Hot boats (burns)

Hi all. Im new to aluminum boats and a friend asked me yesterday “why buy aluminum, they get so hot they’ll scald your arms/feet”. Now that he mentioned it, I do remember getting burnt by a aluminum canoe many years ago. My boat has an alum floor and of course all the decking as well. I’m wondering how you deal with this issue.

Marine vinyl floor cover in my case. Seats are upholstered. Been out many times in hot weather. Never noticed surfaces getting too hot.

Same here, owned alum boats for almost 60 years, the only hot issues have been on small jon/ row boats with bare aluminum. My 16' Sylvan has carpet on all exposed interior alum surfaces, no hot issues at all. Got to have a covering on exposed metal surfaces when sitting in the sun. Just a note...fiberglass gets hot as well unless the surface is covered, only a wood surface is less absorbent of heat.

Thanks. No carpet or floors in my boat. It does have upholstery on the front seats. I see some adhesive backed pvc sheets intended for boat flooring. Spendy but looks nice. Not sure how durable it is or how well it stays put. I like the simplicity of this boat but in this case, may need to consider some type of flooring as both my wife and I prefer to go barefooted in boats. You can see the exposed alum hull in this pic.

Ditto marine vinyl! Sold the boat at 24-years old, and after a power washing each year … it still looked pretty darn good! Also provides superior traction when wet.

Lasts and looks SIGNIFICANTLY better than ratty old carpet would by a LONG shot!

Nautolex brand marine vinyl from Defender Marine, in CT.

Thanks, will check it out

Mine used to get hot, so I bought some marine carpet from Lowes and wrapped the bunks. Eventually, I made font and back decks and flat floors in the bottom of the boat, just for comfort. I am VERY happy with the results. It's been a number of years, and the carpet looks great, but I keep a cover on it. I think the marine-grade carpet cost something like $75 total, and it's much quieter than the vinyl or bare aluminum when fishing.

That looks nice and is probably nice on the feet. I assume it’s pretty easy to hose down when it gets grungy.

I think finish makes a big difference. Shiny things get hot in the sun. Dull or painted, not so much. Ever left a chrome wrench in the sun? Ouch!

Some people I know had concern over using Diamond Plate on my 16' Mirrocraft Deck. I had no concern. The 1/8" Diamond plate I got a hold of came out of an old Factory. 100 bucks a sheet. Used a cats paw on the grinder to take off areas of paint and scuff. In the end it was matte. The only new was a Diamond Plate Tool Box with a cushion on top.

No issues for me. Next summer I will shoot the infrared heat gun and see what I have for temps.

Hydroturf diamond pattern is a lot more durable than carpet. A dark painted aluminum surface is a lot hotter than light colored. Scuff bare aluminum with a coarse cup brush on a buffer. Great nonreflecting surface that remains touchable, and easy to clean.

You are right, the aluminum gets hot when the boat sits out in the sun. My boat sits at a dock all summer and you couldn't walk barefoot in it. So I went with the Nautolex for the floors. It held up well for the first year, but the 2nd year, the contact cement (indoor/outdoor stuff) started to let go so now my vinyl flooring is coming loose all along the edges. I think it's because the boat sits out in the weather 7 months a year. I thought about riveting down some flat aluminum stock to hold the edges but now the center is coming loose so I might need to redo it. The sides still get hot so you have to be careful.

I think it is a good idea to have the vinyl wrapped around the ply edges and stapled from underneath. That is how mine it and hopefully that will prevent any problem with the edges.

Ironhorse2022 said:

That looks nice and is probably nice on the feet. I assume it’s pretty easy to hose down when it gets grungy.

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It's very comfortable, yes. I worried about the carpet at first, but this stuff doesn't hold dirt or water much. If you leave rusty metal on it, a shot of oxalic acid (rust stain remover) takes that off instantly. I've vacuumed it a few times, but I don't think I've ever washed the carpet, and it's been about 7 years. Every once in a while, I'll forget the cover and the rain washes it clean. This light marine carpet (16 oz) doesn't hold moisture for long at all. It will be dry halfway through a summer day. I'm very happy with it.

Ironhorse2022 said:

That looks nice and is probably nice on the feet. I assume it’s pretty easy to hose down when it gets grungy.

Click to expand...

Yes, and it goes right back to looking new. Every once in a while, I will vacuum and then leave the cover off before a good rain. The sun dries it pretty fast. Even fish blood vanishes after awhile, but I try to flip keepers directly in the cooler if possible. I'm super happy with the carpet. It really makes the boat comfortable. We almost never wear shoes in the summertime.

I've had vinyl flooring in boats before, and it's like having a fiberglass floor. Great in a self-bailing center console, especially if you catch a lot of bloody fish like bluefish and jacks. but not very comfortable in this kind of boat the way I use it.

Dale makes a point about carpet getting ratty after time. Two ways to prevent this. 1) use marine carpet and 2) keep it out of the sun except when using it. The sun is what damages it, not use. If you can't or don't want to keep it covered, you may be better to go with vinyl or something else.

To cover, I run a 2x4x16' from my bow seat to the top of my motor, and then put a cheap tarp over it. Keeps it clean and dry, and I replace the tarp about once a year for maybe $15 from Harbor Freight. Cheap and effective, but maybe not great looking.