Effects of changing temps on wooden boats

Am I risking possible damage to a wooden boat by exposing it to the cold temps incured in winter paddling, and then bringing it into a 70 degree shop. My concern is the expansion rates of the various components. I have been doing this for some time, but I would be interested in any opinions. Thanks


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RE: Effects of changing temps on wooden boats

The short answer is  - As long as you have bedded any external fasteners, you should be fine for many seasons.

Long answer - Wood has a low coefficent of thermal expansion, so as long as there are no cracks in the glass/eopxy layer to let water in, the wood should be fine.

Same for the fiberglass and epoxy.

Metal fasteners could be a long-term problem. Nails, screws and copper stitches could eventually work themselves loose and provide a leakage path for water. That said, as long as there's a reasonable layer of glass and epoxy over the metal, it'll probably take many, many years for that to happen. Normal paddling wear and tear will get to the boat first.

One special case is metal fasteners holding hardware to the hull (like padeyes, rigging, etc.). They don't have glass and epoxy over them and will work loose fairly quickly. The answer here is to bed the fastener in something like silicone sealant. That puts a flexible layer between the fastener and the wood to absorb the expansions/contractions. It's also a waterproofing layer in case things get too loose.

Drill-fill-drill by itself only provides waterproofing. It doesn't provide thermal expansion/contraction protection.

Stay warm,

Laszlo

 

 

RE: Effects of changing temps on wooden boats

Thanks Laszlo for your very helpful answer.

 

jim

RE: Effects of changing temps on wooden boats

"............I have been doing this for some time, but I would be interested in any opinions. Thanks........"

 

Notice anything?

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