Jeanneau Sun Odyssey Teak deak

[Millport4]

My husband and I are about to buy a Sun Odyssey but he thinks the teak deck will be problematic, but I think it's one of the better features of it. Can anyone give me advise whether to buy a boat with or without decking?

[Terry T]

Jeff will be along shortly to advise you

[Jeff]

I don't know a vast amount about teak decks other than ours but I understand there's teak decks and there's teak decks. On a Sun Odyssey and on ours they're both teak onto plastic which is a good thing. Historically they were teak onto some other wooden beams and they actually formed the watertightness of the beck itself. In the case of yours and ours, it's purely cosmetic.

For teak onto plastic, some are 18mm thick pure teak slats with caulking between. Others can have much thinner teak or thinner teak laid on a plywood base. And some are large single pieces of teak with grooves machined in to make them appear to be lots of slats when in fact they're not.

I suspect yours is either thinner teak actual slats much less than 18mm thick - or teak laid on a bed of ply, on top of the plastic deck. Because it's not just thick, solid teak it will have a life expectancy less than that of ours, which with tweaking is only now finally beginning to need serious remedial work after 35 years of service.

I think someone once told me to expect something like 15 years out of the thinner modern options. So if yours is 10 years old expect 5 more years out of it.

Once it starts to fail it's very difficult to patch the thinner, modern installation options and so replacement is required.

Replacement of a 40 foot yacht's teak deck is likely to take some considerable length of time and you may struggle to find a yard which can do a decent job, that isn't busy for some time.

And then there's the real sting in the tail. You'd be lucky if you get change from £25,000 to £30,000.

Add this to the fact that with a teak deck you have a large weight high up on an otherwise very light boat, which is the opposite of what you want for good sailing performance.

So it's a seriously costly luxury option on your boat!

Also bare in mind that on most modern boats with teak that's not simply glued in place, when it starts to fail you'll get multiple leaks through the deck into your cabins - slowly making everything rot and be damp.

It's super nice to sit out on on a sunny day - and it looks good - and you'll be the envy of some. But if you don't want the sword of Damocles hanging over you, go for something else.

Your husband is dead right.

[Discus]

There is an old saying - " The only good teak deck is on someone else's boat".
In this case, if the boat is quite young, the deck may well be in good nick, with a life expectancy of 25 years+. Some manufacturers used a teak veneered plywood for decking which lasts about as long as a fart in a hurricane. If you like the boat, ask a surveyor to advise on the Jeanneau specific teak deck system. It will be better if it is glued rather than screwed down.

[Millport4]

Thanks everyone. In the end husband had final say, and we have bought 32.2 Sun Odyssey over a 32 Sun Oydyssey (both were same price), as 32.2 had 'non teak' deck. Although it broke my heart not to have the newer boat, I think I will warm to current one.

[Discus]

Probably a good decision. I would also argue that the 32.2 has a better hull design than the 32 that replaced it. You will no doubt be enjoying some fast passage making in the not too distant future. Congrats on your new boat!

Rob

[Jeff]

Excellent