2120 Deck Repair

[Brent]

Parker has been building boats the same way since the 60s (formerly Parker/Souwester).
Hulls are handlaid in a mold with woven glass mat with 1" thick bottoms and all stringers are fully resin/fabric encapsulated wood with the transom, top cap and floor being marine plywood also fully glassed top and bottom with all open areas under the floor injected with foam. I've never heard of anyone having a problem with the wood and have seen many very old Parkers here in my area over 20yrs. old. I've owned 2 myself (18,21) with no issues at all. The only way a problem would result would be due to someone drilling holes in the floor, top, or transom for fasteners or mounting something and not sealing it properly.
Good heavy,solid boats period that ride well. I've toured their plant in Beaufort,NC and have observed every step in the build process and they're quality and pride in workmanship is top notch.
Don't be afraid to buy one due to the wood use, many of the custom boats made today stilll utilize the time honored tradition of glass over wood. https://www.tidalfish.com/forums/showth ... ker-Owners


Unfortunately I can’t find the video showing the build process


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[Brent]

The most important maintenance item is regular cockpit deck hatches are not leaking and damaging fuel tank


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[Drop top chicken box]

Leaky plates and hatches can definitely lead to water in compartments and should absolutely checked and maintained but knowing what i know now and having torn this thing apart that was only a very small part of the issue.

Believe me im not looking to bash Parker or any other manufacturer. Im very happy to have the boat that i have and cant wait to get it on the water. And im sure it wouldve "structurally" (fuel tank had maybe 2-3 yrs left) given me many years of use had i not dug into it but.....i did dig into it and i just want to point out the weaknesses so we all know whats going on inside and where one may want to look for problems if they choose to.

The deck pics show the thin cracks in the gelcoat that caused wet deck material full width wetness as well as 52" front to back. The fact that they glassed the underside of the deck was defininetly a huge plus. The underside glass prevented the water from moving down into the wood grid from above. These cracks were located perfectly in line with the rear bulkhead.

The pictures of the PVC coming through the string show how wet the wood at that location was, the PVC pipe directed water right into the stringer since it was cut through and not sealed afterwards. Also the pipes were not glued and the foam all along the underside of the pipe was soaked, that compartment had water in it collected at the base of the foam.

The pictures showing the glass after plywood was removed shows the absence of a fillet and the large voids present under all of the wood grid structure, there was standing water in those voids. Had the plywood been sealed on the edges and the gaps filled/ filleted i dont think any of the wetness wouldve been that bad or even occurred in the first place.

The water in and around the fuel tank & foam could've entered through the deck plates and certainly could migrate up from there into the grid but the fuel/ vent line through the stringer was just a huge problem and i believe more of a concern to me. I think this was the source of most of the wet grid, it traveled all over via the gaps once it was in there and soaked everything.

It proves one thing though, even with soaking wet wood they hold together well.