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Pastida@1

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3 hours ago, Pastida@1 said:

I am going to put the grooves crossways as it's a nicer look.  I'm not bothered about a trim every 4ft though. I'm more interested if mdf is a suitable material to use.  

On a modern, dry, well ventilated boat MDF ceilings should be fine. Be sure to seal the reverse side prior to fixing it. 

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I've used the blue water resistant bead and butt mdf in several domestic bathrooms and it's fine. BTW you can also order the stuff with the grooves along the long length or across it if that helps. 

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why would anyone use MDF ceilings on a brand new boat?  granted, MDF on the ceiling is unlikely to get damp, but saving a few bob and a few hours on the ceiling may be something you regret for the next 10 years when you see other folks' genuine tongue and groove ceilings.  

mind you, I was shocked to see plasterboard being used universally in houses; when my Dad built his own house in the 50's he brought in tradesmen to do the plumbing, electrics, roof tiling and plastering.  the plastering was a work of art and a pleasure to behold.  not a square inch of plasterboard anywhere.

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It's always been considered sacrilegious to consider using MDF on a boat but I'm not quite sure why.  I was forced into using it once simply because I couldn't find a source of decent 18mm ply at the time and I was in a hurry.  For the price of MDF I thought at least I can do a temporary fix and I'll do it "properly" at a later stage.  But it's worked out so well I doubt I'll bother.  The main issue with MDF is if you get it at all wet whilst working on it and before you have sealed it, it will quickly deteriorate.  But I've got a couple of partitions/shelves that are regularly exposed to rain/water and I have sealed one with Owatrol, the other with Ronseal Woodstain as Mr Hill suggests and there is no sign of swelling etc.  One of the partitions is between the engine bay and back cabin and interestingly when I weighed the MDF against the old ply panel panel MDF was heavier so it should be better at soundproofng as well.  It is cheap and very easy to work, so I'm going to carry on experimenting with it.

As regards plasterboard, I've never heard anyone reminiscing fondly about the days of lath and plaster, once it has been skimmed you can't tell whether a wall/ceiling is one or the other. I wouldn't put this in the same bucket as say uPVC windows where I think there is an aesthetic case to answer, or copper pipe vs plastic where there are technical considerations.   Mind you, I still find it puzzling why even in the modern day it still seems to take just as long to build a house as it did in the 1950's...     

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7 minutes ago, Neil2 said:

I still find it puzzling why even in the modern day it still seems to take just as long to build a house as it did in the 1950's...     

Not round our way it doesn't. There are several new building projects going on at present and it appears they can build a whole row from start to finish in about 6 weeks. Obviously high quality houses that require a lot of interior detail take longer but a bog standard run of the mill house seems to take very little time at all. 

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1 minute ago, WotEver said:

Not round our way it doesn't. There are several new building projects going on at present and it appears they can build a whole row from start to finish in about 6 weeks

Then spend the next two years trying to get them to fix all the problems :)

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6 hours ago, rusty69 said:

Then spend the next two years trying to get them to fix all the problems :)

The liberal use of the term "practical completion" explains the apparent rapidity of modern construction, and the seemingly endless process of ironing out "snags".  When I was involved in the contracting world my view was that it's either finished or it isn't but builders insist on using the term practically complete so they can get paid for doing half a job.

You don't often hear of boats being "practically" complete..

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3 hours ago, Neil2 said:

The liberal use of the term "practical completion" explains the apparent rapidity of modern construction, and the seemingly endless process of ironing out "snags".  When I was involved in the contracting world my view was that it's either finished or it isn't but builders insist on using the term practically complete so they can get paid for doing half a job.

 

Practical (or substantial) completion is usually the point where the cumulative certified value of the contractor's payment certificate reaches 90% of the contract sum (100% less the 10% retention money) and the maintenance period starts.  Once the snags have been completed and at or after the end of the maintenance period, the remaining 10% retention is paid.  Worked for me as contractor, resident engineer, and then client, for 50 years. 

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Yup,

That's how we used to do it.

Plus we would agree a date with the client when final completion was to be completed by, usually 1-3 months after practical completion, depending upon the complexity of the project.

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I used green water-resistant MDF to make a tiled counter in my bathroom 9 years ago. I had a 4' x 2' piece left over and had nowhere to put it so it was left outside on the pontoon in all weathers. About 6 months later a neighbour asked if he could have it to make something. It had yellowed a bit in the light but it was still fine. 

 

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