Reinforcing stringers on older Starcraft for floor support

I've got a 1969 Starcraft that over just started work on. One of the first things I found after ripping up the old rotted floor in it is that several of the stringers have broken. There don't appear to be any leaks, and under the boat are 3 additional stringers that run longways from front to back. As you can see in the picture the whitish colored places are where the cracks are. The previous owner used some sort of sealant like that would do anything.

Which leads me to this question, more of a solicitation of opinions... I've got a bunch of aluminum channel pieces from a construction job. It's a type of track used to mount composite paneling to ceilings. It's about 5 inches wide and shaped kind of like a top hat. My thought was to use a few of these between the original stringers as a way to reinforce the bottom and also give me a place to screw down a floor. How should I attach these to the hull? Rivet or nut/bolt/sealant combo? I don't have Rivet gun for the closed type of rivets.

That aluminum piece is cool. I'd like to of had some like that when I started my rebuild. Can you drill and rivet thru the raised ridge looking part of the stringer?

wmrmurphy said:

That aluminum piece is cool. I'd like to of had some like that when I started my rebuild. Can you drill and rivet thru the raised ridge looking part of the stringer?

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Like lay it over the top of the existing stringer? I haven't​ thought of that. I figured it would be stronger to just rivet or bolt directly to the hull. Although that it more holes in the hull.

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Solid rivets are the way to go if you can get a buddy to help. That's some nice looking material.

Solid rivets for sure ... but be AWARE of the alloy on those ribs you have, if too tough, you could cause 'hard spots' in the hull that might cause other places to break. They also look like an extrusion and typically extruded tin is tough.

I think if it were mine, I'd splice or add in sister ribs formed of 5052 alloy.

You might also call Andy at Starcraft customer support, 574-831-7735, and see if they could sell you a few lengths of ribs.