Think I did it now....Couple of odds & ends.....

[skooter]

Well, ...I thought I might be fishin' this afternoon, ...but things didn't come "together",.....So I thought I'd take something "apart", ...instead ....stupid me.....

I had planned on putting a new floor in the puppy this spring, .....damn fishing got in the way....

I also want to try and find this nagging leak, ...... that's been plagueing me all year...

Soooo, ..... I decided that there's no time like the present, ........



My original plan was to cut a section out of the floor, ....float her on the river and see if I could look underneath the rest of the floor and pinpoint where the water was coming in, ...simple, ...right?

Did a little exploratory surgery......, wasn't exactly sure how much room there was under the floor, so I took it very cautiously here....no jigsaw, ....just drilled some adjacent holes and jointed them with a little hand saw.....

Finally freed the section, and lifted it out.......



Holllllly Crap, ...this is not an afternoon project....

The whole bottom is loaded with soaking wet styrofoam, .....too late to turn back now, ......

It was time for a pop, ....and come up with a course of action, .....

Took care of the priorities first,......

.....So, ..... after bangin' my head against the fence numerous times, ...for even starting this endeavor, ......a plan began to take shape, ...as well as a crack in the fence....

It looked like this was gonna be a major open heart operation, .....

The seats had to go for sure,

It took a bit, ...... to just clean out the storage underneath....



That being done, .....managed to extricate it with a minium of expletives, ....Geeze, ....they put screws in the wierdest places.....

So, ....she's prepped and ready for surgery in the morning, .....she was even sterilized, ....a couple of times, ....unfortunately....



The straight black line across there, ....is the end of the board, ....and will be the end of the incision, .......

the meandering line in the top left is a sterilization line, .....unfortunately, ...again

Just a pic of the stuff in the "trunk" now.....



On the positive side, ....I found a few things, I've been looking for since spring, ..But, ....I also found a few things, .....I'd rather not have....

So the revised plan, .....cut that section out, ....try and remove all the soggy stuff from underneath the rest of the floor, ...and then go back to the original plan, ....except, ....I guess a cooler, ...will be the "seat" of choice, ....catching a few fish, ...would be an added bonus......

One last look, ....



oh yeah, ....any ideas, ...helpful hints, .... would be greatly appreciated, ....
I'm thinkin', .... wall to wall grey carpet, like the bow, ......when she's done....

Wish me luck, ........................please

skooter

[Markus]

You are completely nuts!

My only advice would be to leave the pops in the fridge tomorrow and try to reverse every crazy thing you did today!

[roughrider]

"How to find a leak".

Get the hose out and start filling the boat,a couple inches may do. Then level the boat and get under the boat and look for drops seeping from loose rivets.

At this piont,you may start on the pops again


Good Luck,only a month till Quinte roughrider

[skooter]

"How to find a leak".

Get the hose out and start filling the boat,a couple inches may do. Then level the boat and get under the boat and look for drops seeping from loose rivets.

At this piont,you may start on the pops again


Good Luck,only a month till Quinte roughrider

Sorry roughrider, ....

tried that on three different occasions, .....had so much water in it, ....I was afraid the tires would blow, .....nothing,

.....ever heard of a one way leak? ......me neither, .....but it appears I have one....

thanks anyways, .....

Yeah Mark, ....hindsight is always 20/20, .....

The floor is pretty much shot anyways, ....it's pretty punky in places, ....may as well do it now and be done with it, .......pops will stay in the fridge, ...till I get a handle on it, ....or 4:00, .....whichever comes first....

[Markus]

Skooter, I honestly hope you haven't ruined the structural integrity of your boat. I can't stop looking at the masacare!

[skooter]

Skooter, I honestly hope you haven't ruined the structural integrity of your boat. I can't stop looking at the masacare!

It looks worse than it is, ...., most of what you see is soggy styrofoam,.....the floor isn't even attached anywhere on the boat, just supported by that aluminum strip running down each side of the centre, ...you can stand in that hole there, .....and look at the size of the ribs goin across the bottom, .....if anything, ...it'll be stronger when it's done....just thinkin the styrofoam is supposed to help it float if it fills with water...., probably replace it....or dry out what I can salvedge....

