Rot Dr.

[Mariner]

Hi All,

I was wondering if any of you have used Rot Dr. epoxy resin repair material on your floors. Specifically when replacing a section - both as a cure and a prevention. By that I mean using the epoxy to soak into spongy wood and harden, thus replacing the strength of the wood. Or, using a thin coat as a preservative to prevent further decay on new or repaired flooring.

I have some repairs to carry out by the entrance door, not too big an area to replace 30" x 12". Want to prevent further damage if a leak occurs again.

Thx for any info or comments - all helps in the long run

Mariner

[Ken J]

I buy my epoxy from Fiberglass Coatings, in Fla - they will mail it to you and they have the best prices that I have found. As I understand it all epoxy is the same - there are few manufacturers, sold under different names.

Just make sure you get penetrating epoxy - spead it out - your floor will be hard as a rock

Ken

[j54mark]

It's Rot Doctor, www.rotdoctor.com. There has been plenty posted on these forums about penetrating epoxies, and Rot Doctor in particular.

I like it a lot.

My own opinion, backed by absolutely no scientific research whatsoever, is that rotted wood treated with Rot Doctor will approximate the strength of new wood of that same dimesion. Read that sentence carefully - your rotted areas will be dimensionally thinner than the sound wood. So, you are not going to come back to the strength of the new wood. But you could come close to the strength of a new piece the same thickness as whatever you have left.

Good luck,

Mark

[TomW]

Mariner,

I used a Rot Doctor equivalent product (I could buy it locally) when I repaired the floor by the door. Here are a few observations since I am not sure of exactly what kind of information you are looking for.

This kind of resin mixes up fairly thin & has a slow cure time so that it can soak into the wood fibers. It is imperative that the area be bone-dry. These products cure as opposed to dry, and any water left in the wood will be trapped. I left a 100W light bulb staring at my area to be repaired the night before repair day just to make sure the water was gone.

95% of my area to be repaired was a perfect candidate for Rot Doctor (the other 5% was MIA). I used fiberglass resin to smooth the Rot Doctored area, and fill in voids after the Rot Doctor had cured. Fiberglass resin is thicker & cures faster, and seemed like a better idea than just floor leveling compound. Keep in mind that Rot Doctor only strengthens wood, it does nothing physically for the way it looks. Visually, the repaired area looks wet.

You could use Rot Doctor to pre-treat good wood, but the stuff is kind of expensive for treating large areas. Floor-damaging water is usually soaked in at the plywood’s end grain – That’s the best area to focus any pre-treat efforts.

Tom

[Paul Mayeux]

Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer (sold by the rot doctor) fills the porous cells in the wood fibers decreasing the wood's ability to absorb water, thus reducing home for rot spore to take root. It does not waterproof wood. A barrier coat would be needed for that purpose. Interlux 2000e is a two part epoxy paint that would provide a moisture barrier. Polyurethane would do nothing for the plywood, water can be absorbed through polyurethane. A good alkyd paint would do better. If CPES is used it still needs a topcoat of a good paint or other moisture barrier. Also, if the plywood has delaminated, the CPES won't be of much help.

CPES is a great product, I use it on all new wood whether it's the boat or the Overlander. Finishes adhere much better to wood treated with CPES.
I have two wooden boats and I've learned through much trial and error that if the wood is questionable and is being used for structural purposes, you are miles ahead to bite the bullet and replace rather than repair.
Paul.

[joel]

remember that if the wood is soft all the way thru the epoxy will not penetrate the full thickness. The entry way is obviously the highest traffic area. If you don't want to replace the area,at least lay two layers of fiberglass fabric over the area.You can go to an auto body supply to get fabric large enough to cover the whole area with at least a 6" overlap onto the good floor.Put this over it after you do the rot dr. Good luck.