Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Looking for information about the viability of redoing a pontoon deck in a combination of both carpet and woven vinyl. Cannot find much on this - all just the debate between one or the other.

Planning to use carpet inside the railings. Then vinyl would be applied on the front of the boat outside of the railings (apx 30" deep x full width of boat) and on the angled corner outside the back gate (apx 26" wide x 3-5ft for the angle).

1. Is this a good idea?
2. What about the transition seam between the two materials? If left with a raw edge, will either material fray over time? In that case, what sort of vinyl or metal capping should I use? Or can we simply ensure both are cut very straight, butted tightly together, and properly glued down? (Unfinished butt joint would look the best in my opinion and be comfortable underfoot as people walk through both gates, but the durability of this is my main concern)

Any other words of wisdom on this? Thanks for your help

I don't particularly have any wisdom, but I got words!

Just curious as to the interest in using more than one type of flooring? I went from full-boat carpet to full-boat vinyl flooring. No real difference in comfort or durability between the 2.

Thanks for the curious question. Here's why:

- We don't fish, so smelly stuff on carpet isn't really a concern for us.
- We like feeling, appearance and utility of carpet underfoot.

The vinyl holds appeal on the front and back areas outside the gates, because:
- The front is subject to lots of sand that then gets knocked off people and coolers before passing inside the gate. We boat almost exclusively on one lake that had many spots where we simply nose up to shore and hop off.
-The back corner gets lots of water flowing off kids coming back in from tubing. (The boat still has it's original late-90s carpet now and the only area where there ends up being any mossy/mildewy type stuff on the floor is in that rear area.

The back? Sure why not.

The front? Not sure, be mindfull of slipping getting on and off boat, if you transition from boat, water, land etc with wet feet. The safe mind set from no slip carpet, might have you forget its not all carpet

My boat is carpet with hard vinyl on the back swim platform. Works fine. The transition is covered by an aluminum flooring strip (transition cover?). Could probably use a vinyl one just as easily.

I'm with a previous poster though. If I had my wish the whole thing would be sea grass. Carpet is in too good a condition to justify expense though.