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Posts: 73
| Going to be doing this in the next two weeks. Just wondering, for those of you that have done this before, are you doing anything extra to seal the wood before you carpet it? I realize that by using wood they will eventually go bad again but I will be purchasing a new one before this happens. |
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Posts: 410
Location: With my son on the water | I never sealed the wood as I don't know if it would hold? It could also hold moisture too? I honestly don't have that answer?
One thing that has worked for me is DON'T Carpet the bottom of the bunks so the moisture can get out and the wood dries out. Most of the carpet is almost water proof but the water still gets in the seams then the carpet holds the moisture in. If you use you boat several times a week the wood is wet all season and can rot out really fast.
That's what I have seen.
I also know guys who don't use any carpet at all and only use the plastic strips. The intial investment is larger but they NEVER have to replace anything.
Good luck and have a good day.  |
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Posts: 858
Location: NE Ohio | X2 on the open bottom, use quality pressure treated wood, and use galvanized or stainless lag bolts to attach them to the trailer. |
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Posts: 50
Location: North Central PA | pklingen - 4/17/2014 8:57 PM
X2 on the open bottom, use quality pressure treated wood, and use galvanized or stainless lag bolts to attach them to the trailer.
X2 on the treated wood and hardware. |
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Posts: 307
| Trick told to me by someone who's does hundreds of bunks per year is to use 3m super 77 spray adhesive as well as the staples. |
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Posts: 410
Location: With my son on the water | You guys have some more good points.
However? I also have heard that treated wood can have a chemical affect on Aluminum Hulls. (Only heard not my technical knowledge) But it does make sense as I believe treated wood has salt in it which could cause corrsion on aluminum. This is why some guys I know us (Treated wood, with stainless and or galvinized hardware, No carpet, and plastic stips so the boat doesn't touch the treated wood).
I personally know a guy who has this setup and has had it that way for 10+ years and it looks and works just fine. He doesn't have carpet on the bunks so he took a router and rounded the corners/edges and he used the wider plastic slick (attached with stainless bolted all the way through and lock tighted so no body can steal them at the landing). The plastic slicks don't hold sand and grit either and therefore you don't scratch the bottom of your boat.
I have never done this but I actually think it is better than carpet.
What do others think about this? I have heard both sides?
Have a great day, and don't forget what day it is. |
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Posts: 81
| One thing you might want to consider is going with .60 treated wood in lieu of .40 which is what is commonly sold. The latter of the two is treated to be in contact with the ground; however, .60 treated wood can be buried or used for below ground construction such as a foundation. Basically, it is a heavier treatment that penetrates deeper into the wood. That is what I am planning on doing when I replace my bunks this summer (if it ever comes). |
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | If you do the plastic strip thing you might be okay using treated wood, but I don't think I would. I put cedar (naturally rot resistant) boards under my Alumacraft about 6 years ago and covered them in carpet. I fish a lot, and the carpet is now starting to wear on some corners and could use replacement this year. Boards still seem to be in good condition. I used stainless carriage bolts. I can't remember if galvanized was supposed to be okay or not.
When I did my research I ran into a few posts that said they used treated wood with no problems but I wasn't going to take the risk of reacting with aluminum.
Edited by curleytail 4/18/2014 9:01 AM
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Posts: 81
| Cedar would work, but I believe treated pine would last longer especially with the .60 (deeper) treatment. Stainless or galvanized fasteners should be used because of the application. Although cedar is rot resistant, it is very absorbent and quite a bit softer than pine. I would be concerned with fasteners stripping out. If you have ever tried to frame something cedar, you understand what I'm talking about.
Edited by jonj 4/18/2014 3:29 PM
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Posts: 81
| Aluminum will react if in direct contact w/ newer treated wood. They changed they chemicals that they treat wood with about five years ago. As long as the carpet is between an aluminum boat and the treated bunks, you will be fine. If there are areas on the bunks where the carpet has ripped or worn out, that could be an issue if it is touching an aluminum boat, especially for an extended period of time. |
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Posts: 858
Location: NE Ohio | i've had my aluminum boat since 1988, on treated wooden bunks with carpet that gets wear tears. i have no corrosion issues or areas on the hull anywhere. never heard that before, but never say never.
Edited by pklingen 4/19/2014 7:09 AM
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Posts: 29
| I redid the bunks on my Prestige Trailer 6 years ago. After researching the topic until I couldn't see straight the following is what I ended up doing;
Cedar boards
Sealed with a Marine Varnish (multiple coats)
Carpet was wrapped around the bottom but left open
Carpet was glued on all sides and then stapled with Stainless Staples on the bottom side
Bunks were reinstalled with all Stainless Hardware
So far so good, I have one spot of carpet that has wore thru where the strakes on the boat cut across it, and other than a once a year check and tightening of the stainless lag bolts, all has been good. I've been pleased with how well it's held up as I use my boat atleast 2/3s of the weekends we have open water and often times we've loaded and unloaded multiple times in the same day (we have a lake lot).
