SailNet Community banner
  • SailNet is a forum community dedicated to Sailing enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about sailing, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, repairs, reviews, maintenance, and more!

Securing floorboards

12K views 43 replies 24 participants last post by  stuartbell 
#1 ·
Has anyone used velcro to do this? I'm thinking of routing out small portions of the underside of the floorboards to use heavy duty velcro to keep the floorboards secured (the routing is necessary to keep the boards flush and prevent them from sitting proud). The design is not intended to keep anything that's stowed under the floorboards in place (that stuff all is secured already, such as batteries, etc.), it's just meant to keep the floorboards themselves from becoming missiles, so presumably the velcro should be able to work for that purpose. Some new boats are coming with the boards secured that way, and the velcro is surprisingly strong; you actually have to use some force to get the boards up.

Anyone have first hand experience with this?
 
#2 ·
Should work pretty well. I've used it to hold temporary wall panels up in a photo studio.
 
#4 ·
The PYI panel fasteners are good too..but a bit pricey. :)
 
#5 ·
I'm guessing that you are even considering this because of the problem loose floorboards would create in a roll over. Sure the velcro may hold the floor boards in place for the roll but if you ship any water they will float right off and your cabin sole would be a minefield of holes to make your way across. The battening down of floorboards serves two purposes: The won't come out in a roll over and they won't float off in a flood.
 
#6 ·
On the other hand, lets be honest. If he gets more then floorboard deep water, he is not going to just sit back and listen to the little electric bilge pump going brrrrr. He is going to PULL UP A SECTION OF FLOORING and get a bucket in there as well.

i think velcro soudns liek areasonable solution. Concerns about it are Contamination with sand, dust and crud which makes the velcro deteriorate very quickly and lose most of its grip. Movement, mnost floors flex hither and yon just abit and this si fine given that boats bend just atouch so that some ribs are more in contact on som occassions then others. Do you a) want the sound of velcro every time you tack or b) want the sound of velcro when you walk across the boards given they are likely cut just a little bit too small to allow for boat flex?

Just some thoughts to ponder.

Sasha
 
#7 ·
The PYI fasteners are great, but they truly are pricey. I have 12 floorboards, and using them would add about $1500 to teh cost just for the hardware.

By the way, in response to a commment or two from others, the velcro I'm talking about is seriously heavy duty stuff. It's not like what you would get from your average hardware store. We're actually going to have to give a yank to get the boards up when we want to. The boards aren't just going to float away if the velcro gets wet (but by that point I'm in much bigger trouble anyway).
 
#8 ·
Velcro might work well. It may keep the board from sitting flush with the rest of the cabin sole though. There are some nice fitting made for this though. ABI Marine makes really nice fittings, and the have a "turning lock lift handle" that looks like it would work well. It will cost a lot more than velcro, but it will be a permanent solution. Check this out, ABI Turning Lock Lift Handle

 
#9 ·
Dan, The only reason I mentioned that style friction catch is, all cabinet doors, drawers and selected sole hatches on my recent Nauticat have that style - hold really well and are easy to install.

Although the cabinet / locker doors and drawer latches have an added lever, requiring a bored hole for finger release (like child-guard latches), horizontal panels did not.

Upon a closer search, I found these in solid brass and actually closer to what I had . . . at only 1.99 ea and available from Ace hardware. One pair per panel should hold. That's 48.00 total. I assume the panels already have flush finger pulls.

 
#11 · (Edited)
Measure twice, screw once. The male section should first be surface mounted to the panel's bottom face. Then the female part (with SS spring and ball assembly) is secured to the vertical face of the perimeter jamb stop, on the floor opening - at 90 degrees to the male.

I think you will find that there is ample tolerance with the assembly of both parts - allowing some room for error. Simple - yes?
 
#12 ·
TB-

Those would work quite well I'd imagine, but are a lot more work to install than the velcro is.

BTW, on the most recent fastener, the piece mount parallel to each other, not perpendicular. :)



Plumper-

If he's using the two-inch wide velcro, the boards aren't going to have enough floatation to lift themselves free... it just ain't gonna happen... unless they're floating in mercury. If they're floating in mercury, he's got other much more serious issues.
 
#13 · (Edited)
TB-

Those would work quite well I'd imagine, but are a lot more work to install than the velcro is.

BTW, on the most recent fastener, the piece mount parallel to each other, not perpendicular. :)
Dog - they're mounted parallel, but at 90 degrees to each other.

Dan, Considering you're installing at least 24 of these, I would make a pilothole drilling jig out of a small block of wood. That way you just measure the fit once - mark and drill the holes on a block of wood and use that as a guide for all 96 screw holes. Use a power driver bit as well.

Additionally - the Ace hardware is exactly the same as the "marine-grade" - same vendor (China most likely) just repackaged to sell at 4 times the money.
 
#14 ·
Dan,

My preference would be for real hardware such as what TB or Sapper posted.

I don't especially like the velcro idea -- but it might work fine.

I understand you are getting the boat ready for a trip to Bermuda this summer. You probably have a long list of preparations you are working through. So that you can check this one off and move on to the next requirement, I'll just mention that many off-shore sailors simply drill holes for screws and screw the floorboards down in 2-4 places. That is a cheap, quick, simple way to do it. Keep an inexpensive electric screw-driver handy for speedy extraction of the screws.

When you return to primarily coastal sailing, you can remove the screws if you find them inconvenient.
 
