22 Cabin Floor Vulnerability Solutions?

[Doryman]

My first C-Dory was a Tom Cat and I am currently rigging a 22 as a second boat, but I don't know as much about them as I do about the Tom Cat.

When I was at the factory yesterday, Scott and I happened to get onto the subject of the cabin sole in the 22 (dunno about which other models are the same, but not the Tom Cat). Apparently they are vulnerable to dropped heavy items which can cause microscopic tears in the fiberglass surface, through which water can get into the core and not be noticed until it is too late. This is different from water intrusion that we deal with by the enlarge, epoxy and re-drill technique.

What do you do to protect your 22's sole? Is this one of the reasons that some of you have installed fake teak decks, etc? Would a WaterHog mat help?

Warren

[patrick and linda]

i have carpet in the cabin and rubber mat in the cockpit area. seems to work fine for us. you can see pictures in my album. the idea was to go low tech!
pat

[Sea Wolf]

Warren-

Honestly, in 6 years or so on this site and quite a few more on the ones that preceded it, I've never heard of this problem being mentioned before!

Maybe it's just something they've experienced on their Sea Sport boats due to lighter floor laminate construction?

In any case, a good carpet and/or floor mat would guard against that type of damage, I'd think, unless you're planning on dropping heavy anchors or downrigger cannon balls on the floor.

The latter may not be all that uncommon an occurrence, come to think about it!

Joe.

[Cutty Sark]

My 87 only had problems where the deck was penetrated and not sealed properly or not resealed after some time, and the top skin was pretty thick as well. I would worry more about old through hulls or hardware that goes into the floor or any cored area.

Sark

[Don and Brenda]

On the cabin floor I have a rubber mat and then carpet on top, because I have a newer model with the raised cockpit, so no issues there.

[CAVU]

Have to agree with Joe-sounds like a solution in search of a problem. I can't imagine dropping something so heavy it would crack the laminate. Even if it did you shouldn't normally have water standing on the cabin floor. If you should find small cracks in the floor or an area you are really worried about it would be easy to probe for water-logged areas with a small drill bit. If area is ok just plug the small hole. If you find wet core move around with the test holes til you find the perimeter, remove the damaged skin and patch with new epoxy and cloth. Should be fairly easy for most owners.

[Captains Cat]

The only thing I've ever seen are chips in the surface or "craze" marks, neither of which should penetrate to the core....

Charlie

[Doryman]

Maybe Scott or someone from the factory will see this and clarify.

Warren

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Warren, although I have never looked at it as "protection", we keep dri deck in our cockpit. A lot of folks don't care for the feel underfoot, but on the older 22s, it keeps your feet out of accumulated water. It would do a good job of protecting the hull/floor from a heavy object.

Steve

[Adeline]

[hardee]

SleepyC has DriDeck in the cockpit, and a carpet on the cabin sole. Both removable for cleaning. Agree, DriDeck does get mushy when hot, and it is not sweepable.

Harvey
SleepyC

[DaveS]

[thataway]

We used driDeck, with an industerial foam mat on the cockpit floor, and the foam on the cabin--over this we put ozite carpet.

I agree--I don't know of any cracks in the floor of the cabin or cockpit (they are the same in the 22) due to objects dropped on them. The laminate is fairly thick--as it should be.

[westri1]

just acquired a 2007 22 CRUISER which has a small crack chip where water is infiltrating into cabin ~ about 1/4 cup per day. The crack is at the front of the cabin on the floor as entering the V berth, where the instrument panel is located starboard side. (there is a slight raised step just as you enter the v berth). Boat is in the water full time and the dealer said it is likely from a raw water wash down thru hull. He claims a cavity encased in fiberglass exists under the floor between floor and the hull?? I am concerned about possible balsa core integrity and am considering a hull survey before the dealer takes the boat to his shop. We did not survey when purchased due to the baots age (3 years old) and apparent pristine condition throughout. Any and all helpful comments would be appreciated.

[tomherrick]

The inner sole fiberglass in my '84 Classic is approx. 3/16" thick. It's over plywood, but unfortunately it's over construction-grade plywood with some voids as wide as two inches just two plys down. The fiberglass is tough, but if I was to drop something serious on it right over a void, I'd be apt to create a situation where standing water could get in and cause problems; particularly if the cockpit is covered, slowing air movement and thwarting direct, drying sunlight on the sole. Certainly, water shouldn't be standing in the cockpit, but stuff happens and I prefer my best attempts at certainty over wishful thinking.

I'm going to fill my core voids to the best of my ability with epoxy to ensure I don't have future problems with moisture and moisture-migration there. Seems to me that a C-Dory constructed with no-void marine plywood would be the way to go over the less dense balsa and foam for a resilient, goof-resistant sole. I hit an underwater treetop at 28 knots and there was no problem with the boat - only my nerves. I wonder how a balsa-cored boat would have fared...

I had been planning on Dri-Dek to cushion my goofs to the sole, but comments from experienced compatriots about it being hard on bare feet have me reconsidering. I'd still like something on the sole that would have the cushioning effect of Dri-Dek, but that is comfortable for my aging feet.

T