plywood...treated vs. marine grade

[DWH]

need to replace the front and middle decking on my tracker. does it have to be marine grade plywood or does treated work just as well? Also, the rear deck is aluminum... for some reason. so can i just put aluminum down instead of new wood? wouldnt have to worry about it rotting and it would save some weight. what do yall think??

[WTL]

I prefer aluminum as a decking material, its just expensive, thats all.

I've heard a ton of different opinions on the marine vs treated vs regular plywood debate. I'm not quite certain I have a solid opinion on it, you do get what you paid for, but you could get away with anything that supported your own weight; its just a durability thing. Some people have said that treated lumber can react with aluminum, but others have denied that. Either way, with wood its not gonna be permanent. I suppose I would go with treated or spring for aluminum.

[DWH]

thanks WTL. ive heard aluminum is expensive. any idea how it compares to treated or marine grade plywood.... price wise???

[WTL]

By middle decking you mean the floor? Thats gonna be a lot, don't know how thick you want the aluminum. Maybe someone could give a better guess but when I did the front deck in the little boat with 1/4" it was about 4 feet long and cost 150, but yours is gonna be wider and longer so yeah, signifigantly more than even marine grade.

[DWH]

yes i meant the floor. sounds like i'll probably stick with the plywood. thanks for your help.

[bamabassman]

if you use plywood, use marine if you're gonna keep the boat for a few years. if not use pressure treated. and don't go with the 3/4 inch. it is too heavey. use 1/2.

[DWH]

preciate it Bama!

[WTL]

You know its funny this thread came up, cause my mind has been on it for the past week. I'm trying to come up with the lightest possible solution to the whole deck/floor thing. I've thought about stealing interstate road signs, I've thought about tin roof panels, fiberglass, foam, plastic, luan....but I keep coming back to plywood vs aluminum. I just wish I could find a nice big peice of 1/8 alumnum and I would just support the hell out of it...I just switched boats cause I wanted to go lighter so turning around and adding lotsa weight is not something I wanna do.

[weaverml34]

Like others have said it's a longevity issue whether you choose to go with treated or marine grade plywood. Here's a really good site that you could pose this question on. These guys are really helpful and know a lot about rebuilding boats.

http://bbcboards.zeroforum.com/zeromain

Scroll down and there is a Bassboat Restoration forum.

[flfireman]

I used 1/2 plywood, treated it myself with 3 coats of Thompsons water sealer, glued and carpeted it. Did front and rear deck. Im a big guy 6'3"-290pounds. Ive had "0" problems with weight support or any adverse problems w/ the plywood. My boat sits outside also, so it see's a lot of sun and rain. Also the 1/2" took a bunch of weight off the total boat weight.

[WTL]

We are talking boats here, not the bathroom floor. Unless you have a TR 21 or something, when you walk around in a boat there is a little give cause its all being held up by water, like a schock absorber. I might go thinner than 1/2 if I use plywood, then again I'm only 170 and the deck is gonna be smaller.

[zooker]

they only differance between marina grade and pressure treated is the price.. that is it.. the marine grade is sprayed with the same chemicals as the pressure treated..

now if you are going to try to glue ANYTHING to it don't use it even epoxy does not get a good grip on this stuff..if you are glueing anything to it get exterior grade plywood and iit will stick it up..

zooker

[DWH]

ive heard that the marine grade is made with a different glue. a more moisture resistant glue

[zooker]

nope same glue..

zooker