Sea Deck Question

[J DUNN]

Full disclosure, I'm not a huge fan of it myself. None on the Hallett, never will be. Some on the new Cobalt (swim platform and trailer) and it is always dirty with footprint or other smudge marks. Just not a huge fan. I guess my need for clean exceeds the soft, grippy feel of the SeaDeck and it's other advantages.

Anyhow, to the question. It's been proposed to lay 4x8 sheets up on top of our houseboat in the lounge/sun area. Obvious reasons are grip or anti-slip and soft feel rather than fiberglass. The area is not a major pathway or table/chair hang out spot it's used more for sleeping at night or lounging during the day. The other reason for it is to cover a small crack that is in the fiberglass. The crack (barely big enough to fit a quarter edge into) would be in the middle of one of the sheets. The 4x8's are peel and stick and it will take roughly 4 sheets to cover the area.

Just like to know your thoughts on this and any cautions you would send our way. Any tips on keeping the edges or corners from peeling? I think round corners are less likely to peel than square corners, right?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[LazyLavey]

Round corners for sure, clean and prep properly

My swim step has been done for 2 years... Gets a lot of traffic

no issues sticking even after fuel vents overflowed and fuel saturated a small area..

Only issue is keeping clean, especially after the fuel.... a bit discolored/dirty looking in a that area..

Tried mild detergents which helped a lot, but not still not satisfactory

I think its a good idea

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Yea that would be super bad ass in my opinion. Do in the teakwood finish or best yet have them cnc games intro them. A giant checker board or tic tac toe would be rad imho

 

[Ziggy]

Rounded corners a plus.
Mine has seen 3 full seasons and I've had zero issues as far as adhesion, zero edge loss.
Biggest tip is to be extremely thorough with the prep. My final wipe before applying seadek was with denatured alchohol .
As far as cleanup I've never done anything but hose it down. Dog piss, cranberry stain and other unknown spots wash right off.

 

[CJ_Donahue]

I did it two years ago on my older fiberglass swimstep. Before i did it the swimstep was slicker than gorilla snot. It has held up great to two kids and dog claws and I highly recommend buying the sheets and doing it yourself. My boat os stored inside so for you my only concern would be constant sun not peeling.

 

[240Hallett]

Rounded corners a plus.
Mine has seen 3 full seasons and I've had zero issues as far as adhesion, zero edge loss.
Biggest tip is to be extremely thorough with the prep. My final wipe before applying seadek was with denatured alchohol .
As far as cleanup I've never done anything but hose it down. Dog piss, cranberry stain and other unknown spots wash right off.

“Unknown”

 

[Ziggy]

“Unknown”

Ok fine, yogurt.
Geez, I was just trying to be PC. It's a family website

 

[pwerwagn]

Yea that would be super bad ass in my opinion. Do in the teakwood finish or best yet have them cnc games intro them. A giant checker board or tic tac toe would be rad imho

That’s a cool idea!!

 

[Shrub Lurker]

Malco Leather and Plastic cleaner should do just fine keeping your panels and the rest of the plastic and vinyl on your boat like new.

 

[J DUNN]

Yea that would be super bad ass in my opinion. Do in the teakwood finish or best yet have them cnc games intro them. A giant checker board or tic tac toe would be rad imho

That’s a cool idea!!

Yes, cool idea indeed but we already bought the sheets and are trying to keep costs down due to shared ownership so we're just doing a solid light grey to help keep it cool.

I can appreciate the advice on prep and the corners. I'll make a wood template here in my shop before going up so all corners can match and look nice. I'll use sharp razor knife to cut to the template. Also, for sure going to prep and scrub well then denatured alcohol as last step. Hadn't thought about the alcohol, great idea.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Motor Boater]

I would put some epoxy in that fiberglass crack first so there is no water intrusion that ruins the core material and softens the deck.

 

[J DUNN]

I would put some epoxy in that fiberglass crack first so there is no water intrusion that ruins the core material and softens the deck.

Yeah, did this last year and it opened again. Ultimately we are just buying some time with the Sea Deck before we have to re-glass the entire deck. We will fill it agian though with epoxy prior to sea deck.

 

[RichL]

Yes, cool idea indeed but we already bought the sheets and are trying to keep costs down due to shared ownership so we're just doing a solid light grey to help keep it cool.

I can appreciate the advice on prep and the corners. I'll make a wood template here in my shop before going up so all corners can match and look nice. I'll use sharp razor knife to cut to the template. Also, for sure going to prep and scrub well then denatured alcohol as last step. Hadn't thought about the alcohol, great idea.

Thanks for your help.

Acetone and MEK work as well.

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Yes, cool idea indeed but we already bought the sheets and are trying to keep costs down due to shared ownership so we're just doing a solid light grey to help keep it cool.

I can appreciate the advice on prep and the corners. I'll make a wood template here in my shop before going up so all corners can match and look nice. I'll use sharp razor knife to cut to the template. Also, for sure going to prep and scrub well then denatured alcohol as last step. Hadn't thought about the alcohol, great idea.

Thanks for your help.

When i did my Gator Step the directions stated to use alcohol to get clean then go back with an ammonia rich window cleaner just prior to install. Guess the ammonia helps bond idk but what it stated in the destructions.

 

[Spudsbud]

Not being able to check on the crack, and beneath would be my concern. Repair first as suggested above... ?

 

[LazyLavey]

Rounded corners a plus.

Dog piss and other unknown spots wash right off.

Hmmmmm....