CAbin Flooring material

[TBeyer]

I need to put down a new floor over the existing cabin floor which is currently a wet balsa core fiberglass laminate. I drilled a whole bunch of holes in it, to dry it out. Plan is to fill holes or maybe even cut top skin out remove balsa and fill with ply wood to bring to correct height and cover with T&H plywood. Questions is were can I obtain reasonable Teak and holly plywood? Or instead of T&H use solid teak, any soucres at a reasonable cost? WHat other alternitives are there? Boat is a Paceship PY 26, 1977, about a 3 x 9 feet section to go over. I am thinking of only doing the flat sections, not area were floor pan curves up towards sides.
Thanks Ted

[Tim]

Teak may be traditional, but you certainly don't have to use a teak product on the sole. Use any wood you like, unless you plan to leave the sole completely unfinished; then, you should choose a wood that will stand up without a finish (teak is one of these, but there are others).

Stores that sell marine plywood usually offer a teak strip plywood, if that's what you want to go with. And you can get teak at any hardwood supplier, but I also suggest you check out other options to see what strikes your fancy.

"Reasonable" and "teak" are rarely found in the same sentence. There are lots of other nice woods that are 1/4 the cost of teak, and that will do nicely on a cabin sole. If you definitely want teak, you will have to pay for the privilege! I think the 4x8 sheets of 1/4" thick plywood with teak and "holly" veneer (it's not really holly, but some other blonde wood) are approaching $200 right now, though I haven't checked.

[kendall]

Was installing some kitchen and bath displays today, and noticed that Menards had a sale on teak flooring, solid wood $39.00 box/13 square feet per.

looked it over and it is solid wood, but says 'teak from costa rica' how does costa rica teak compare to the type of teak everyone normally thinks of when teak is mentioned?

It is much heavier than the other types of wood flooring they have, carry three of the other boxes, but only two of the teak, had to move about 60 boxes to build a kitchen wall.

Apearance if it helps, is a light honey color (lighter than the rest of the teak in my boat, but has clear varnish on it), and slightly wider grain spacing, leading me to think it's plantation grown.

Posted here because I need to redo the sole on my boat, it's the normal triton sole, but black and uncleanable.

Thinking of picking up a box or two if it'll work

Ken.

[Tim]

It is almost certainly plantation grown, as is most teak that is readily available now. It sounds a bit like the teak I got from a hardwood supplier last year, which was much as you describe in terms of appearance, and almost pressure-treated green on the inside when cut. When left exposed to sunlight, though, even the fresh cuts turn the warm brown normally associated with teak.

If you like the look of it, then it might be a decent way to go. If you don't like it, then it's not a bargain at any price, of course.

How thick is the flooring? Are they planks, or strips, or squares? I'm just trying to figure out a general cost per board foot for comparison, and whether they're using short pieces as a cost saving measure.

[kendall]

it's 5/8 or 3/4" thick x 2.5 x 36" the box that was opened had a few shorter bits mixed in, at a guess I'd say 80% were full length.

I have a few more displays to set up today so I'll take a better look at it.

Thanks
ken.

[Challenger949L]

It seems a little cheesy(perhaps I'm wrong) ,but has anyone used this imitation teak and holly sole. It is sold on the Defender web site.

http://www.lonsealspecialty.com/lonwdteakholly.html

Jimmy

[kendall]

It is 5/8 x 3.5 inch, 3ft length.

I think I'll pick a couple boxes up this week end.

Should be able to make a nice looking sole with that.


Ken.

[Tim]

The beauty of the Triton sole is that it is so small...you hardly need any material at all. A couple boxes ought to do it.

[David VanDenburgh]

There are lots of other nice woods that are 1/4 the cost of teak, and that will do nicely on a cabin sole. If you definitely want teak, you will have to pay for the privilege! I think the 4x8 sheets of 1/4" thick plywood with teak and "holly" veneer (it's not really holly, but some other blonde wood) are approaching $200 right now, though I haven't checked.

Tim,

I was considering going with teak and holly veneered plywood for a cabin sole installation, but you've piqued my curiosity. Is there a cheaper and equally attractive alternative to the teak and holly plywood at $200 per sheet? Do tell.

Thanks.

David

[Tim]

Tim,

I was considering going with teak and holly veneered plywood for a cabin sole installation, but you've piqued my curiosity. Is there a cheaper and equally attractive alternative to the teak and holly plywood at $200 per sheet? Do tell.

Well, the alternatives are limitless. What's attractive? Well, what do you like? You can use anything, really. If your sole is soaked in water all the time, you might have bigger problems, so while a rot-resistant wood is always a good choice aboard, it's not required for cosmetic uses. Keep your interior dry, and you can use white pine, if that's the look that excites you. (Concordias typically have a lot of white pine paneling on the interior, by the way.)

Teak and holly strips are traditional, but they're certainly not the only material to use for cabin soles. Teak only came into favor as a boatbuilding wood because of its natural rot resistance and ability to weather the weather. It's a good-looking wood, but so are lots of woods--many of which might even be nicer, frankly.

You could lay a strip sole out of any wood you wanted. Mill, or have milled, your wood of choice into 1/4" thick strips of whatever width you want. Install them one at a time, with or without spaces between. A nice look is wood strips with black polysulfide (or black-colored epoxy) between them.

I don't see any reason to feel bound by the teak and holly tradition. It looks nice, to be sure, and if it's the look you want, then that's great. I like mine, but wouldn't feel remotely bound to it in the future. I probably will never use that teak plywood again, but that doesn't mean I don't like it.

Mahogany makes a handsome cabin sole, if you like mahogany.



Or use oak, or birch, or...well, whatever, really. There's just no need to be necessarily confined to teak and holly. And while plywood is a fast way to cover large areas, it's a real hassle to use in small areas, or where there's a curvature to deal with. Individual strips might take a little longer to install, but probably look better in the end and are also easier to conform to hull surfaces and curves.

[fusto]

It seems a little cheesy(perhaps I'm wrong) ,but has anyone used this imitation teak and holly sole. It is sold on the Defender web site.

http://www.lonsealspecialty.com/lonwdteakholly.html

The yard I work for installed a sole made of this last summer in an old 27' Tolly Craft.
It looked pretty good once it was installed. Mostly I think because it was a vast improvement over the 30 year old shag carpet it was replacing. (Why do they always put shag carpet in power boats?) It didnt look like a real teak and holly cabin sole, but it didnt look bad.

It seemed like it would be fairly indestructible and very low maintenance.
I wouldn't put it in a boat that was a classic restoration, but for a utilitarian sailor it would work and look fine.