Duragrid flooring for boats

[Fishtails]

I've pretty much convinced myself to give this flooring system a try in my boat. We have the slippery when wet syndrome and it gets hazardous in times of total mayhem. Add some fish blood and slime and it's an accident waiting to happen. It would be just terrible if someone would slip and break something......like a fishing rod !! :evil: I recall having one fishing buddy go belly up when we were in travel mode. We hit a big wave and his feet came out from under him. Of all my options, I'm liking these a lot. Anyone have any experience with this type of flooring?

http://www.duragrid.com/marine.html

Now for the big question....what pattern would you purchase?? There are a few patterns to choose from and I can't decide? Any thoughts?

[cdelong]

Going back to my younger days working in restaurants..... these don't really prevent slips when they get wet.

You need something like the stuff they put on trailer fenders and steps with a little "bite".

How about a Rhino Bed!!

[Fishtails]

According to the Duragrid website they do, but I have no experience with them so I'm only going off what they say......

DuraGrid® interlocking floor tiles simply ‘snap’ together to create virtually any size free-draining, slip resistant surface. No Tools!

[Mick]

We tried them on the boat I worked on in high school, and I believe he went back to the gritty type floor coating. They do work great in the boat used on the floor at the sides just to keep stuff up off of the floor so they aren't wet all the time though. Hope this helps.- Mick

[borderline 350]

Dear Ft,

Looks like a great product. Of course you should be able to fasten this stuff to the floor but be sure to make it removable for daily wash downs. I keep the cooler on the stern, lift all net handles to close the bag/net hoop and put the fish directly in the cooler. Bringing fish into the boat results in downtime and lost catch rate! It's fine for Sport Fisherman to bring a fish into the boat, but I have taken hooks out of everyone including myself from the violent action of a small salmonid thrashing on the deck! or falling on loose lures that come out of the fish! Anything you can do to improve footing is great. Rough days on the pond will quickly tell you that footwear and decks work or not. I would stay away from any "Rhino" coatings. Various things will stain these coatings. If you have ever brought an american eel to net or in your boat, you will understand the true meaning of "terrible slime" their slime will actually attack a nylon net and destroy it within 24 hrs. I vote for your deck product!!

Jet Boat Bill

[Fishtails]

My biggest problen isn't the fiberglass, but the large teak panel that runs down the center of the floor covering the gas tank. I could't paint that, so grit paints won't really help me. That's why I thought these were pretty cool. I forgot to mention that you can view the various styles, etc. by clicking on the "order now" button.

I just measured the floor and I will be placing my order in the next day or two.

Bill, your right about the fish on the floor. It's not a standard practice of ours, but I must admit it happens more than it should. Maybe that will be something to work on this season. We keep the cooler on the swim platform and if there is alot going on at the time, it's not always that easy to get the fish right into the cooler.

[reeltime]

I have worked on the back of a boat that has something very similar if not the same product on the floor. While it helps keep the scuffing from the cooler down it can be a very dangerous product as well since its not fastened down.

several times while leaning out to net a fish while standing on this stuff it has slipped on the floor, luckily no one has taken a swim yet.

I know from personal experience with this stuff you would never see it in my boat.

[Fishtails]

Thanks for the heads up Lee. I'll keep that in mind when I install it. It will be locked in from one side to the other, so I don't see how that would be a problem? Sounds as though it was not correctly installed on the boat you mentioned.

I like the fact that it can be removed if I decide it's not right for me. I'm giving it a try, so I will give an honest report on it this spring.

[reeltime]

Rod,

good luck with this stuff, actually side to side was not the issue it was sliding

backwards as it was not covering the entire floor. if you have it covering the entire floor where all sides are against something to keep it in place it might be ok.

tight lines and screamin drags

[Fishtails]

Thanks Lee. I'm guessing that other boat sould have used these edging strips to secure the back end.

http://www.duragrid.com/acc.html

[jimski2]

The best deck material is a good marine grade carpet. Even in freezing weather it stops slipping. To keep it clean, carry a bottle of laundry detergent and a 5 gallon bucket. Carpet glued to the sole of your waders will stop slipping on the slimiest of rocks.

