Thread: Best lightweight wood for boat swimdeck?

WRC doesn't like water much. It dings easily and turns black.
Teak will last much longer.
How big do you need it to be?

I was thinking it would be solid enough with a good coating of marine spar. It is about 1800 x 600.

Cheers,
Mark

Originally Posted by silkwood

I was thinking it would be solid enough with a good coating of marine spar. It is about 1800 x 600.

Cheers,
Mark

Good Morning Mark

The vast majority of boats built using either the WEST system or wood-cored fibreglass laminate use WRC as the core. It is light, relatively cheap and uniform in grain, glues well, and has a proven history in marine use provided that it is fully encapsulated and does not get wet. Once the wood gets wet, fungus attack is rapid and it turns black and then degrades quite quickly.

If you can keep your proposed duckboard fully encapsulated with epoxy or marine spar or whatever then it should be fine. But no clear finishes really like UV and there will be ongoing maintenance issues. Relax a little, get some surface damage, a scratch and water will get into the timber.

Personally, I would go with teak and let it go grey - rather spend the time boating than doing even more maintenance.


Fair Winds

Graeme

Hi Mark

Some of the local shipwrights around here are using Fiji Mahogany (switenia macrocarpa) for duckboards and the like.

If you live in Victoria I could help you with some.

Best wishes

Mark


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Thanks for the help guys. I've decided to go for teak, if only to match the existing woodwork!

Cheers,

Mark