Carpet is not for boats so I have torn it out of my pontoon

[yakerkrafter]

Carpet is OK if you don't have dogs, don't fish, no one swims or if it never rains on your pontoon boat. The embedded dog hair, mold growth, water soaked carpet after every rain, even with full canvas, was just too much.
We tore out the carpet and prepped the marine plywood floor with the help of some rental equipment. The boat is a 20' Avalon Fish n Fun in the 1000 Islands.
A product called KiwiGrip, highlighted in Boating Magazine caught my eye and we proceeded to give our boat a new floor. We experimented with the dilution of Kiwi Grip to obtain different consistency and the results are wonderful.

First step was to remove as much hardware, seating, and metal edge as possible. The structure around the fuel tank was left in place. This is a 2 man job to loosen some of the bolts, especially when the other end is under the boat. A vise grip on the nut also works when working alone. There was so much hardware; I put it into marked baggies to make it easier to put it all back together later.

Next was carpet removal. Avalon did a great job attaching the carpet to the marine plywood base. I tried just pulling it, trying to peel it back, but after a few exhausting minutes, only a couple of feet of carpet was up. So we went to our local Taylor Rental and got their advice. They suggested a tool shown in the photo which is a heavy handle with a sharp stainless blade. It reminded me of my Grandfather's ice spud. In less than 3 hours, with some help from the Project Manager, we had all the carpet peeled off. We were amazed at how much dirt was residual in the carpet. Last winter we pressure washed the carpet numerous times. So much dirt had accumulated that mold was growing on it. Throughout the year we vacuumed, never able to remove yellow Lab hair. Carpet and boats are not a good combination in our book!

We wanted to keep the carpeting that was under the seating so the items stored there would not rattle around. I cut the carpet on a line just under the edge so no carpet would be exposed when the seating was put back.

The wood base needed work before we could apply the KiwiGrip. There was plenty of hardened glue. Back to Taylor Rental. We took home a floor belt sander used in refinishing hardware floors. I found that the coarsest belt (80 grit) worked great. We only consumed 2 belts in the process which took another few hours.

After removing all loose dust with a leaf blower, I sealed the plywood with a wood sealer. I probably could have skipped this step but after all this work, it was an easy application.

There are many posts and videos on the internet, regarding the masking and application of KiwiGrip. All on slick sailboats.

Jamestown Distributors offered free shipping so I bought the KiwiGrip from them. I estimated that 2 gallons would do the job and when finished, I had a half a quart left over.

I followed the recommended application of KiwiGrip using the special roller that came with each gallon. I put 2 of the rollers together on a 7" paint roller handle, worked great. After I got the roller fully saturated with the mayonnaise consistency material, I no longer used a notched trowel to spread it. I simply dipped a stir stick in the can and deposited it on the deck. With a firm force on the roller, the thickness was fairly uniform. I tried to completely cover the plywood with no voids. Not that important as the second diluted coat filled provided complete coverage.

The Project Manager has "Princess and the Pea" feet so I was under strict rule to not end up with too prickly of a finish. And since we had no plans to heel over the pontoon like you see in the sailboat races, we would not need an aggressive finish. I may regret this for when we boat in the Alexandria Bay area on a busy day. With the steep rock walls in the narrows, the rollers from boats near a level 5 rapids. We’ll just go slow there.

The texture when dry was actually too aggressive, so I experimented with a second coat of KiwiGrip diluted. 50/50 with water.

I applied the diluted material as a second coat and it resulted in a smoother finish. I used a 4" paint roller to apply the material this time. I had to go back with dabs of undiluted KiwiGrip to fill in some voids and low spots in the plywood. This stuff appears to adhere VERY well. They say you can recoat in the future. We selected the cream color and it looks great.

For the second coat, I consumed just over 1/2 quart of KiwiGrip to cover the complete deck. I did apply a third coat where the Project Manager usually sits.

The kids will be able to sit or kneel and the Project Manager may be able to go barefoot. We'll see. Maybe walking a Florida sand beach every day in February will help prep her for the start of 1000 Island boating next season.

What's left if putting the boat back together. Matching hardware to its right location. The marked bags help. I plan to add a small drain just under the edge of the L shaped seating lounge. Water used to puddle here and the carpet was rarely dry.

So far we are very happy with the result. We did consider a vinyl flooring material or a truck bed lining material. We'll see how the new KiwiGrip floor holds up after a season on the water. They say it holds up very well even in salt water. At least we won't have to worry about putting salt on the Margaretta glasses.

[Leisure Kraft]

Carpet is OK if you don't have dogs, don't fish, no one swims or if it never rains on your pontoon boat. The embedded dog hair, mold growth, water soaked carpet after every rain, even with full canvas, was just too much.
We tore out the carpet and prepped the marine plywood floor with with the help of some rental equipment. The boat is a 20' Avalon Fish n Fun in the 1000 Islands.
A product called KiwiGrip, highlighted in Boating Magazine caught my eye and we proceded to give our boat a new floor. We experimented with the dilution of Kiwi Grip to obtain different consistancy and the results are wonderful.
I plan to post some photos and go into details of the process, maybe over the Holidays

Well done. I'm sure everyone would want to hear what that dilution ratio is.

[texaspontoon]

My dealer talked me out of carpet and into what is best described as a vinyl floor. It has been great. However, I think some type of spray in bed liner or these guys would be the ideal solution. If I had to do it over again, I go with http://www.safe-floor.com (They are close to me here in Kemah Texas. It kind of looks like shredded bits of colored rubber glued onto the deck. I love what I have seen him do with boats. I am kinda hoping my vinyl floor wears out someday so I can go have him do my boat.

Good luck with your project...

[ROLAND]

texaspontoon.. i'm with you...we have vinyl on our 20 foot benny that we use almost exclusively for fishing... nice thing about the vinyl is cleaning.. usually about once a month or so I just spray the deck down, throw a little liquid car wash on it and go over it with a stiff broom, rinse her off and she's done... hate to think what carpet would have looked like after 2 years of dropping bait, fish, etc. on it...

[RonKMiller]

I used multiple coats of very high quality elastomeric roof coating, and sprinkled crushed walnut shells on top of a wet coat for traction prior to the two final coats. I tinted it a "tan" color since white was WAY too bright. The finished coating is about 50 mils thick, the same as a credit card. I also coated the bottom and sides of the plywood, essentially encasing it in plastic. The coating was $140.00 for 5 gallons, (vs. $70.00 for the generic stuff) but you always get what your pay for - and this is a job I don't EVER want to do again.

I'm very pleased with the results - it's a "lifetime" type coating.

toon deck closeup.jpg (97.83 KiB) Viewed 6050 times

[texaspontoon]

Looks like it turned out really well. I am sure you will like it better than carpet. Give us an update at the end of next season (after you have had some muddy feet, spilled soda pop, fish blood and guts etc on it!)

Something tells me it is going to hold up fantastic. Nice job. (BTW It looks green in the pictures..not tan!) Kiwi's are green right?