Aluminum floor question

[USKEW]

I am leaning towards flooring my boat with aluminum with closed cell foam beneath. Did anyone else have concerns with screwing the aluminum sheet goods to the aluminum ribs? (From a vibration standpoint).

I found a website that sells rubber sheets or rolls fairly cheap and had the idea of rolling out thin 1/32 rubber down across all the floor before screwing down the aluminum. Good idea? Does anyone see any problems this could present?

 

[longshot]

The ribs are fastened right to the floor of the boat with no rubber

 

[PSG-1]

I riveted mine. That's what the factory does, too.

 

[smackdaddy53]

Not sure about the rubber, I am thinking about running a bead of silicone over all the ribs and letting it cure before riveting the aluminum down. This way there is no vibration, the silicone will not keep you from removing the sheets and the rivets keep dissimilar metal corrosion.

 

[lucescoflathead]

I riveted mine to the floor and covered it with diamond tread rubber flooring. It doesn't rattle.

 

[PSG-1]

Mine doesn't rattle, either, and I didn't put down any rubber or silicone beforehand.

If you do run a bead of silicone, make sure it's thin enough that it doesn't interfere with a proper fit and being able to correctly buck the rivets, or it WILL rattle then.

 

[USKEW]

I had assumed I would use SS self tapping screw so that I could take it back out if I ever needed to.....and because I have no experience with rivets. People seem to recommend the rivets over the screws. Are they easy? What if you have to remove? Would they a be a little more trouble then?

 

[FerrisBueller]

Another option if you're at all worried about any vibration would be to put down some of that weather sealant foam strips with the tape on one side along the ribs.

 

[PSG-1]

USKEW » Today, 10:13[/url]"]I had assumed I would use SS self tapping screw so that I could take it back out if I ever needed to.....and because I have no experience with rivets. People seem to recommend the rivets over the screws. Are they easy? What if you have to remove? Would they a be a little more trouble then?

Rivets are very easy to install. I recommend 3/16" size. To remove, you will need to use a 3/16 drill bit and drill them out. Another option is to install rivet nuts, and use stainless machine screws.

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

Recommend rivets over screws.