Every sailor needs to equip his or her boat with an effective, hard-wearing non-slip deck covering. The aim is to provide sufficient grip in the face of sea movements to enable navigation tasks to be carried out, or simply life on board. A safety device in its own right, it must protect sailors and their passengers from slipping or, worse still, falling overboard. Here’s an overview of the many solutions available to make stairways, outside passageways and manoeuvring areas safe: advantages and disadvantages, installation techniques and maintenance.
Anti-slip solutions
Wooden flooring (teak or cork) is particularly attractive, offering comfortable support and good soundproofing. However, wood requires a great deal of maintenance, and gluing it onto a metal or plastic structure can lead to deterioration of the supporting surface due to expansion differences, or mask corrosion problems linked to infiltration. The installation of adhesive or glue-on plates or strips, generally rubber-based, provides particularly effective grip or picot adhesion. The only drawback is often purely aesthetic. Anti-slip paints based on microbeads, sand or polymer gel create a rough layer and are suitable for all types and shapes of surface.
How do I lay a non-slip deck covering?
Regardless of the type of solution chosen (wood, adhesive strips, adhesive plates or paint), the surface to be treated must be thoroughly cleaned, dried and sanded. The aim is to give the glue or paint the optimum setting for the anti-skid to adhere, and to prevent any water infiltration between it and the structure.
Care and maintenance
Cork cannot be brushed like wood, but requires regular anti-fungal cleaning. It’s more fragile than wood and less attractive.
Wood coverings require brushing without aggressive solvents on return to port, and regular sanding followed by impregnation with a finishing product to seal cell microporosities. Adhesive plates and tapes require no specific maintenance, apart from being replaced if torn off. Paints can be washed with solvent-enriched water and, if their roughness is smoothed, can be renewed by adding a new coat.
