3000SCR replacing rotted floor in aft cabin

[pgp]

I have just purchased a 2000 3000SCR and have found that the floor in the aft cabin is rotted out. I am about to glass in a new piece of ply but i want to know if anyone else has had this problem? There is a drain hole that goes through to the engine room bilge. There are no other drain holes coming into this part of the hull. I am thinking about blocking the hole so the floor will never rot again?

The ply that you see in the pic is the "repair" that the previous owner did
Any thoughts and comments.......

[mmwjr]

pgp welcome to the site.

If it's wood and on a boat it will eventually rot. I think the hole is there to allow any water that may enter the cabin to drain into the forward bildge so that the forward pump can take care of it.

The PO just layed in a piece of plywood you should remove it and clean off all the backing pad to fresh wood and screw in a new piece. BTY the one in the picture looks thin, any bounce?

[pgp]

Mike,
The PO used a 1/4 piece of ply to fit over the hole. When I lifted the carpet it was more rotten than when he placed the ply there. No bounce just a sinking feeling as your foot went into the hole This drains backwards to the engine room bilge. There are no other drain holes from any where else.

I plan to cut out all the old floor, infuse a piece of 3/4 ply with epoxy resin then glass it into place. I will probably close the drain. My close the drain and leave the hole for a few trips and see if it causes any issues.

[biggerseagar]

Pgp.....I have a 2001 3000 and once a week because of the a/c condensation line going into the bilge I'm down in the bilge with my dry/vac sucking all the water out. Bad idea from maxum letting that water go into the bilge instead outside the boat. My aft floor is very solid.

I do know this when we had our survey done the moisture level was a little high on the stringers which I could have had dried out for a small chunk of change. This problem according to the surveyor is an industry problem.

Looks like you are doing a great job on the problem.

Roger

[pgp]

Roger,

Thanks for the reply. I get water in my aft bilge but not sure where it is from. It is salt water. I wet/dry vac it out and go on a run and when I get back there is water. Not sure if it is the bellows leaking or from some other place. I will find it eventually. I will try closing the AC seacock and see if that is the cause.

BTW I am bummed that I missed the free carpets

Paul

[mmwjr]

Bellows or swivel shaft seal are common on the transom assy. dealing results in more work and parts that need to be replaced

[biggerseagar]

Paul.... the carpet was old and crusty but free is free...

Roger

[Kevlar7r]

I've got the same issue on the 1999 I just purchased. I haven't pulled the carpet up yet, but im sure its rotted underneath. I am considering replacing the floor in there with trex or other decking material. Post pictures of your repair, and how its holding up!

[pgp]

Originally Posted by Kevlar7r

I've got the same issue on the 1999 I just purchased. I haven't pulled the carpet up yet, but im sure its rotted underneath. I am considering replacing the floor in there with trex or other decking material. Post pictures of your repair, and how its holding up!

Not done the repair yet. I am still trying to decide if I should plug up the drain in that compartment before I repair it. The only water coming in is from the engine bay and there is no other drain hols into that area, so should be ok to close up......

[Kevlar7r]

I thought about that when I read your post. I would say keep it open.

That area is below the forward bilge, so if it were to fill with water for some reason, there is no where for it to go. If it were above the forward bilge, then maybe, because it can drain to and be pumped from there.

Although, if you sealed it, filled the space with foam, and then glassed in a new floor.... That might work!

[pgp]

Originally Posted by Kevlar7r

I thought about that when I read your post. I would say keep it open.

That area is below the forward bilge, so if it were to fill with water for some reason, there is no where for it to go. If it were above the forward bilge, then maybe, because it can drain to and be pumped from there.

Although, if you sealed it, filled the space with foam, and then glassed in a new floor.... That might work!

I would normally agree with but, the old floor was glassed in and there was no way for any water to get down into that part. Unless the table insert hole allowed water to go through? My table holder had been removed by the PO. Anyone care to comment on this?

[Kevlar7r]

Looks like we are in exactly the same boat (pun intended). Someone did a repair before. I don't think duct tape is factory equipment.

Now that I have it open, I'm thinking like you, no real reason for that little compartment. I'm also leaning towards glassing it in and sealing it off from the aft bilge. The compartment would only hold 6-8" of water in an emergency situation.

I'd like to hear other people's thoughts as well.

[pgp]

Dang that looks about as good as mine

[Kevlar7r]

Yea, almost hard to tell our pictures apart.

[Kevlar7r]

Originally Posted by pgp

Dang that looks about as good as mine

so, PGP, what did you decide?

I am leaning towards leaving it open, just because it is a safety issue. There is no other way to remove water from the aft stateroom without that connection to the aft bilge. I am going to be cutting my new floor pieces this weekend from 3/4" plywood. Its going to have to be 2 pieces, since you can't get one full size piece down in to the hole. I am debating on caulking it in vs. Glassing it in, so that it is removable should there be an issue in the future.

[pgp]

I have sealed mine and will be cutting a new floor soon. If the floor is sealed in then a hole is useless.......

[Kevlar7r]

I cut mine last night. 27" x36". I didn't have one piece big enough, so I did 2 27x18. The supports for the bed limit how wide of a piece you can get in there. I used 3/4" plywood, and am going to resin it, so that should be a solid floor.



That left about an inch gap on either side, so I am going to have to do some filler strips when I glass it in.

[pgp]

Sounds good. I will get to mine soon. I am still trying to figure out how to get my fuel flow meters from the engine room to the dash.....

[Kevlar7r]

Have fun!

Maybe determ the blower wires and use them to pull a string and the wires up, then use the string to pull the blower wires back down.

I'm starting to think about adding a blower switch in the electrical panel. That's going to be fun pulling wire from the helm to the panel.