DECKED OUT
Adam Fiander takes a look at decking options and various ideas of how decks can be laid, based around alternative materials and options that have recently come to light
W
ithin my previous report on natural and substitutes teak decks, I spent a fair amount of time balancing arguments from the die-hard ‘natural is best’ contingent, with the
‘alternative teak’ camp.
The result made for an interesting and lively debate, but rather than repeat the same exercise, I have also decided to look at alternatives for how teak can be laid, such as by using Resin Infusion, and one or two other ideas based around different materials and options that have recently come to light.
We’ve already established that natural teak laid decks, with their beautifully caulked seams, are a wonderful technical and sensory asset for any yacht, so it makes
120 | SPRING 2019 | ONBOARD
sense that this investment in time and raw materials are laid to the ‘as built’ deck / cockpit surface in the best way possible.
Older methods have relied upon screwing individual planks or battens to a sub-deck. Screw heads would then be covered with teak bungs, not only for visual and safety reasons, but to prevent the ingress of water getting underneath the planks at the position of each screw.
As individual planks got thinner to save weight and cost, bungs would get correspondingly shallower and some would pop out after time, thus exposing unsightly looking screw heads with various problems that would ensue.
Steady progress with better quality bonding adhesives lead to a combination of adhesive and mechanical fixings being used together.
More recently, further advancement has resulted in these high-tech adhesives being used almost entirely in place of mechanical fixings, such as screws, bolts or studs.
Low-viscous, exceptionally strong and flexible one-component adhesives and primers have a long and generally reliable life, but manufacturer’s steps required to use them correctly must be followed closely. Pre-cleaning surfaces to be fixed together, use of accelerators, activators and applying adequate pressure and observing manufacturer’s drying times and ‘open’ times are important factors.
Rather than laying individually cut battens, the other major advancement to mention, (although it’s actually been around since the early 1980s), is the wide use of teak deck panels, pre-manufactured off-site
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