Countertop
Somehow moisture was coming down from the stanchion base located in the head (bathroom). This has been going on since well before I bought the boat, and it could've been from a leak where a vent hose connects to the stanchion and gets vented outside the boat, or because the stanchion base was not properly sealed. Over the course of a few hour-long midnight deconstruction efforts and one very long Saturday, I was able to remove the old rotted countertop, sink and faucet and teak trim and replace it all. I Ordered a 2'x4'x.5" thick piece of HDPE which is thick durable plastic board for about $80 on amazon in an off-white "seafoam" color. This stuff is preferred in marine applications because it cannot rot, it requires no staining or paint, and is easy to cut. It's similar to cutting board but is more resistant to scratches. My problem with this project is that the load to saw and drill through thick plastic uses all the drills battery very fast. It took about 5 recharges to finally cut everything up. While waiting for the drill to charge I removed the stanchion and rebedded it with butyl tape. The holes into the deck were not rotted and I sealed them up so I'm confident that the 'leak' is a consequence of the loose fitting hose clamp. I replaced the suspect hose clamp which was completely rusted. I used the cardboard box that the HDPE shipped in to make a template out of the old counter. It was all pretty straight forward. I think having a sawhorse or legit workspace would've made cutting straight edges easier. I was using my body weight and elbows and stomach to saw just off the end of my tailgate to get everything cut and drilled. That wasn't ideal.
The rot location. It felt like wet soil.
Rusty hose clamp and the backing for the stanchion base.
After removing the old counter and cleaning. This is how Catalina cut the holes, the hole on the left serves no purpose..?
The original counter was in poor shape. Obviously had moisture underneath.
Lesson for anyone with a Catalina 30. There are two screws coming through the bulkhead and into the trim. Had I known this I would not have broken this piece off. Glue and c clamps got it back together
A liveaboard's workshop. The bucket and dust pale was to collect all the plastic shavings.
The final product after installing the trim and the caulking tape around the sides. I am still installing the bungs to fill in the holes for the screws (most of which were re-drilled) and then will sand the teak surface flat, and apply varnish.
All in all I feel good about this project. It was the first time I've done something like this, and it's a pretty important piece of the boat that you have to look at every day. I may still replace the sink because two of its four bolts rusted all the way off in the last 30 years, so it can't be clamped down tight to the countertop surface. However, stainless steel sinks are not cheap. I bought a new rv/marine faucet to maintain the spray-hose application I had, however the piece was so cheaply made that the plastic in the center leaks right out of the box. However, I used that hose once or twice in the past year so maybe it's not worth re installing. These fuacets are about $20-$40 so I may just get a nicer looking regular sink faucet.