Besides, ....ever see a floor in a 12ft. tinnie?

[Muskiemagnet]

Scooter

Your not in as bad shape as I first thought by looking at the pictures.

Pull out all the floor and get rid of that old foam, its no good anyway, just extra wieght. Check for your leak, (do you have a livewell pump?? one way leak possable). Once you get that done, spray in some expandable foam then replace floor with nice new lumber and new carpet. Might as well toss those seats also, and replace with some pedistal seats that swivle. You'll have extra room, more mobility and less weight.

Boat will look and ride like new.

[GreenBastard]

you're going to be boat engineer, glad to see you had the guts to take it on head to head.... after that can you fix the fence?

[Rideaufish]

Try to remove the floor in 1 piece for a template trust me you will never dry the foam. So this must go what I did was to use some insulating foam and fill as many voids with the foam in a can just take it slow and take lots of pics. Just think taking out the wet foam will lighten her up and she will be faster. This is also the best time to fix any wireing ect, Hope you have a warm garage to work in this doesnt look like a weekend project.

[Rigger]

On an older baot I once had, I repaired the leak by drilling a few SMALL holes in the floor(apparently your past that stage though!!!) and then injecting the large cans of foam , the stuff you put around windows, it not only stops water leaks it helps when you forget to put the plug in!!! The stuff actually strengthens the integrity of the floor.

Good luck.

[roughrider]

"How to find a leak".

Get the hose out and start filling the boat,a couple inches may do. Then level the boat and get under the boat and look for drops seeping from loose rivets.

At this piont,you may start on the pops again


Good Luck,only a month till Quinte roughrider

Sorry roughrider, ....

tried that on three different occasions, .....had so much water in it, ....I was afraid the tires would blow, .....nothing,

.....ever heard of a one way leak? ......me neither, .....but it appears I have one....

thanks anyways, .....

Yeah Mark, ....hindsight is always 20/20, .....

The floor is pretty much shot anyways, ....it's pretty punky in places, ....may as well do it now and be done with it, .......pops will stay in the fridge, ...till I get a handle on it, ....or 4:00, .....whichever comes first....

I onced used the wrong silicone for the transducer screw holes,leaked by also.I would check all the intentional holes next and redo the silicone.
Also a new drain plug .MM's idea about the livewell may also be a cause.


roughrider

[skooter]

Just a quick update.....

Started bright and early......well, ....10:00 anyways.....

Administered anesthetic, ......("bopped" the bow with a rubber hammer)

First incision, .....the skin peeled off and discarded.....



The boards themselves are held down by several rivets scattered along the edges and down that channel bar....

Pryed a few out, ..... and decided to bring in the heavy artillary, .....the grinder made short work of the heads.....

One side revealed.....





This shows a little more clearly, .....the make up of the sub floor...

The other side out now, .....time to remove all the styrofoam....



All the styrofoam is out of the middle, ......damn, .....I think I just lightened the boat by about 500 lbs....the stuff in the back was literally soaked, .....
Could barely lift it out of the boat, ......

This is what I pulled out so far.....

Before I picked it up....



After I picked it up



Everything was going better than expected, ....until....

I tried pulling out the stuff from the sides at the back, ......it wouldn't move, ....

See that gas tank there, ......well, .....it's full





I think the weight is pressing down on the foam, ...so I can't move it...

I will work on that tonight for a bit, ...would really like to get that back board up, ......and clean all that soggy "poopie" out of the back, .....

If not, ....cest la vie, .....I'm in a position now to get her wet and find the leak, ...

The real kicker here, .....thought my oldest boy was gonna be using my truck this weekend, ...to move into his new apartment, ....he had a bunch of his friends lined up to help, ..... so that left me in the lurch, .... as far as fishing goes, ...that's why I started this "little?" project....

Anyways, ....He didn't get the keys yet......, So, ...I could have spent a nice relaxing day on the water somewhere.....

Hopefully the rain will hold off tomorrow, ...and I can get out and give her a dunkin, ....See what my top end is now too, ....without the excess baggage....

