Subfloor preservative

[wallooner]

I have a 77 Sovereign and have inspected most of the subfloor and have found it to be solid. I did notice however that near the living room window area the subfloor has some discoloration and water stains where driving rain must have entered. I was thinking of applying a oil based penitrating preservative. Does anyone have any thoughts or product recomendations.

[cwf]

howdy!

Find some 'Git Rot'... treat the floor well.. especially along perimeter..

[perryg114]

Bleach then deck paint works if the wood is just discolored and maybe a few punky spots that don't go all the way through.

Perry

[woodfox45]

Check out West Marine for marine grade epoxy .

[mhilley]

I would (and have) use something like West System epoxy. Several coats - until it won't soak in. Really great stuff. Used by many famous boatbuilders. A boatyard I was working in built large sailboats from thin wood encased in epoxy. The boats are still out there.

[Jim Foster]

Plain old two part epoxy. Mix the two part along with a couple of "glugs" of Acetone. It will become a runny mixture that when poured onto the wood, will soak in. The acetone will evaporate, then the epoxy will harden. Can be sanded and painted, or whatever you wish to do with the area.
I used this method when I replaced the flooring in our Caravel. The plywood was checked just inside the door. Repair has held for over ten years.

This will not work with rot, only with plywood which has been exposed to water and has become checked and separated which occurs near doors or other places where water tends to get into the plywood sub floor.
This method can also be used to repair plywood which has become d-laminated. In this case, use a 5/16 or 3/8 drill to make holes in the area. Put a stop on the drill bit so as not to drill through the bottom or last layer of plywood. Mix the epoxy and acetone mixture and pour into the holes, saturating the area. Next morning the plywood is better than new.

A couple of years ago I had to replace the very rear portion of the sub floor in the Caravel. I used this mixture to treat the new peace of wood to prevent such damage in the future to the new piece.

[gregtx]

An epoxy product is what I plan on using…GIT ROT as mentioned earlier would work and there's another called Smith's CPES available at VTS.

[wallooner]

Thanks for all the responses. My damage is very minor no soft wood just discolored. After receiving posts I am now interested in epoxy or fiberglass resining the entire floor. My plywood is only 1\2 inch not 5/8s as others report having. Would the epoxy\resin increase the strength of the floor. It does seem to flex under foot a bit.

[perryg114]

I have had good luck with bleach to kill the mold and mildew then Latex deck/floor paint on top after it has had time to dry. The paint also seals off the bad smells and minor leaks just puddle up instead of soaking in. Right now, all I have as a floor covering is paint.

Perry

[TinTin]

Vinegar is useful for killing mold/mildew as well. Also a little less odiferous than bleach.

I agree that a good self-priming floor/deck paint should protect the subfloor very well.

[flygrrl]

A strong bicarb solution works well to kill mold and mildew. Fungi tend to love acids. Rubbing alcohol also works well, nothing like a little toxicity to kill natures decomposers.
Leonie

[perryg114]

Bleach will kill everything and do it quick. It also won't leave acids behind that might contribute to corrosion. It will produce some HCL but that will dissipate soon. Hydrogen peroxide will work and won't smell as bad.

Perry