Swim Platform

[Ed422]

Goofy question follows. Hopefully it does not prove me to be a cheapskate or just plain dumb.

Ok, so my Albin 30 has a swim platform. It looks like it was cobbled together with some 3/4" Starboard and 4 brackets. It works, but is kind of flimsy... I looked into getting one made with 1" starboard and it was kind of pricey. What I'm thinking is getting a 4x8 sheet of 3/4" pvc board and cutting 2 layers (basic dimensions of what's there is 94"x24"). Then, glue them together with PVC glue, and screws at regular intervals top and bottom. What say y'all? Half baked? At the price (under $200 including screws and glue), if it only worked for a couple years it would be cost effective.

Ed

[REBMystic]

I have not done a project like that but just used PVC boards to redo lattice trim on a porch. Ensuring enough stiffness would be my main concern. BTW - nothing wrong with being cheap!

[Ben423]

A couple of things about PVC: Never use acetone to clean your PVC swim platform. It is essentially a PVC solvent. Also, prolonged exposure (2 years) of PVC to sunlight reduces its impact resistance and can cause it to discolor. It can be protected with paint, but that can affect the cost of the project.

[WillieC]

I made our platform on an A25 out of fifty year old one inch thick cedar core form plywood, or something close to that. It still had the smooth surface mostly intact. I patched up holes, cut it to fit, eased the edges with a router, 1/4" radius, then gave it a couple coats of leftover two part barrier coat paint from the bottom paint job. Then the old standby finish coats of Bilgekote gray. It will go a couple years before repair and repaint. Good luck finding the plywood!

[Ed422]

Thanks for the comments.