blisters

[anger]

first post here.<br />will make this short.<br />bought a new boat with a terrible paint job.<br />we are past the legal aspect, and now it is my problem.<br />how long can i run a boat that has blisters, with some broke open, about the size of a dime. i know i have to repaint, but want to us this boat for 6 months or so and put it in the shop this winter.i know they can absorb water, and i have put 3m 5200 on them to prevent this.is this just looks or will creat structual problem?<br />thank you<br />anger

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: blisters

Welcome to a wealth of knowledge!!!!!! Are the blisters in the paint or in the fiberglass???What kind and year is the boat???If there is blistering below the water line it should be attended to ASAP.Above the water line the 5200 will be good enough until the end of the season.Paint is not too common on most boats,are you sure it is paint???Charlie

 

[anger]

Re: blisters

sorry, blisters are in the gel coat,the fiberglass looks ok.<br />just real poor workmanship.the boat is a southshore,26' made in texas.<br />love the boat, as it handles well and runs in spit(tunnel hull)<br />been taking it offshore and it performs great.<br />just had to take it after 6 months delay in delivery,tons of problem, which i have already corrected.the only thing left to fix is the gel coat and really just want to use it this summer as i have waited too long to get my dream boat.<br />what is the down side of continuing to use the boat with the blisters starting to crack?<br />we are talking about appx.10 blisters the size of a dime, maybe a nickel.<br />also the boat bottom is being scrathed by loading and unloading, and i assume the bunks on the trailer need adjustment.<br />i have already decided to repaint the entire boat this winter, as everthing else has been repaired.<br />you would think for 50k, it would have been right from the beginning.<br />anger

 

[LubeDude]

Re: blisters

They would still own it if it were me. If you are having problems now, how is it going to look next year. If the Gell is failing, it will continue to fail even afer you paint or regel.

 

[DJ]

Re: blisters

anger,<br /><br />What lubedude said.<br /><br />It's only going to get worse. You will be chasing blisters as long as you own it.

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: blisters

After you are certain of the bunk adjustment ,cover the bunks in carpet to save your hull.The gelcoat is an outer layer so if you are just looking to get by for the season you can by filling them.If you have any that still need filling I would not use 5200 because it will be h3ll to get it off.Use any kind of MARINE gelcoat repair or blister repair kit.Painting a new boat is an expensive proposition,its a damn shame!!!I wont ask about the legal aspect of it ,Im sure you are royally pissed!! Charlie

 

[anger]

Re: blisters

pasted pissed, charlie!<br />yea, attorney was called. of course, i paid cash up front, so i am screwed.<br />the guy has no money to go after.<br />again, i am passed that stage.painter, the best of the best, said he could fix and repaint for appx. 15k i did get referances on the painter and he is highly recommended, and almost three month waiting list, and twice the price of most. but the boat is great, the builder just can't paint!<br />i had him build his first two tone paint job and that is what screwed him up. the rest of the boat was done well, except the clean up.absolutly fithy when picked up. of corse, with legal action being taken, we were not exactly friendly.<br />now i am a little scared. do not want to paint if this is not going to solve the problem. was told by both painters that the problems were more cosmetic the anything, but a few blisters are present. advise?<br />anger

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: blisters

Paint will not solve the problem if the problem is in the gelcoat.When having a boat professionally painted even the painter will tell you that the prep before painting is the whole job.The actual painting is the easy part.I had my Regal painted with imron 2 years ago.there were chips ,scratches and stress cracks in the hull.I had a meeting with the painter to discuss what i wanted,expected and could afford.He advised me of what I could expect from his work and how long it would take.He told me it would look NEW when done.I let him have the boat for as long as he wanted because I wanted it done right and I had another boat to use anyway.He got it at the end of June and I did not get it back until Mid November.He obviously did not only work on my boat during this time but I wanted it done right and he wanted to do it right.2 years later and it still looks like Brand New and I mean NEW!!!His words were "the job was 98% prep work".I could not be happier.The only thing is that when you bump a pier with gelcoat you can usually wax the mark away.When you bump something and you have a painted hull you take paint off.On the other hand ,it is impossible to make an undetectible repair to gelcoat .With a painted finish you can make a perfect repair.Its a lot to consider.Charlie

 

[mattttt25]

Re: blisters

don't get too upset. most large boats that spend their entire lives in the water have some blisters. my father-in-law has dealt with them on his 50' sportfisher, i'll ask him what he does. but i think it's a good sanding, with primer coats and a good barrier coat.

 

[John Carpenter]

Re: blisters

I would not think that a new boat that is trailered would have spent enough time in the water for blisters to develop...in the gelcoat...below the waterline. Is this what you are seeing or are the blisters appearing above the waterline...in the paint? Usually a boat has to spend at least several months in the water for blisters to develop. I suspect that we are not all on the same page as far as what kind of blistering we are talking about. Osmotic blisters...below the waterline...in the gelcoat...do not appear overnight in my experience. Please clarify what you have.