#15 ·
Screwing the boards down was a thought, and that actually was the first recommendation I received from the guys at my yard. I hate that idea though because I check our bilges regularly while underway, whether coastal or offshore. Plus, the thought that in an emergency, or even just to close/open a through hull, I'll need to pull out a screwdriver first just doesn't sit well with me. Lastly, there's the aesthic -- having a bunch of screw heads visible throughout the cabin is not the best (that's certainly not the first consideration, but it ain't nothin' either).
 
#17 ·
Mine are screwed in, my bilges are only about 4 inches deep and there is no bilge pump on either hull - I have 250gph pump used to drain the shower that has a hose for use in 'cleaning up'.
My boat is seriously impacted by the weight that a single hull full of 4 inches of water would entail. In theory it's not sinkable even if both hulls flood but I'm not up to theorizing while treading water. Gemini's have been holed, and those that have did not sink.

I've been thinking for a while now about installing real pumps, and replacing the screws with an alternative. I'm not worried about a roll over - I've got bigger problems than lose floorboards if I go over :)
Thanks to all for the ideas.
 
#18 ·
This doesn't work on a full keeler, because that is where we keep our stuff!

When I do this job, I'll need positive locking that will keep stowed gear IN PLACE should the boat roll. It would be bad enough to capsize, but to have hatches and tinned goods and spare chain and dissembled anchors flying about is suicide.
 
#19 ·
Dan,
You basically have to decide if you want a positive locking or not.
If not then the solution TB suggested is by far the simplest, quickest to install and perhaps the cheapest option. Just "routing out small portions of the underside of the floorboards" you wanted to do is perhaps more work then TB's solution. You can use 2 fasteners for small boards and four for larger boards.
But there is a reason to use positive lock: if there is some amount of water in your bilge this water can run around and in a near knock down can push the leeway board from below with some reasonable force. That can lift the board. Just imagine what one bucket of water can do hitting the board from below.
It is not floating (statically) - any Velcro or TB's solution can work there. It is dynamic force of the running water hitting the floor board which can lift them.
I checked the http://www.pyiinc.com/images/pdf/panel/PYI_Floor_Anchor.pdf
and the price is high, but it is not that as you wrote.
You only need 2 per board, so if you buy a starter pack (for the tool) and two 12 packs the price is 468$.
Or you can compromise: positive lock on larger boards and TB's option on smaller ones.
 
#20 ·
sole

What are the reasons to secure the floor boards? I just completed replacing 25 sections in my boat with T & H plywood and all but 4 are not secured. The prior floor was the same and I did not find a problem with them in that regard. Needed in a roll over or floating off because of excess water seem to be at the extremes which to me is not a valid reason to secure them. If either of these happens, you have more concerns than the floor coming up.
 
#21 ·
What are the reasons to secure the floor boards?
If you are in a knockdown, broach, rollover, pitchpole, or worst of all the dreaded knockroach :)D ) anything that isn't secured will fly. All those books on the shelf, the ice box lid and everything in the ice box, the floor boards and everything stored in the bilge, everything just sitting on top of the hanging locker, the galley stove, everything not secured will fly.

I remember reading about the female half of a cruising couple getting severely injured when they got knocked down and the stove hit her, she was almost killed. It could have been "just" a knockdown that would have been easily recoverable, but it turned into a desperate emergency that ended the cruise. I made sure my stove gimbals locking tabs had the stove firmly locked in after reading that one.
 
#23 · (Edited)
tomaz,
That's a great link with some very high quality solutions - I've earmarked it for future use.

Don't know why I didn't think of this earlier, but there's a nice quality hardware product line I use from Phelps, Inc., for custom windows and doors. I have the full line catalogs at my office, but an online catalog can be viewed HERE Click on Screen Hardware for the page containing the Model SCF64 cam fastener, in solid brass. Here's an image from that page:


These would be easy to install, by drilling holes through each panel and adjoining slots in adjacent wood jambs.​
 
#26 ·
Ok, I think I see the point

I was only looking at from my perspective, which so far keeps me out of situations that could cause a rollover. But, down the line, I can see that if I do some extended trips to far away places where you could encounter weather or sea conditions that could roll the boat, it could be useful. I am still somewhat of a newbie next to a lot of you guys.
 
#27 ·
6 inch galvenized nails from homedepot... Make sure they go all the way through the hull... :D :D Just kidding (in case if someone takes it seriously)

Industrial velcro (the plastic ones) should be OK... Afterall, boards are going to be stacked side by side to avoid sliding, all you need is a little attachment to keep them down...
 
#29 ·
Don't know if this would work on all boats, but on BR there is a small 'kick space' at floor level under benches and other bits of cabinetry. I've cut small blocks of pine to fit between the sole and the underside of these 'kick spaces' which wedges the floor in place in these areas. In other areas, e.g. passage ways, I have cut pieces of 1x2 pine to fit athwartship to secure the floors. All of these pieces are capable of being tightly wedged in place. I've labled all the pieces indicating where they go and where mulitiple pieces of wood are used together in one place I've used a cable tie to keep them together. They all are stored beneath the sole in one cabin ready for use should we have to rig for heavy weather.



It may not be a perfect sollution, but the construction of the floors and the structure beneath them made it impossible to use the screw-latch like things pictured above. The big advantage of the wedge system was cost and it also eliminated the need for drilling holes in the soles.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top