And here is a preview of two of the extras I'm working on...and why I'm behind in my project.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1k0RSLXEzlnC6R-6QtH1JosWHF_xv8_0X

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Rather than using Bondo for filling the low spots, consider making a paste by mixing talc with polyester resin.  You can mix as much talc in as you need to make it as thick as you want, and the result is lighter in weight than Bondo.  I also don't think you would need to use a sealant over it.  Pretty cheap, too....

http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/pdf/filler/Talc.pdf

Regards,

- Just Gary

 

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