Bed Liner

• Use the spray on liner used to line pickup truck beds as an alternative to carpet in your boat. Before you apply it, you will have to mask the walls and bulkheads down to the level of the floor to prevent overspray from giving you non-skid walls. You can also use this type of spray-on/brush-on liner for decks, if you add a grit to it, rather than opting for a smooth surface. Bed liners have another advantage: easy maintenance. You can clean out the cabins and passageways with a hose.
  
  

Vinyl

• Choose vinyl for a low-cost alternative to most other floor coverings. We live with vinyl flooring every day in the workplace and our homes. Vinyl can be cut to fit with heavy scissors and glued in place readily. Vinyl has the advantage of being a waterproof plastic, so it will not suffer any damage when used in a marine application. Vinyl can be purchased at hardware stores, flooring stores or many discount chain stores.
  
  

Laminate "Wood" Flooring

• Employing laminate wood flooring in a marine environment depends on where the laminate is used on the boat. In areas where there is high traffic or exposure to water, the laminate wood will crumble in a relatively short period of time. Used in a low-traffic area that isn't exposed to the elements or long-term exposure to dampness, like a salon or dining area on a larger boat, it may be suitable.
  
  

Battleship Linoleum

• Linoleum has a long history of service at sea, primarily as the deck cover on battleships up into the 1940s. Real linoleum, not vinyl, is made from linseed oil, sawdust, cork and resin. It is impervious to water. It can be laid in place with marine epoxy. It comes in sheets and can be cut to fit with heavy scissors, like vinyl. Linoleum is an alternative to carpet, with a strong marine history behind it.
  
  

Wood

• Pick wood for your alternative to carpet, and you are choosing the oldest deck material. Wooden decks have been around since men built boats. Wood decks are durable and can withstand long-term exposure to water or even saturation in water. They are more expensive than some alternatives and more difficult to install than most other forms of decking. They require more tools to effect an installation. They also require regular maintenance and resurfacing and regular re-coating, and show their character as they age, something that other alternatives to boat carpet fail to do.