 

[anger]

Re: blisters

not sure at this point if they are in the gel coat or not.<br />i am a little green on the term, gel coat.<br />yes, i have small blisters, but all above the waterline.i also have two blisters on the console,appx. 1" big<br />lots of small chips and chunks painted over,which the builder said were imperfections in his mold.<br />can a painter sand it down to raw fiberglass and just start over?and please explain gel coat. is that the outermost layer?is that put over the paint, or under?<br />i am a novice to the paint, my forth boat, but never had one nice enough to worry about. saved for years, just to get a bad job.<br />again, i have 50 hours on this vessel and love it.<br />i worked on removing stains and general clean up for two weeks so i know this boat very well at this point. i have every known acessory installed, appx,15k in cool stuff,t-top, gps,radar,etc..i have spared no expense. i will never get my money out of this so i feel i will own it for life. really need to make it work out on the paint/gel coat.<br />it is a incredible boat that runs in 6", but been taking her 30 miles offshore catching kingfish, and she rides like a yaht.just could not be happier with the performance and ride.<br />but i am a perfectionist and will never be happy until the paint is addressed. i worry about the long term affect, water entry from the chips or blisters. <br />will a few months in the water hurt anything or should i pull it out and have a painter start soon? i am worrying about cosmetics?<br />she is 10' wide at the beam,26' 6" long and a jewel in the rough at this point.lots and lots of compliments, until they get close enough to inspect the hull. very embaressing.<br />her name is "anger management" <br />thanks<br />anger

 

[mellowyellow]

Re: blisters

water will seep right through fibreglass, that's<br />why they spray gel-coat into the mold first, then<br />lay the glass over that.<br />if there aren't a ton of blisters, I would use a<br />gel-coat repair kit rather than painting the entire<br />hull.

 

[John Carpenter]

Re: blisters

If they are all above the waterline then they are not blisters as most people would understand the term. Osmotic blistering occurs below the waterline in the gel coat. Since the gel coat is relatively brittle, if you pop one of these blisters, you will be left with a small depression or crater in your hull.<br /><br />The blisters that you have...can you take your thumb and rub it out...leaving a spot devoid of paint but smooth and undamaged underneath? If so, then your blisters are just paint related and probably the result of poor prep or contamination of the surface before painting. If this is the case, then a competent painter can fix the problem...but I would view it as the responsibility of the manufacturer.<br /><br />If you have what I think you do...blisters in the paint...topsides...then it will do no harm to continue to use the boat and get it fixed in the off season. Best.......John

 

[flashback]

Re: blisters

anger, I am with relentless on this one.. I have never heard of a new boat with blisters from the get go..... most boats develop them over time and then usually only if they are kept in the water all the time....in any case, if you want to use the boat, I would grind open the blisters with a dremel tool (carefully) and then fill with an epoxy filler, not polyester......if below the waterline, above the waterline the poly is OK..But again I find it hard to believe you have osmotic blistering... Was the boat built by an idividual or a company? sounds more like you had someone do what is called a one off hull made from a male mold and it was just painted not gelcoat... in which case the blisters you are experiencing are caused from a poor prep job before painting...(dirt and grease on the surface and painted over)......good luck

 

[asgrinne]

Re: blisters

My 89 4Winns has an aweful repaint on it. Blisters All below the waterline. Thankfully the old surface is still pretty much intact. The repaint on this one is sooooo bad it actually has stress cracks where the paint may have been applied too heavy and may have ran. <br />Picture what was a decent 4winns blue grey combo painted stem to stern all black......... yuck

 

[Solittle]

Re: blisters

anger - I'm no expert and may not be up on the current terms but I did work on the office at Bertram Yacht for a short period when I got out of the army. So I'll give it a whack - -<br /><br />After a new design for a hull (or any fiberglass part) is complete the shop will make a plug. It is usually made out of wood and is built upside down. Looking at it you would think that it is an upside down boat. When done it is highly polished and heavily waxed. Then they go to work and build a mold right on top of the plug. This is made from fiberglass, resin and a structural frame. This mold is what is used to build the production boats. This assembly is then flipped over and the plug seperated from the mold.<br /><br />I saw this done on a 36'er. They poured water between the plug & mold until the weight forced the separation. When it happened it was sudden and sounded like an artilliary piece firing.<br /><br />To make the production boats, gelcoat is sprayed into the mold using a gun that mixes the resin & hardener at the tip of the gun. The thickness of the gelcoat will vary but is maybe 1/16" +/-. After this dries the fiberglass is layed on top of the gelcoat in layers of different types of fiberglass cloth. Resin is sprayed over each layer and smoothed out with what looks like paint rollers made of wire mesh. Stringers and the transom blank are added at the pppropriate time. The next step is to let it cure for maybe a day. Then the hull is pulled from the mold. Other parts are made much the same way and the boat is assembled.<br /><br />Paint, as you and I know it (like Home Depot by the gallon & brush) is not used. They may not even wax the gelcoat. It will however be buffed as a minimum.<br /><br />Gelcoat is seldom used as a "paint" as it has a reputation of being a ***** to work with and there are a number of high quality marine paints available.<br /><br />I agree with the other guys that your problem is the result of applying paint to a poorly prepared surface. Since it is above the water line you neeed not worry & can have at it whenever.

 

[reference123]

Re: blisters

I think I would talk to another attorney. Texas has some pretty strong consumer protection laws (I know, I was forced to study them while at law school in Texas). It may be that the attorney you talked to did not think there was enough money in it for him.