How to Repair a Boat Bridge Ladder

A broken bridge ladder can leave you in a pickle if your boat has a fly bridge -- an upper steering location reached by the bridge ladder. On commercial vessels and large recreational vessels, the ladder is metal, but on smaller vessels, they are often wood or fiberglass-over-wood. Basically two side rails, held together by the treads, or steps, secure the ladder together. This allows you to remove the damaged part of the ladder, make a replacement part and return the new part to its place with little fuss.

Things You'll Need

  • Adjustable wrench
  • Marine plywood
  • Pencil
  • Micrometer
  • Safety glasses
  • Jigsaw
  • Palm sander
  • Drill and bits
  • Marine epoxy kit
  • Paint
  • Automotive paste wax
  • Spar varnish
  • Disposable paintbrush
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Instructions

    • 1

      Remove the broken part from the bridge ladder using an adjustable wrench. Bridge ladders on recreational boats are added to the hull after the hull is assembled and are usually bolted into place using 1/4-inch bolts.

    • 2

      Lay the broken part on a sheet of 3/4-inch marine plywood. Trace around the piece with a pencil. Mark the location of all holes in the broken piece of the bridge ladder. While most elements of any recreational boat's bridge ladder are secured using 1/4-inch bolts, double check the bolt sizes. Measure the size of each hole with an inside micrometer and write the dimension next to the hole's location.

    • 3

      Don safety glasses. Cut the new piece from the marine plywood using a jigsaw. Sand the sharp edges from the new piece with a palm sander and 80-grit sandpaper, so they are rounded and smooth. Drill the necessary holes in the element, using drill bits of the size indicated next to the hole's location.

    • 4

      Mix epoxy hardener and resin according to the directions on the marine epoxy kit and cover the surface of the part with epoxy, if the boat is fiberglass. Paint if necessary, and wax the piece with automotive paste wax.

    • 5

      Install the new piece of the bridge ladder in reverse of the manner you removed the bad piece.