Trailer Decking Finishing
 

Holla!
I'm gonna be replacing the decking on my 8x8 yacht club trailer. It is two sheets of plywood. Though the current pieces have lasted over a decade, they began to split/rot years ago. Thoughts on the best plywood replacement option and finish?

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Floor
 

You could consider a couple of options
1. Pressure treated plywood. Not a fan.
2. If there is enough support you could use pressure treated 2x6. With self tapping screws. Put them in tight and when they dry you will have “drainage” cracks.
3. I had a utility trailer with enough supports I was able to use an odd lot of Trex type decking I made a dirty offer on. Did it once! It’s still there.
4. If you could get a deal on marine type plywood with a couple of coats of some good old fashion oil based paint

Diamond plate is the only way to go.
Put a 3/4 pc of plywood down for a base and than a .062 piece of diamond plate on top of that.
Expensive but well worth it.

I was thinking dimensional lumber, but the bottom is just a frame, and I don't think there are places to screw/bolt into.

Any idea the price difference between standard treated plywood and marine?

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On a semi-serious note, something I have never seen before, but without knowing what you are using the trailer for hard to know what you need.

https://www.pjtrailers.com/options/blackwood-lumber/

Myself I would probably consider Rusty's Diamond Plate approach.

Best advice :):):) Hook up with FLL he' s got a brand new to (himself) "blue" makita saw he's dying to tell us all about.

Maybe in exchange for use of the saw you could tutor him on how to spell.

..... 4 x 8' panel saw at Lowe's
 

In the back of the Gilford Lowe's lumber area, they have this large sliding panel saw that cuts up 4'x8' plywood panels with great accuracy.

You get two cuts per plywood panel included with the purchase price. Additional cuts cost 50-cents, but it's worth it because the panel saw makes such a smooth, accurate cut with a ten inch carbide blade.

Is best to always mark the cuts with a sharp pencil, and I always borrow an 8' aluminum corner angle from the aluminum display in hardware to use as an 8' ruler for drawing the line.

If you draw a line, it helps the Lowe's employee make an accurate cut ..... and they really appreciate that.

What type of trailer is this?

It's an 8x8 tilting snowmobile trailer without cover.

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Go with 2x4's x 8'ers, pressure treated, and space them out with a one inch space for drainage of snow and rain ...... about 30-days after installation, so the p.t. dries out good ...... hit it with a coat of exterior gray latex primer and two coats of high gloss, hard surface, exterior latex on the top and down in between the 2x4's as much as possible .....

..... 2x4's are relatively low priced, and very sturdy, and easy to add any later improvements, by fastening into the 2x4 construction lumber.


......you get to choose the color ...... maybe Arctic Cat super bright fluorescent GREEN and turn the trailer into a TEAM ARCTIC trailer and give it some attitude.

Walmart has perfectly decent exterior mixed-colors paint that is way less pricey than Lowe's.

And, having a trailer that's got some weight keeps it from bouncing all across the road, when it rolls across a bump or something.

It depends upon your budget and what you are looking for. Diamond plate is nice but costs more than plywood.

I built a couple of pontoon boats from scratch and I used regular 3/4 plywood for the deck. I didn't go with PT because I was afraid of curling and I didn't want the additional weight.

Before I installed the plywood I put two coats of porch floor paint on each side and all of the edges. I do not see any problems so far, and like a snowmobile trailer the bottom is exposed to the air so the wood will dry out easily.

Someone doing pretty much what you are trying to do. Some interesting comments about pressure treated wood and aluminum. Not sure if this would be your situation.

https://www.hardcoresledder.com/foru...materials.html

Just curious, how would diamond plate hold up to carbide runners? Also wouldn't it be slippery to walk on when snow covered?

P.T. and aluminum can make some corrosion.

Will it corrode soon enough to affect your ownership?

That is unknown.

Since I am in the fourth quarter, with no time outs, I only expect to make my stuff last 20 years.

I used P.T. Plywood on my steel utility trailer.

It was very easy to do.

The carbide would beat the hell out of the aluminum with heavy use , but not make any holes like bare plywood. The best (snow mobile trailers I have seen) don't cover the entire deck with the tread plate. More like several smaller pieces in strategic / high wear point locations. And yes very very slippery to walk on. However when done right with a balance of exposed plywood and diamond plate it looks great and lasts forever.

Sometimes these types of DIY projects are personal pride projects and the sky is the limit, but if your just hauling trash to the dump who cares as long as the lights work when you plug them in.

Many many years ago a former boss / employer of mine built a heavy-heavy duty log split er that was a work of art for a banker friend of his, hand made with the finest of everything including the expensive aluminum mag wheels. A real conversation piece when it was done, but in the end all it did was split wood.

Honestly that’s not high end trailer and must have some years on it. Slap the pt plywood on it and be done. I bet the plywood outlast the frame and certainly will outlast the axel if it’s got some years on it. Ski guides needed to handle the carbides.