Good Luck, |
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Posts: 29
| I will mention that the galvanized lag bolts that I took out had almost zero thread left because it had literally disintegrated the threads where they were in contact with the wood. FYI, the boat was 6 years old and had only been used in fresh water. To this day I'm really not sure what was holding the bunks on, the lag bolts were basically a big nail that was loosely held into the wood! |
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Posts: 81
| pklingen - 4/19/2014 7:07 AM
i've had my aluminum boat since 1988, on treated wooden bunks with carpet that gets wear tears. i have no corrosion issues or areas on the hull anywhere. never heard that before, but never say never.
They changed the chemicals that they treat wood w/ in 2004 (man, time flies). The previous chemicals was CCA (chromated copper arsenate). It protected against rot and decay but was quite toxic to humans. The new chemicals are ACQ (alkaline copper quat). This is less toxic but is highly corrosive when in direct contact with aluminum. Flashings for a deck are usually now made of vinyl or rubber now because of this reason. |
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | jonj - 4/18/2014 12:50 PM
Cedar would work, but I believe treated pine would last longer especially with the .60 (deeper) treatment. Stainless or galvanized fasteners should be used because of the application. Although cedar is rot resistant, it is very absorbent and quite a bit softer than pine. I would be concerned with fasteners stripping out. If you have ever tried to frame something cedar, you understand what I'm talking about.
I wouldn't worry about fasterners ripping through cedar. If they were fastened with screws or nails as in framing then yes maybe a concern. I used 3/8" carriage bolts with large washers. It would take an incredible force to pull them through an inch (leftover from countersinking the bolt heads) of wood. Mine have been in use for 6 years. The carpet should be replaced but the bunks themselves are going strong.
If the chemical used to treat boards is corrosive to aluminum, and all I have between that and my aluminum hull is a wet piece of carpet, I'd be sticking to cedar. I don't see any reason to take a chance.
Edited by curleytail 4/19/2014 10:35 AM
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Posts: 84
| curleytail - 4/19/2014 11:34 AM
If the chemical used to treat boards is corrosive to aluminum, and all I have between that and my aluminum hull is a wet piece of carpet, I'd be sticking to cedar. I don't see any reason to take a chance.
or use composite/plastic lumber |
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Posts: 73
| Guys that have used lag bolts vs carriage bolts have you noticed the lag bolts loosening or loosing their ability to be tightened? |
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Location: 31 | jonj - 4/19/2014 9:01 AM
pklingen - 4/19/2014 7:07 AM
i've had my aluminum boat since 1988, on treated wooden bunks with carpet that gets wear tears. i have no corrosion issues or areas on the hull anywhere. never heard that before, but never say never.
They changed the chemicals that they treat wood w/ in 2004 (man, time flies ). The previous chemicals was CCA (chromated copper arsenate ). It protected against rot and decay but was quite toxic to humans. The new chemicals are ACQ (alkaline copper quat ). This is less toxic but is highly corrosive when in direct contact with aluminum. Flashings for a deck are usually now made of vinyl or rubber now because of this reason.
This is some excellent information that anyone replacing bunks should consider. I recommend stainless steel lag bolts if you're going to be using treated lumber, otherwise you will eventually end up with little rusty stubs due to the treated lumber as stated above. Not wrapping the carpet completely around the 2x is another spot on recommendation.
I'm pretty intrigued with the idea of the glide strips too… very forward thinking because without a doubt the particles/sand that collects in the carpet will eventually leave marks in the front of your hull from launch/recovery. The marks from the bunks can be pretty pronounced too with certain types of hulls.... I had mine buffed out a few years ago for $200 and it needs it again.
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Location: 31 | drreilly - 4/21/2014 1:43 PM
Guys that have used lag bolts vs carriage bolts have you noticed the lag bolts loosening or loosing their ability to be tightened?
Yes, they can loosen. A counter sunk SS bolt will be be nearly forever (easy to wrap the carpet after install). |
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Location: MN | What do you guys recommend for carpet on the bunks? Regular outdoor carpet or is there something better? It seems that the carpet wears out before the wood rots. Thanks |
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Posts: 717
Location: Grand Rapids, MI | I'm going to have to find out exactly what was used on mine from the factory - My rig is a 1993 with original bunks...! |
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Posts: 337
Location: Watersmeet, Michigan | Do you guys recommend any particular carpet?
Fr. K |
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Posts: 321
Location: Glen Ellyn Il | I am in the process of replacing the bunks on my Prestige trailer. Prestige is out of business and I contacted Yar-craft boats and they give me the new trailer people for Yar-Craft, Eazy Loader. They will make the new bunks and carpet them, all I have to do install the new bunks and I do not have to worry about the material they are made of. Now the bunks are not that expensive but the shipping will be around 300.00 plus, that is the only draw back
Gino |
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