Carpets in boats

[Seevee]

This pertains to yachts or boats with a salon......


Do you like carpet? Would you buy one that had carpet with the intent of keeping it?


Or do you like other flooring?


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Reason for this post is that of the boats I've been shopping for, the majority of them have carpet in the salon, and a few had it recently installed. So, curious what other folks think.


I've been pretty much against carpet, over a nice wood or vinyl floor....and use a throw rug instead.

 

[rslifkin]

I have carpet everywhere except the galley and heads. I love/hate it. It's a pain to keep clean, damn near impossible to keep it looking good after a few years (unless it's dark colored). But it's nice to walk on and it allows extra (rarely used) access hatches to be hidden and only seen when the carpet is peeled back, rather than having to be visible and nicely finished.

That said, I frequently contemplate getting rid of the carpet.

 

[Lepke]

I have wall to wall carpet on 2 decks. It's not an issue. At sea or in rainy weather I use runners. Carpeting helps blanket engineroom noise and it makes the boat more comfortable, especially winter. I have a carpet cleaner I keep on the boat.

 

[tiltrider1]

I have a mix. Carpet in the staterooms hardwood in the bathrooms, galley, saloon.

I have no issues with Carpet but I do replace it every 3 to 4 years.

 

[Ka_sea_ta]

carpet get dirty, traps odors, can never really get it clean, and my wife hates it. use throw rugs or runners if you want

 

[Lou_tribal]

I have carpet all over, walls, floors, ceiling everywhere, and I cannot wait to get rid of all and every inch of it.
Easy to stain, hard to clean, hard for people that have allergies like my wife, easily catch odors, easily catch moisture.
Only good thing for me is that it is lowering noise, but you can achieve the same with cork or foam under wood. I don't even like to walk on it, neither in my boat nor in my house where I replaced everywhere with hardwood.

I guess that like anything else it is a matter of personal preference.

L

 

[O C Diver]

I have nice wood floors, so naturally I put carpet on it to protect them. The carpet is runners and area carpets in high traffic spots. Nothing holding them down, so easy to take out and clean without damaging or wetting the floor underneath. Less than a boat unit to have them custom cut and the edges nicely finished. If they last through my ownership, I might replace them in preparation for selling.

Ted

 

[psneeld]

Really depends on how you use a boat....

Like a living room at home?

Or a hunting cabin?

If something in between....guess the outcomes.

On my 3rd live aboard. 2 with wood decks with throw rugs...one with carpet and kids. The carpet with kids and loads of fishing was not ideal. But now might be OK.....

Living aboard and constantly using just a small salon will wear/dirty carpet fast.

 

[Insequent]

I removed wall-to-wall carpet in the salon as it made getting to hatches a pain. But left it in the staterooms. In the salon I use area rugs. I put some of the carpet in the ER, which is a crawl-in space, and love it there.

 

[AusCan]

I have carpet and I hate it. My project list has included re-covering the floors with wood/cork/vinyl -anything but carpet but it has yet to happen.

I don't understand having carpet covering nice wood. To me, it's a bit like having a nice leather couch covered with plastic so it doesn't get worn. It's meant to be used.

 

[Comodave]

We always had carpet in previous boats and thought we liked it until we bought our current boat. It has teak and holly decks and we love them because they are so easy to keep clean. I might buy a boat with carpet but now I would probably replace it with hardwood.

 

[rsn48]

I have removable wall to wall in sections, for the V birth & galley, saloon and dinette. I like the carpet in during the winter colder climes, I find the deck can be cold to the feet. In the spring - fall, I take the carpet out.

 

[jimdavi]

Indoor/outdoor runners with non slip pads. Easy to clean and protects high traffic areas.

 

[FF]

AS a 20+ year round liveaboard, in winter bathroom carpets were laid out in pilot house and visitor areas.

Cut to trim , does not need edging , does not unravel.

The mud and slush was washed away in a large commercial washing machine every month as needed.

The guest traffic was intense every time the electric was down for a couple of days , since we had heat.

Dickinson oil range.

Wet or frozen carpet does dry out ,overnight , if hung on a line.