If your trailer is aluminum, the chemicals they use in pressure treated plywood will react with and corrode the aluminum frame.

correct, you don't want to mate pressure treated wood with aluminum. it's same with boat floors.. can't use pt wood in a boat with aluminum floor supports. have to use marine grade plywood, which is a viable option for you as well.

also, if you need some ski guides (the plastic runners for your carbides/skis) let me know. i have some used ones from my old trailer taking up space.

Keep a few things in mind here as you contemplate a solution.

Gaps in the flooring may be great for draining but they will also allow road spray especially from the trailer tires to come up from the underside. Probably not ideal.

Those frames are designed to take the thickness of 3/4 inch plywood - standard dimensional lumber runs at 1.5" thick so it will protrude above the frame and be susceptible to damage as the edges will be exposed. Dimensional lumber especially PT stuff will warp, twist and split if not secured in enough places.

A good quality marine grade plywood deck properly treated should last the life of the trailer and really what it's designed to be build with. A solid sheet of plywood adds significant stiffness and structure to that frame that individual pieces of wood will not. I would think not using plywood may affect the overall trailer integrity and capacity.

After building my kayak I have become a big fan of coating plywood with epoxy too keep the water out. You can then paint it or varnish it to protect it from UV if needed.

Ok, so I'm hearing regular plywood with good sealing or standard pressure treated (as opposed to marine).

Which plywood would give me the least splitting/most uniform/flat surface, and what would be the most durable finish?

This is mostly a utility trailer, but I also use it for my son's go-kart, our golf cart, etc. and I'd like it to last.

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I re-decked a snowmobile trailer with PT plywood, and it lasted at least 10 years. I have since sold that trailer so I don't know what it looks like now. But when I sold it, it was in great shape. I really think PT plywood is the way to go.And you never have to maintain it in any way.

I would use PT plywood. If your trailer is aluminum you could always put a barrier between the frame and the plywood. If you know anyone that has any extra Ice and water shield lying around you could cut strips of that and stick it to the frame before mounting the plywood.
I've done this with decking. I put strips on the floor joists before putting down the decking. It keeps the tops of the floor joists from rotting because of water being trapped between the joists and the decking. It also prevents squeaks.
That Ice and water shield is like Franks Red Hot, I put that ***** on everything!

Ditto on Biggd's suggestion to use PT plywood with strips of peel & stick rubber between the PT and frame. When my aluminum frame dock was installed, that stuff was put between the PT posts and the frame. I do have some of that stuff left over from the house project you can have. PM me if interested.

Maybe if you treat the plywood with Franks Red Hot - will it melt any snow that falls on it? ;)

Three of the best inventions in home improvement have been silicone, spray foam, and Ice & water shield.
Maybe we can add Franks Red Hot?

You cannot possibly leave out deck\drywall screws or bungie cords from that list!

I don't like bungie cords. I've seen too many people get injured with them. I will agree on the deck screws.

Are there different grades of, or better places to buy, PT plywood? The stuff I have on there now was never quite flat and began to crack/split shortly after installation.

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I bought a couple 1/2" sheets a Middleton Building Supply in Meredith that were very good. Lumber at the big box stores tends to be crappy.

I used regular plywood on my 4 place trailer 8 years ago and have to replace it. One of my friends used marine grade on his trailer 10 years ago and it's still solid. We both used ski guides, and I put track mats down as well. The sad part is the plywood started to rot in an exposed area, under the guides and mats it still looks new. I treated it with deck stain before I installed it as well.

Thanks, all--I ended up using standard PT plywood and, would you believe it, found 3 FLAT pieces at Lowe's. We'll see how long that lasts!

One more question: I'm thinking things will last longer if I treat it, especially the sides which have the long edges of plywood exposed. I'm thinking of using caps or just loading up on treatment--the latter would be quicker, cheaper, and work for all the wood. Suggestions?

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I suppose it can’t hurt but honestly if it’s pt I don’t think u need to do a thing

...... the CHEZ NOUS trailer!
 

Springtime must be trailer time, because the Tractor Supply in Plymouth done has a big lot load full of about 20 different trailers starting with the 4 x 7', reg $699, now $629.

Last November, I done bought me a small used dump run trailer for $100 from over in Moultonborough, and danged if it don't dun cost me a good 'nother hundred dollar to fix it up what with paint, primer, plywood, rims and tires, lights and wires, corner mending plates, tongue lift, tarp cover and a good strong cable and padlock to lock it all to a tree so's it don't get stolen since it's now such a happening trailer.

Maybe more like $150 to get it right .... but who keeps track .... plus a new spare tire on a rim for $35..... so's maybe $185. You know that Walmart done beats the pants off Lowe's for trailer item stuff like paint, lights, hitches, tarps, corner angles ..... looking at the same exact stuff for a lower price.

Think I will letter this little trailer the "CHEZ NOUS" trailer, just to give a name ..... you know ..... every trailer should have a name ...... don't you think!

What'd you use for corners? I currently only have the plywood screwed to 2x4 framing, but I'm thinking I might want something sturdier.

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Walmart has a pretty good choice of corner angle-mending plates and I spray them with Rustoleum red primer before installing .... much less pricey than Lowe's ..... and attach to plywood corners.....all over.

Or, for a better repair, go with aluminum angle stock, cut to length, and use stainless screws.