DIY aluminum boat repair

[jljjdye]

I got this boat off tbh 3 months ago. This thing is awesome. Has some leaky rivets and recently while on the lake I felt the floor get squishy. Got home, took out the floor and this is what was found. Apparently this has been a problem in the past. I plan on refurbing this boat and changing into a center console bow fishing rig. Anyone have knowledge on the best way to make these structural repairs. Plan on replacing rivets and coating inside with some sort of bedliner/waterproofer. I have access to a mig and possibly a tig welder. Thanks for any input. Will post pics of process.

[jljjdye]

Floor

[Storm]

You could remove those and replace them with T bars like the airboats have. weld everything back up and no more leaks and a stronger hull.

[txnduckhntr]

scab over some aluminum channel over the length and stitch weld them down. then put a small tack weld on the rivets...

thats how i fixed mine

[txnduckhntr]

i used aluminum channel off an old sliding patio door.....it was free

[Skullworks52]

In all honesty I would fix those cracks and sell the boat, find you an all welded boat, They are made stronger and have thicker metal. Instead of fixing this repeatedly.

[jljjdye]

Boat

[Big_gun]

Dad and I reset some leaking rivets with a sledge placed on the bottom of the boat on the leaking rivet and had someone tap the same rivet with a ball peen hammer from inside the boat... it worked... on your other issue... man putting a lot of weight on the front of that boat could be the original cause of the welds.. I think what is stated above by re-enforcing is going to have to be the plan...

[jljjdye]

Txnduckhntr got any pics of your repair. I would like an all welded boat, just not in the budget as of now. I wasn't sure welding rivets was an option. I figured I was gonna reinforce just to fix it right.

[txnduckhntr]

Txnduckhntr got any pics of your repair. I would like an all welded boat, just not in the budget as of now. I wasn't sure welding rivets was an option. I figured I was gonna reinforce just to fix it right.

no pics they are covered up with a floor now. between the braces and floor its rock solid now....for the floor i used old highway signs...

[cattlelackranch]

How old is the boat. I had G7 replace with a brand new boat that I bought second hand after checking with a local dealer. Boat was probably 6 yrs old.

[quackaholic1]

Several years ago I knocked out 12 rivets breaking ice on Lake Palestine while duck hunting. Not willing to pay the price to have spray in bed liner done I went to Auto Zone and bought a gallon of roll on bed liner. We took the boat off the trailer, prepped it, and rolled the bed liner on the bottom and half way up the sides. This stopped all the leaks and worked great in the stump field. Total cost was about $100.

[jljjdye]

Boat hull is early 90's I believe. Road signs are a cool idea. How's the liner holding up on outside? Does it affect speed much? I was contemplating putting it on inside of hull and front/rear deck. Just called a buddy and he's got an aluminum mig and tig. He said bring it out and I can use his setup

[quackaholic1]

The bed liner has held up great. No leaks at all and believe me this boat is used hard. As far affecting the speed I couldn't tell any difference. The boat has a 30hp Evinrude on it so there wasn't a lot of top end speed anyway. My major concern was if it would slide over stumps or stick to them, I was happy to find out the bed liner helped the boat slide over stumps a lot easier.

[deerslay3r]

For leaks in my boat I use liquid nails roof repair, it comes out black and flexes, seals great. I added rhino liner over the top after applying the roof sealant to all rivets and seals