This simple DIY will stabilize your tinnie

As he got older, a friend of mine found it very difficult to stand upright safely in his tinnie, with its curved and often slippery hull. Luckily, it’s easy to build a removable deck you can insert with a few 5/4 x 6 pressure-treated boards.

illustration of a dog in an aluminum boat, tinnie, with a deck built into the middle — Illustration by Jacques Perrault

Each section between the benches requires three stringers cut to length. Position the stringers on their sides—with the outer ones angled to follow the taper of the hull of your tinnie. Cut the first and last deck boards to length, angling the ends to match the hull. Screw these to the stringers with 1½” deck screws. Cut the boards to fill in the deck, and then screw them to the stringers. Make sure to leave gaps for drainage. If you build a deck between the back bench and the transom, it’s important to remember to leave room to access the drain plug.

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