Just to address the question of the floor adding structural integrity....



It's not even 1/2" plywood, ....the foam, ...was adding support to the floor, from underneath......

This is what gives her the strength....





all those ribs.....

Might have more to add later, ....if not, maybe a pic of a fish or two tomorrow....

skooter

[M.T. Livewell]

Wouldn't ya laugh is the only leak is from an old drain plug.

Skooter, as a sucker who loves a good boat project, I envy you the courage to do what you did.
With that said, before I get any where near to the point you are, I'd have made some serious plans.

Don't know how much of the floor you can salvage or if it is rotten, but break out the wallet, marine wood is $$$. All stainless hardware too if you can.
You can pick up carpet fairly cheap, would be a great time for a refresh. Do you yourself a favor, but the stuff at HomeDepot only if you can't afford to pick up real 16 - 20oz marine carpet.

Skooter, I don't wanna sound like a downer, cause there are some huge upsides to what you just did. Look at how much room you have now. Take MuskieMagnet's advice and upgrade your seating if you can afford it.
You have a blank canvass there, so start creating.

I might even suggest as you mentioned, finished the year on a cooler and start putting some green away for the spring and her up nice.

Good luck.
M.T. Livewell

[M.T. Livewell]

Just saw the new pics.
Skooter, looks like the floor wood is still solid. That's a huge $$$ saver right there.

Good luck bud!

MT

[skooter]

I onced used the wrong silicone for the transducer screw holes,leaked by also.I would check all the intentional holes next and redo the silicone.
Also a new drain plug .MM's idea about the livewell may also be a cause.


roughrider

Thanks for the help roughrider, ....

New drain plug, ...two months ago, ....you can put this one in and twist the handle to tighten it up before locking it, .....

No livewell, ...so that's not an issue, ....well actually I have a big one at the back of the boat, ...till I find the leak...

With the middle out of the boat, ...even if I can't "see" the leak, ....I will be able to determine whether it's at the front or the back, ....

If I get that back board out, ....(not looking like it now, ...tonite anyways)...I'll be able to check the screw seals on the transducer, ...etc...

Keep the tips comin, .....much appreciated, ....for sure....

Wouldn't ya laugh is the only leak is from an old drain plug.

Skooter, as a sucker who loves a good boat project, I envy you the courage to do what you did.
With that said, before I get any where near to the point you are, I'd have made some serious plans.

Don't know how much of the floor you can salvage or if it is rotten, but break out the wallet, marine wood is $$$. All stainless hardware too if you can.
You can pick up carpet fairly cheap, would be a great time for a refresh. Do you yourself a favor, but the stuff at HomeDepot only if you can't afford to pick up real 16 - 20oz marine carpet.

Skooter, I don't wanna sound like a downer, cause there are some huge upsides to what you just did. Look at how much room you have now. Take MuskieMagnet's advice and upgrade your seating if you can afford it.
You have a blank canvass there, so start creating.

I might even suggest as you mentioned, finished the year on a cooler and start putting some green away for the spring and her up nice.

Good luck.
M.T. Livewell

Thanks MT.....

I guess you might have a vested interest in this little project anyways, ...good luck on yours, .....I'll be the guinea pig....

Just a little aside here, ....DO NOT, .....AND I MEAN, ...DO NOT, ... "USE" STAINLESS STEEL BOLTS, SCREWS, ...HARDWARE OF "ANY" KIND, ...ON AN ALUMINUM BOAT.......PLEASE ....trust me on this one....

I will do her up right for spring, ....when I decide what I want, ....

But the priorities right now are, ....

1) find the leak and fix it, ....

2)get her back together, ...albeit temporarily, ...for the rest of the year, ....(don't worry crew, ....you won't have to sit on coolers at Quinte)

3)decide what I want to do with it, ....and start hiding the "coin" over the winter, ... to fix it up right for the spring, ........early spring, .....very early spring, ...as soon as possible....


Thanks everybody for the help and encouragement, .....Please keep it "comin"

She will be ready for Quinte!!!!!!

I'm predicting two weeks tops, ....and she'll be ready to rock & roll for the season....