Flooring options on a restoration

Discussion in 'Materials' started by diyjill, Mar 27, 2015.

  1. diyjill
    Joined: Mar 2015
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    Location: Tennessee

    diyjill New Member

    Forgive me in advance if I am posting incorrectly here. I have had little success finding the information I need on other online forums .
    I am doing a complete restoration on a 1969 Leeisure Craft houseboat. She is 38' long with an 11' beam. I do realize that houseboat is a bad word for some , and that's ok. That being said:
    She has a complete new steel hull. She is in a fresh water lake . I am beginning the work of installing the subfloor and flooring . I want to find out what my options are . Would my best bet be to lay pressure treated deck boards evenly spaced , then 5/8" to 3/4" marine grade ply , a layer of tar paper then a floating wood floor ? Of course there would be access to the hull in areas for the bilge pumps and visual inspection .
    I had thought that prehaps just laying the pressure treated deck boards would be an option , covering those with 100% Polypropylene rug material allowing the bilge area to " breathe ". Recently I had found information that leads me to believe that the above would make matters worse , producing more condinsate instead of less .
    Since I've bent your ear , let me ask you this as well. In rebuilding the walls , would it be best to use only pressure treated lumber and marine grade ply for the structural members ? Is there a problem with "off gassing " of the poisons used in the woods ? Any info would be greatly appreciated.
     
  2. gonzo
    Joined: Aug 2002
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    gonzo Senior Member

    Pressure treated wood only contains borates. They shouldn't outgass anything harmful. What is the spacing of the deck beams? If they are 16-24" on center, there is no need for deck boards under the plywood for 5/8' thickness.
     
  3. diyjill
    Joined: Mar 2015
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    Location: Tennessee

    diyjill New Member

    Thank you for your reply , indeed the distance between them are 16" on center. I was not aware of the fact that pressure treated lumber contained only borates , I can get busy !
     
  4. gonzo
    Joined: Aug 2002
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    Location: Milwaukee, WI

    gonzo Senior Member

    The arsenic compounds are not sold for home use any more. They are only available for some industrial uses. I checked and found that they are using copper/boric acid. At 16" on center, you can build the deck like on any house. Good luck
     

  5. diyjill
    Joined: Mar 2015
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    Location: Tennessee

    diyjill New Member

    Funny , it seems the harder I work , the luckier I am !
     
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