 

[jleonard]

We had carpet in the salon of our old 34 Mainship I. It held up surprisingly well for the 14 years we owned the boat. It was industrial grade and only faded just below the slider curtain.
It had regular foam padding under the side sections and the center strip was bound and had a rubber padding so it could be rolled up for engine access.

 

[Keysdisease]

Carpet. The + outweigh the - for me

 

[rslifkin]

As a note on how my carpets are installed, the engine hatch is cut and trimmed through the carpet. The padding is stapled down (some kind of fiber padding), so it's cut around the hidden hatches. The carpet is held down by tack strips at the edges, so it can be peeled back to access those extra hatches.

 

[ScottC]

I have carpet everywhere except the galley and heads. I love/hate it. It's a pain to keep clean, damn near impossible to keep it looking good after a few years (unless it's dark colored). But it's nice to walk on and it allows extra (rarely used) access hatches to be hidden and only seen when the carpet is peeled back, rather than having to be visible and nicely finished.

That said, I frequently contemplate getting rid of the carpet.

+1

 

[bayview]

Carpet stops furniture from sliding around in a seaway

 

[rslifkin]

Carpet stops furniture from sliding around in a seaway

I've had that thought. I do have a couple of items I'd have to find a securing method for if I ditch the carpet.

 

[Seevee]

Interesting, and thanks for the posts....


Seems like the majority would rather not have carpet, and I'm in that camp.
However, I do like it in the state rooms... just comfy on the feet for those cold mornings. But, that's what slippers were made for.


In the salon, considering getting rid of it, but looks like a bigger job that I thought.... we'll see.


The carpet does have some insulation value, so what insulation board would be appropriate to use with a vinyl? Needs to be light weight, strong and good sound and noise deadening.

 

[ScottC]

One other aspect of this...
Being based in northern Europe, we think it's nice to have the "warmth" of the carpet most of the time. I see you are in St. Pete, Seevee and if I were based there, I would prefer a tile or terrazzo floor in my house for the coolness. Likewise, a wood floor on my boat.

 

[Codger2]

I've had both since 1995. Real teak & holly and higher grade carpet. They both have their place but on the larger boats I like carpet the best! Exra sound proofing, comfortable on feet, no noise when walking on it, look great!

 

[Keysdisease]

I so what insulation board would be appropriate to use with a vinyl? Needs to be light weight, strong and good sound and noise deadening.

Under a vinyl floor for noise: mass loaded vinyl. For under carpet an acoustic carpet underlayment provides good noise insulation and a very plush feel underfoot.

Either will bring 1lb sq ft of weight minimum, hard to get noise reduction without mass

Fact: nothing works better than carpet for noise

 

[Codger2]

Fact: nothing works better than carpet for noise

+1

 

[ScottC]

+1

+111 ! The carpet & padding makes a REAL difference with engine noise.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Carpet is quiet to walk on?
Who cares? We have painted floors. Easy to clean and look fine. The last time I painted I choose a bit lighter green. Next time I’ll go back to the darker shade.
People think carpet looks “fancy”. Many like to appear fancy. I thought carpet was a 70’s thing.
We have no need for fancy.

 

[ScottC]

The trick is getting carpet approximating the color of dirt. Our boat originally came with very, very light beige carpets. I had to remove them and have them professionally cleaned every season so they didn't look like sh*t. Replacement carpets are a medium-dark brown peppered liberally with light beige specs. Gives the impression ground seashells and dark sand. Anyway, I don't need to clean them so often for aesthetic purposes.

 

[FlyWright]

Under a vinyl floor for noise: mass loaded vinyl. For under carpet an acoustic carpet underlayment provides good noise insulation and a very plush feel underfoot.

Either will bring 1lb sq ft of weight minimum, hard to get noise reduction without mass

Fact: nothing works better than carpet for noise

I have fitted berber carpet throughout the boat with Soundown accoustic underlayment carpet pad and comfortable oriental rugs on top. I find the soft feel and sound deadening are HUGE benefits and would not change a thing. Keeping them clean, even while fishing and recreating, has not been a problem.

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s32/soundown-carpet-underlayment-installation-38420.html

 

[Lollygag1]

Previous owner had carpet in pilot house. I figured it would be wet and a pain to clean so removed it. We use a couple of runners which work well.

I think it depends on the type of boat and boating that is done.