Myacht roof repair

L

LP is life

New Member
I need to repair my leaking roof on my old myacht rental fleet houseboat. I was going to do a patch on the top, but am wondering if anyone has ripped apart the roof and made extensive repairs before. If so, what did you do? And what is the roof made of? 2x4 or 2x6 rafters? Plywood? The rain storms have me a little worried about ripping into the roof this winter, but it’s gotta be done.
 
We had Lake Powell Marine redo ours a few years ago. They took everything off, Bimini, fly bridge and replaced it. They used plywood, not sure how thick, covered with a sealant and then a white paint marine that has some grip in it and really does not get hot. Easy to maintain and dries quickly. Picture will give you a bit of an idea of what it looks likeIMG_9719.jpeg
 
I owned a 53 foot Myacht ex-rental for 15 years. Depending upon the length many of the Myachts had a 6-8 inch wide fore & aft fiberglass patch down the center of the deck. That was supposed to have fixed a new build issue that was common. I did not have any signs of leakage when I bought mine but was told by the Aramark rental fleet manager that routine PM of the roof top perimeter edge channel was key. Right after I bought mine I cleaned the joint between the top deck and the perimeter angle piece around the entire top deck perimeter. Plus cleaned the joints of the railing upright stanchions where they meet the deck and tightened the through bolts. Then I recaulked the entire perimeter and railing stanchion joints with Lifecaulk brand caulking. Clean the area to be caulked before applying and tool the caulk into the joint after applying. This worked well for over 10 years. One area that needed remedial attention after a few years was where the bimini upright stanchions meets the deck due to movement of these pieces. Also kept an eye on condition of caulk and renewed small areas as they cracked. Sorry I have no knowledge of the construction. Good luck!!
Kilojuliett
 
Lake Powell Marine redid the roof on our Hansen style houseboat as well around 2015. There were soft spots everywhere so they ripped the existing plywood off then replaced any compromised 2x4’s or 2x6’s below (can’t remember what was below it. Once that was done they used new plywood on the top and from what I understand they sprayed the plywood with durabak textured marine paint. That held up exceptionally well for right around 10 years before we felt like it needed to be repainted. We bought several gallons of the paint this year and rolled another layer on the roof. I would not recommend rolling as the sand in paint that makes the texture does not spread well with a roller so the texture across the roof is very inconsistent with some really rough patches. I would for sure recommend spraying instead. With that said, we are hoping to get another 10 years maintenance free on the roof but time will tell.
 
We have a myacht houseboat that we re-roofed last year. The fiberglass roofing that is on it just got old and started to seep through and leak. I had covered the center seam and bad spots with a roll on rubber membrane for several years but actually waited too long to re-roof so ended up with rotten wood that needed to be replaced. Re-roofing the houseboat is a big job so gather some help. Everything had to come off the roof. The railing is through bolted on the sides so one person has to stand on the side and hold the bolt while someone up top removes the nuts. It takes at least 4 guys to handle the bimini and get it down. The roof is made of trusses. 2x4 s that are cut down to a certain arc pattern. The sheeting is 1/2" plywood. We used Duradek to recover our roof. I highly recommend this. It is water proof and guaranteed for 15years. I used thinset to smooth out the center seam mentioned in the post above. I also used thinset to slope to the aluminum rain gutter and then we could just take the Duradek over the rain gutter and wrap it so the water proof membrane wrapped the entire roof. The seams are welded so there is no place to leak.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_5916.jpeg
    IMG_5916.jpeg
    376.5 KB · Views: 41
  • IMG_5920.jpeg
    IMG_5920.jpeg
    825 KB · Views: 37
  • IMG_5923.jpeg
    IMG_5923.jpeg
    748.5 KB · Views: 36
  • IMG_5924.jpeg
    IMG_5924.jpeg
    794 KB · Views: 37
Tiff Mapel said:
Same here, LP. We are pulling the houseboat next month for the whole winter. Our roof has soft spots that we're getting tired of walking around. We were quoted an exorbitant amount to get the roof fixed, so we're going to do it ourselves. Currently looking into options and the best path forward.

Tiff
View attachment 36901
Click to expand...
Everyone has given great information on this. Tiff you and your group have been around so you’re not new to this kind of stuff. My thoughts are that this is one of the most extensive and large houseboat repair jobs owners can take on. I’d say it’s a skill level 7 project and PITA factor of 9 or 10. It’s not all that different from a flat roof on a house though and that’s the upside, carpentry skills are a real plus.

I think it would be best to have at least a three person crew from start to finish and a week solid to get it done if things go well. If you strip the sheathing and find additional decay in the cross ties and walls maybe longer. I’m a GC and own a roofing company and I’ve done about every project imaginable on houseboats so this is my best guess. If I was in a group boat I’d strongly consider hiring a reputable place in Page familiar with this job to do it and split the costs unless I just wanted to spend some time in Page getting frustrated and dirty with a few good friends. That’s why I do stuff there myself, it feels good for the soul.

I’m not sure you’ll save as much as you might think doing it DIY when you factor in the boat move, space rent, materials, fuel, lodging, meals and disposal fees. But you’ll have the satisfaction of having done it yourselves.

Best of luck!
 
Last edited:
PowellBride said:
We had Lake Powell Marine redo ours a few years ago. They took everything off, Bimini, fly bridge and replaced it. They used plywood, not sure how thick, covered with a sealant and then a white paint marine that has some grip in it and really does not get hot. Easy to maintain and dries quickly. Picture will give you a bit of an idea of what it looks likeView attachment 36900
Click to expand...
What was the approximate cost of this endeavor if you don't mind sharing?
 
PowellBride said:
KIM - We had a fly ridge, with all the associated electronics that had to be re-installed, a hard top Bimini with solar panels- a bit over $20k. We’re 60x14
Click to expand...
Can I ask. Did that include haul out of the boat, on-site storage, all the materials and labor with a warranty and relaunch?

Just out and out is 2k now, storage is $200 a month, materials are out if sight especially if you buy it all in Page. (I get it, middle of nowhere, glad we have Page Lumber) just Say’n, it all ads up quick.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top