Teakwood Deck Restoration

Battleship wooden decks followed a long navy tradition, and the steel decks of the USS New Jersey were overlaid with teakwood planks. Her original teakwood deck was laid in 1943 for World War II, and the deck was repaired during each of her four commissions. Teakwood was used for its insulation properties, its resistance to rot, its better traction than wet steel, and because it does not splinter on impact from incoming projectiles. Teak planks were screwed tightly to the deck with welded bolts, and a rubberized caulk-like material was placed between each plank to keep water from seeping underneath and rotting the wood from below. After the caulk dried, the entire deck was sanded smooth. After the USS New Jersey was decommissioned in 1991, little work was done on the teakwood decks, and the decks of the New Jersey are now rotting away. To preserve this long-standing navy tradition, new teakwood planks are being installed in a historically accurate manner over newly constructed steel decks that have also deteriorated, with funding support from the Fred J. Brotherton Charitable Foundation and the New Jersey Historic Trust.

Camden, New Jersey · United States