[FX]

Second the carpet. I've always carried a spray bottle of dollar store cleaner (Awesome) cleans blood and other spots easily. Like the carpet on wader sole tip - will be trying that one!

Shawn

[J.D.]

The same types of mats are used in machine shops.... they cushion the floor but still get slippery. How about a piece of marine carpet cut to fit, bound around the edges and snapped to the floor in multiple spots?? Remove it to wash it on the driveway or leave it out for "non fishing" occasions..

Just my .02 Jim

[reeltime]

Rod,

this mat had that edge border piece on it, it looks like the exact same stuff as on the website. I guess in the right situation it would be fine but I know that if its not against something on all 4 sides or locked down somehow it does slide and its really bad on a wet floor. If it had some type of rubber grips on the bottom it might be ok.

[FISHINMAN]

Rod I agree with JD, I work in a kitchen and they slide all over with any water on them. I redid my boat floor last winter and used vinyl flooring and it's not slippery at all and if you use 3D glue it's simple to put down. here's the link for the company I used it was inexpensive and they shipped it right away it comes in I think 3 different widths many colors and you can buy it by the foot

http://www.defender.com/productsearchresult.jsp

Here's something else that I think Muskybob suggested

http://www.durabakcompany.com/google-durabak.htm

Good luck

[Fishtails]

Thanks Guys.....I really wanted this flooring to work, but with all the negative feedback I guess I better keep looking into alternatives. They do make one tile that is anti slip for places like public showers and boats. If I did the entire floor It should be good, but that's a lot of dough to shell out when I'm hearing all negative feedback.

You guys use vinyl and carpet on fiberglass floors? I would have thought they would stay moist for extended periods (esp. carpet) and maybe that wouldn't be so good in the long term? Am I wrong with that thought??

I liked the drainage of the grid mats, but I can't have them moving around. That just wouldn't be cool at all.

[FISHINMAN]

Rod, the vinyl is glued right to the aluminum in my boat so I can't speak for the "glass" guys. I know it was 14 years before it needed replacing even on the gas tank that was covered with a piece of 3/4 in wood under the metal. It unlike Ray K. cleans up great with some some soap and water :shock:

[keithg]

if its not to late, check out the mats inc. web site. several styles to pick from. also would suggest rubber flooring. much less slippery when wet, doesn't get brittle when cold like vinyl, and holds up to direct sunlight better.also has natural anti-microbial properties. microbes are those little organisms that cause odors.mats inc. products are often cheaper at your local floorcovering dealor than on-line.Johnsonite,Burke-Mercer (candian co.), and estrie all make similar products of rubber as well.

[Gill-T]

I have a Bayliner trophy that I purchased used four years ago. The boat came with marine carpet installed over textured fiberglass. The carpet was "non-slip" as intended, however, the carpet smelled of fish by June. My wife was not pleased! I also had to fight the adhesive failing along the edges over time. This made the boat look unkept. I decided to pull up the carpeting over the summer. WHAT A PAIN IN THE ARSE!!! The adhesive is very tenacious to say the least. Each little anti-slip groove in the fiberglass had to instrumented for gross adhesive removal, followed by stinky Acetone wiping. I am going to apply a non-skid paint this spring. DON'T put carpet over fiberglass if you ever intend to sell the boat. I think it will decrease the value of the boat, and if you ever had to replace the carpet.....a pain in the arse is in your future. On the interlocking matts...I looked at those to. My main concern is they will still be slippery when wet, and they will scratch the floor gel coat through micromovement. You certainly don't want to cover any floor hatches you need to store stuff in either. You could try just using a wet towel where people stand to rig or fight fish. Dollar store towels. When you net a fish, just place the fish on the wet towel and the slime stays off the fiberglass. Hang the towel over the side, ring and replace if needed.