# Replacing wooden floor with aluminum sheet...How thick?



## hookedontronics (Apr 9, 2015)

I am replacing the woden floor of my tracker flat bottom with alminum and am wondering how thick i should go. I was thinking 1/8" but maybe that's not necessary. Perhaps 1/16 or 3/32 would do. It would be supported by the floor ribs, some additional angle and foam sheet. 

The reason for the aluminum is for weight and additionally this will be a duck boat, so it's going to get messy and i want something that will be able to wash out with the hose after each use. 

Anyone have experience with this? What thickness did you use? 

Thanks


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## DAN (Apr 9, 2015)

I plan on doing the same thing; also with 1/8". Im still trying to find the best place to get the aluminum.


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## BigTerp (Apr 9, 2015)

I used 1/8" sheet for my floor and bow deck extension on my 1648. It is nice and sturdy with no flex. It is supported by the boats ribs and foam between the ribs. It is riveted down to the ribs as well. I also used a product called Asper Grit to give the floor and deck some traction. Really nice stuff. https://www.softsandrubber.com/aspergrit.html

Has worked nicely the past 2 years for fishing and hunting. Easily cleans up with a hose. I typically give it a good scrub with some soap and a brush after duck season to get it cleaned up for fishing season.


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## onthewater102 (Apr 9, 2015)

I think manufacturers use .100" aluminum for flooring - not much thinner than 1/8", but it's a bit cheaper. Try www.onlinemetals.com


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## hookedontronics (Apr 9, 2015)

looks like .125 it is

thanks


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## mbweimar (Apr 9, 2015)

Post some pics and tell us how it worked out please! I'm getting closer to doing the same thing in my boat.


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## tablesaw (Apr 9, 2015)

How does the price of the aluminum compare to sealed plywood?


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## onthewater102 (Apr 10, 2015)

~$15sq/ft with shipping for aluminum vs...$2 +/- sq/ft for plywood...you're paying for the permanence/durability of the aluminum.


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## flatboat (Apr 10, 2015)

if you use trim adhesive to stick thin carpet to the ribs it wont rattle ...and screws to fasten it . rivits will loosen
and ya cant re tighten them ya gotta drill em out and redo em


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## RiverBottomOutdoors (Apr 10, 2015)

I used .090.


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## Bowhunter1661 (May 4, 2015)

I'll let you guys in on a little secret. Go to your local scrap yard. They have recycled road signs. You can get a 4x8 sign for about $20-$25 by me. Plenty thick and cheap! A township by me changed to high reflective signs and scraped every single sign in the township. They had 4 semi truck loads of signs in varying sizes!


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## onthewater102 (May 5, 2015)

Good call - but aren't they steel?


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## Bowhunter1661 (May 5, 2015)

I am sure there are some that are steel, however, every signs I have ever bought from the scrap yard has been aluminum. Just Give them a call and inquire about aluminum road signs. They should be able to tell you exactly what they have.


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## sonny.barile (May 9, 2015)

I bought an "aluminum" sign, but it was made of cardboard. Said "Aluminum" in big letters.


Sorry, I have a bad sense of humor and couldn't control myself.


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## JMichael (May 10, 2015)

If you are going to fill the void between the ribs with foam, you can go a lot thinner than 1/8th and it will be plenty strong enough. I haven't put the calipers to it but the sheeting I used on my floor is probably something between 1/16 and 1/32 and it's plenty strong enough. You can see it about half way down on page 2 of my build thread (link in signature). It's been 3 years of use and the only difference from when I installed it to now is that it's not as shiny as when I installed it. 

Edit: Curiosity got the best of me so I had to go measure. It turns out that it's .060, so just under 1/16th. And that is thicker than what the manufacturer had installed in the boat when it was built (I removed that when I started my rebuild).



onthewater102 said:


> I think manufacturers use .100" aluminum for flooring - not much thinner than 1/8", but it's a bit cheaper. Try https://www.onlinemetals.com


I can't speak to all cases but in the case of my Fisher Marine boat, they used .030 for the flooring in my boat when they built it. Now they did use massive amounts of glue when they attached the carpet to that flooring so that may have added some extra stiffness. :lol:


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## onthewater102 (May 11, 2015)

was the .03 supported by foam though?


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## JMichael (May 11, 2015)

Pics and story are in my build thread.


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## rgarrido (May 14, 2015)

sonny.barile said:


> I bought an "aluminum" sign, but it was made of cardboard. Said "Aluminum" in big letters.
> LOL this made my day
> 
> Sorry, I have a bad sense of humor and couldn't control myself.


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