Advice please- rot!

[magnetman]

The ethanol fire will be putting a lot of moisture into the cabin.

 

It is difficult to keep a boat dry without some sort of flued heating appliance. 

 

Wood, coal, diesel or possible blown air gas heating. 

[Tonka]

4 minutes ago, Bee said:

All the rotten stuff must come out and this is a depressing and horrible job as damp and rot tend to spread but it is the only way I'm afraid. If you can stop the water getting in then you will not have dry or wet rot spreading disastorously as they both need damp to grow although a good coat of Cuprinol or something over any dodgy looking old bits and new wood is very sensible, paint is not totally useless but very nearly so. In my opinion showers on a boat are a disaster, spend the money on ever stronger deodorant and find a friend with a house and use theirs. Try to make sure wood and ply never touch the bottom of the boat, it will soak up any damp. You do not need expensive marine ply, nor should you use places like B&Q to get timber, you can get better, cheaper, rotproofed 'Tanalised' timber from a timber yard, roofing supplier or a fencing supplier. Good luck, you are certainly not alone with these problems.

Linseed oil paint is best as it is breathable

[Bacchus]

I have had good results with Sadolin Superdec which is, I believe, a breathable acrylic. I used it in my camper conversion (including in the shower area) and have used it on a wooden house where it has stayed good for a number of years; it's a bit flaky in the bits which get strong sunshine, but the shaded bits are as good as new, and there is no evidence of rot in the cladding (which wasn't the case when I removed the previous "exterior gloss")