As with a lot of glass over ply built boats its common for rot to creep in. Unfortunately this large houseboat had rotten lower decks and bulwarks which had been leaking for some years. This had been causing problems inside the boat too with water damage and pooling water. After removing the decking and bulwark structure we discovered that the damage extended to the timber gunnels and a front section of the bridgedeck. Quickly the job began growing in size as the owner asked for work below decks to be carried out on the built-in fuel and water tanks. We also found a large section of the deck running along the inside of the cabin rotten which was replaced. All the new parts were replaced using composite board and epoxy to avoid any timber being used again. As with these large jobs, the rot extended to the anchor winch/chain box on the foredeck as well as the two seat boxes either side of this which were also replaced in composite extending the job. The owner wanted the original design of the bulwarks to be followed as closely as possible which involved a lot of curved sections around the bows. The curved parts were created by ‘kerfing’ the part on the inside face allowing the panel to bend. The long straight sections of the aft bulwarks were glued together on the boat then lifted off to glass and finish on the ground before the final install. There was also a main beam across the back of the deck that was rotten and replaced with composite.

The owner is taking care of the painting and finishing work himself now that the structural work is completed.