Cork for boats

[PeterK]

Scott asked about cork for boat use on another thread. IMHO, cork would be excellent for interior use. There are quite a few tile and plank options on the market. They can be backed or unbacked, finished or unfinished. Each option has it own +s and -s.

For those who do not know, cork is made from the bark of trees predominantly grown in Portugal. It has excellent sound and thermal insulation properties. It will withstand foot traffic very well and is very comfortable underfoot. It has great resiliency (the ability to recover from load crush) but can gouge and permanently indent somewhat easily.

Installation is not difficult if the installation directives are carefully followed. Adhesive for each manufacturer vary greatly in properties and can be tricky. As with wood products, it is critical the material is a equilibrium moisture content when installed, meaning acclimated to the intended use environmental condition (temperature and humidity levels it will live in). The issue wioth cork is that the meters normally used to determine moisture content for wood do not work well on cork. A specific meter (which I do not own) is needed. I never spend the money for one as cork is a niche product that represents a very small market segment. In over 15 years of looking at floor issues, I have only been commissioned to assess 3 of them.

Although environmental consideration are probable not too high on many of our lists (we would all own blow boats if it did!), cork is IMHO among the most renewable products that can be used for flooring (wool and domestic managed forestry wood being the other two. Bamboo is not!).

If there is interest in more info, I can contact a friend who is the foremost cork expert in the states and get his thoughts.

A last note, the sailboat in the slip next to mine has a cork deck. I'll snap a photo or two tomorrow and post them. It looks okay from a distance but not so good up close. The owner told me it is very slip resistant. I'll ask him but I recall he said he has not applied any type of finish to it and it was on the boat when he bought it.

 

[Boatsb]

So using the wine corks and a hot glue gun is ok?

It seems to look interesting and just FYI NOT CHEAP.

 

[Boatsb]

Sorry i can't help myself.

What about lining the er with corks to reduce sound and add flotation?

I do like drinking good red wine.

 

[Dreamboat]

I haven't used cork flooring in the boat yet, but I have used it extensively in my cottage, which is not heated during the week in winter time, so it goes through quite a temperature as well as humidity variation on weekends when we heat the cottage and I've had no issues with it at all for the last 4 years in terms of durability or warping. It also feels good on the feet. It's not expensive either (only about $4.00/sf up here).
Given that experience with it, I'm considering using it for parts of the boat besides the Amtico I'm going to put in.
Gary

 

[ronparise]

Cork is on the short list for my boat. when I get to it. I have way to much going on in the engine room before I get to the pretty stuff.

 

[saltshaker]

We recently looked at a house with cork flooring in the kitchen. Floor was around 6 years old and looked like new. I've been thinking about it for kitchen use but have heard it's not as durable and it does wear. What's the normal service life for this type of use?

 

[madhatter1]

I have had a cork floor in my bar room for 7 years. It is floating and no additional finish was put on. Still looks great. I just put a cork floor in my salon. It was a miserable job as the glue thickness made the interlocking joints crazy hard to get lined up. Took 10 hours in my 34.

I put 3 coats of poly on it to seal it but the weak point is the edges. Got some rain in the entry before I sealed edges and I now have a raised area forever. All edges are now sealed.

It looks awesome and cuts down on engine noise by a huge amount, especially turbo noise.

 

[Boatsb]

We have a kid and a dog. On the boat would the water and sand be an issue? I would have to seal it before I let them aboard.

 

[madhatter1]

I went with cork as I figure it would stand up to all the wet bathing suit drips better than wood. Didn't like the vinyl look so I rolled the dice. Time will tell. Like I said the edges all need to be sealed. The poly coats seal where the planks join together. Sand will not be an issue as we will recoat the floor every year to keep it fresh and sealed.

Also before I did the install I covered the engines with moving blankets and tacked them up around the opening. As I installed the floor I drew in the hatch lines. Once all was installed I took a skillsaw with the blade depth set just over the thickness of the flooring and cut the lines. This way I did not need any trim around hatches and the look is nice. I did make one screw up with the saw but that spot is under an area rug.

The moving blankets kept 95% of the sawdust out of the engine room.

 

[ronparise]

I went with cork as I figure it would stand up to all the wet bathing suit drips better than wood. Didn't like the vinyl look so I rolled the dice. Time will tell. Like I said the edges all need to be sealed. The poly coats seal where the planks join together. Sand will not be an issue as we will recoat the floor every year to keep it fresh and sealed.

Also before I did the install I covered the engines with moving blankets and tacked them up around the opening. As I installed the floor I drew in the hatch lines. Once all was installed I took a skillsaw with the blade depth set just over the thickness of the flooring and cut the lines. This way I did not need any trim around hatches and the look is nice. I did make one screw up with the saw but that spot is under an area rug.

The moving blankets kept 95% of the sawdust out of the engine room.

Do you have any pictures?

 

[MikeP]

Just curious, you said,

"cork is IMHO among the most renewable products that can be used for flooring (wool and domestic managed forestry wood being the other two. Bamboo is not!"

I was under the impression that bamboo is one of the most renewable products around. It's not?

It's also really a PITA to push your way through with a rucksack and rifle...

 

[madhatter1]

Do you have any pictures?

Sure, I just need to be schooled on how to upload them!

 

[Avenger]

http://www.samsmarine.com/forums/showthread.php?25870-up-loading-photos-to-the-this-site

 

[madhatter1]

 

[madhatter1]

Thanks Scrod!

 

[PeterK]

Cork on the sailboat deck pics:

 

[PeterK]

MikeP: bamboo has several issues. I should explain first for those who may not know, bamboo is actually a grass. By far the largest producer is China and they have cultivated it as a monoculture. Monoculture growth is not good for any plant. Although it does grow fast, most are not grown for the proper time which is about 8 years. The processing frequently utilizes formaldehyde which those following the LL fiasco know is not a very friendly chemical, good for keeping dead things but not so good for live things.

Add in impact of shipping it from half way around the world, the alternatives stack up very well.

The last issue with bamboo is it really, really hates large environmental swings. It might be fine for a southern boat that does not use AC but big humidity swings, i.e. changes in moisture content affects it pretty dramatically. All bamboo I have looked at with issues was in Minnesota, which surprisingly has the greatest indoor relative humidity changes in the country.

 

[bigbill]

the original flooring in "knit wits" was cork if i remember correctly