living with deck moisture

[farmuse]

my 1977 cheoy lee luders offshore28 has some goo filled blisters in the v-berth ceiling.i assume due to leaky teak decks.the deck is not noticeably soft,just one small spot in the cabin top.which is glass.what is the goo and if the decks can be recaulked and sealed up,could i live with this condition for some time?or will it continue to deteriorate?icant afford to have the decks professionally replaced.however i plan on eventually cruising the bahamas and would feel better knowing it hasn't compromised the structural integrity of my vessel or at least too much.she seems plenty strong and is quite dry below.i spent all i had to get her so please reassure me.thanks alot

[tommays]

Brown goo is pretty much kiss of death time and has to be addressed

I am currently planning my goo repairs and have started by ordering a kit of vacuum bag supply's from and Airplane composite company as it was a much better kit for the money that the ones with marine on them

I will be working on the reality of above or below deck repairs based on the test results

[mitiempo]

I believe your deck is solid glass with teak over and not cored but I could be wrong. In any case the best solution is to grind out the blisters and see where it leads you. If it's a solid glass deck the blisters can be ground out, dried and epoxy filled like a hull would be. If it's cored you've got bigger problems as Tom posted. If it's cored I think Cheoy Lee used plywood. Best to confirm the kind of deck first. Here's a link to the Cheoy Lee Owners Assoc. If they don't have the info on their site you can ask. Cheoy Lee Sailboat Association

[georgefmys]

Your deck would have been cored at factory with [unfortunately] poor quality plywood cut in about4'' squares and somewhat sealed in polyester resin. From your description, core is history-and there is no way to fix without tearing off teak and outer skin. Really doesn't require boat repair skills,lots of resources on-line to help you if you want to do it. As you noted,especially with teak overlay-deck can seem stiff enough underfoot-so at least you can wait on job until you are ready.