Subject: floor and transom repair on small boat.
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1998

Hi, I stumbled upon you webpage as I was looking for advice on fixing this old 13' boat someone just gave me. I guess they thought it wasn't worth the hassle to fix it up (it may be cheaper to just get a newer one).... but to me it would be a fun project if I could fix this thing and make it look halfway decent.

It looks like the transom has been repaired before, but whoever did it, didn't do a very good job.
I don't know much about boats, but it looks to me like it's all fiberglass except for the transom.
The floor boards were wet so I pulled them out and will replace them, though I'm not sure I want to use wood. What do you think about that? Then the transom, I pulled off the two pieces of plywood that they put on both sides of the transom, and it seems like the wood in the transom is a little wet, but not too bad. It still feels pretty solid.
Do you have any advice?

The thing came with an old outboard motor which was all rusted and in pieces and I got rid of it. Could anyone give me an idea of how many HP motor would be good for a boat that size Thank you.

Paul:

Sure, if it's a glass boat, then keep it! You should let the transom wood dry, and then I'd suggest coating it with our Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer (CPES), especially any end-grain you can get to. This will protect the wood and help resist future rot damage. Do the same (coat it) with any new wood you add. Any good exterior grade plywood should do the job for you. Then paint the transom, and that's that for the transom.

Sure, you could use something other than wood for the floor boards, but I'm not sure what it would be. If you bought wood and coated it in CPES (again, especially the end grain), painted it, it will last a long time. Wood is cheap and fast, which is why it always appears in glass boats.

Do inspect joints, especially where the transom joins the hull to be sure they are strong and secure. You can, if you wish, sand down the hull lightly and re-paint with just about anything, an epoxy paint being the best, a polyurethane next. Follow the prep advice on the paint cans.

I'd say that an outboard of about 15 hp would move the boat along nicely. You might get away with something a little larger, but you start to risk overpowering the boat. Can be dangerous. Even a 10 hp would push it along. Anything less I think would be too small, unless you just want to putt-putt.

Come on back if you have more questions.

Doc