Decking Options?

[Hotel Lima]

I was wondering what kind of decking options exist these days? I was look at teak and it's mucho $$$ to say the least:

7/16 " x 1-5/8" teak decking weighs 19 ounces per square foot when finished and is more suitable for mid sized and larger boats.

Price $2.50 per linear foot.

= roughly $20 a square foot.

I have kinda looked at the epoxy fake wood stuff and quite frankly it's very ugly (in my opinion). Then I came across bamboo (not on a boat) but just in general. It seems to be what i'm looking for, cheap (<$2 sq.ft) Looks very nice, the say it holds up to moister well (not sure about boat volume moister though) and it's eco-friendly. Any ideas? Has anyone used bamboo before? Anything else around?

thanks, jake

[alan white]

Knowing what you are decking would be helpful. Teak is surely very expensive, it's true. I have no idea about bamboo, except I sure wouldn't want to be the guinea pig who tried it first.
Quarter-sawn yellow pine, or various hard pines make excellent decking at a quarter the cost of teak.
While solid wood decking is nice underfoot, the best methods involve plywood underneath and expensive sealants in large quantities under and between planks. The cost of teak begins to matter less anyway when you consider the labor involved in cutting margin planks, drilling bung holes to prescise depths in thin planking, filling bung holes, paying seams, sanding, and so forth.
Used to be the planking was thick and more forgiving to work with, and hardly ever was it teak.
Decks do not need to be expensive to be long-lasting and attractive. It seems a teak deck is something the rich can show off to everyone to say, "Hey look at me! I can afford a teak deck!"
I think a light gray or tan deck done in non-skid sand additive/ favorite paint is good looking and easy to do (I used a roller to apply mine). This can be done over glass or plywood. A flattening agent should be added to the paint unless a semigloss base is used to create the color. Looks better.

Alan

[DanishBagger]

Wouldn't bamboo tend to be slippery, unless coated with non-skid?

Other than that, as Alan White mentioned: How about larch? As far as I know, that's a pine too. Also it has been used in scandinavia for centuries for that sort of thing. But that too can become rather sketchy to walk on, though.

Anywho - I'm either for all lacquer (if it fits the boat) or all rustique: Matt paints. Teak is way too much trouble in my opinion.

Although, you could get a nice dark deck, if you used Ipe, and if you did it "old school" like on work boats (i.e. straight, wide boards), that could look pretty sweet. And ipe is beatiful – but just a "tad" on the heavy side (it's what used to be called "iron wood").

Or how about cork? Personally, it reminds of the seventies, but hey, it's cheap, light weight, easy to cut and work with, pretty good under foot, and it isolates.

/rant - I have been up all night with a tooth ache :-(

[the1much]

im a glasser to the end, i would do a ply and glass deck, then you can do almost anything you want with it, paint it to look bamboo haha, then try a teak paint job and stick ya nose up at us all hehehe. then its easy to have built in shelving, beer,,i mean cup holders, built in benching and so forth.

[NauticalLumber]

If you would like to stay as close to a unfinished teak look, check out Afromosia, Aniegre, as well as Cumaru (brizilain teak) Cost wise..much more affordable and has many of the same characteristics of teak.

[FAST FRED]

If what you need is a good no skid deck , cheap but not wood,
Epoxy paint and heavy woven cotton mosquito netting is great.

Trace the pattern for the no skis sections directly on the deck with a pencil.

Be fancy , use cutouts for deck hardware.

Obtain coarse weave cotton bug netting from northern camper places ( cold climes = bigger bugs and coarser fabric).

Iron the material and spray starch it lightly to help keep it smooth .

Paint a thin coat of 2 part epoxy paint over the entire deck , you will still be able to see the pencil marks.

Lay the flat netting in place , and use a roller to again lay on a coat of epoxy paint.
The cotton will absorb the paint ,leaving a great surface , with good no skid ability , and if done right will give the boat a production look as under cleats , deck fills and water ways will be smooth .

While not as much Eye Candy as expensive or unobtanium wood , the lack of weight and maint. is a great plus.

Try it in the cockpit or a smaller area first. One delight is if you drag the storm anchor across it one dark night , a simple sanding , and a bit of work can renew the surface , easily and cheaply.

FF

[darr]

We are about to lay a Sapele deck on our 41' Samson. I have had several test pieces out in the elements ( West Central Florida) for the past 15 months. Beautiful weathering to a silver grey color. Less pitting than the Teak sample that has been out the same length of time and no evidence of rot or decomp. My cost on the rough cut is $4.85 bf. I buy in roughcut and have the planers, sanders and power saws to mill it to the proper dimensions.

I am planning on leaving the deck surfaces unfinished and using a bright finish for the covering and margin boards.