Deck Expense

[Bark]

I know, everyone's tired of hearing about my aging teak deck (Cheoy Lee Lion), but a quick question: doesn't $20K sound a little high as an estimate for stripping the old teak and ply, then replacing with new ply + dynel/epoxy? I realize it's labor intensive, but how hard can it be? You do have to pull the toe rail on the Lion, which I'm sure is a mess, but $20K???

I don't know if the guys I've talked to would really rather not do the job and may be intentionally pricing it high(they seem to prefer the ply-over-the-old-teak method for about half the price) or if I'm missing some major components of this project. Removing the hardware/rail and demo of the existing deck seems like most of the work and I would think that would go pretty quickly.

Anyway, do these prices seem highish or am I just out of touch? Or do I just need to move to Maine? Thanks.

[Art Read]

For what it's worth, I once saw an "optional teak overlay" option in place of the standard canvas/dynel covered plywood deck offered by someone building the same boat I did. $13,000 extra. For new construction on a 20 foot daysailor. I put a plywood/teak deck on my boat and it DID add a lot of time and expense to the project, but $13,000? Well... my labor was cheap.

[Scott Rosen]

That price sounds fair to me.

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

Which is why I would do it myself. And put a new teak deck back on. There is a lot of fairly expensive labour in that 20k

[Rosebud]

If you are concerned about that $20K number, then you should get two more estimates from folks who would also do quality work. It sounds pretty fair to us.

Good Luck,

[Bark]

Thanks everyone. A little sticker shock, I suppose. I was expecting a new teak deck to come in at around that price, but I thought the ply/dynel option would be considerably less.

Getting back to the do-it-myself (at least partially) option, does anyone have any estimates on the percentage of the labor that I might save by doing the demo myself? I'm trying to get a handle on what part of this job is the most time-consuming and why.

Thanks again.

[Scott Rosen]

Originally posted by Bark:
how hard can it be?Chuckle. Chuckle.

It's not hard; it just takes a long time.

I would figure on about half of the fasteners breaking during removal. If the ply was glued to the deck beams, then yikes. Think about removing the stanchions, deck hardware, cabin base mouldings, winch pads, samson post, windlass, etc. etc.

[cbob]

Bark, Rosebud's got it right. On this side of the country jobs like this move to Mexico. Check out Bahia Navales, in Ensenada, I bet they come close to 20K. To get an idea of what's involved, break down the job into an outline of increments. Toe rail, fastenings, removal, purchase new fastenings, replace, refinish,and like that, till the work scope is totally defined. For things like toe rails, I would let those who are going to replace them, do removal. Is the new plywood deck going under the cabin trunk? What will an only plywood, dynel covered deck, do to to to the resale value, of a class of boat that is expected to have a teak deck. As average rough comparison, carpentry work ashore compared to professional quality boat joinery, runs about 144:1, ie cost per square ft. ashore equals square in. afloat. Get estimates, bite the bullet, what's the alternative? Luck, cbob

[gaffman]

Bark - I did that job on my Friendship.
38' on deck. By the time all was said and done, including things you may not consider until you get into it, I may have spent about 350 hours on the job. At 45/hour, that's about $15,000. My recollection is about 12 or so gallons of MAS epoxy putting down plywood and two layers of dynel. We're starting to approach $20,000 and that's without new toerails or latex gloves. But - nothing will increase the life of your boat like a deck that neer leaks.

[Dan McCosh]

Some 20 years ago, I did a deck on a 27-footer that took all summer, and said "never again." Then about five years ago, we rented a boathouse and started to resurface the deck on Night Heron. By Spring, the job had spread to include new deck beams, covering boards and sheerstrake. Two years later it was more or less completed--replanked with cedar, glassed, and in the water. The following summer we thought the toerails, hatches and coamings would be done by July. We took the first sail the first of November. After the second season sailing, we have most of the hardware back in place. You figure out the cost.