how to fix a small screw hole? - The Next Generation

[1stboat@40]

OK, so I've had my "I'm an idiot" moment with my "new to me" boat.

I removed some cheap, styrofoam with velcro rod holders and replaced them with new Berkley twist lock rod holders. problem is the new rod holders are longer. When I put the bottom screw in to the assembly, it went all the way through the hull. The screw wasn't that long so I didn't think it was going to be a problem. Turns out it was, and in my haste, did all four pieces resulting in four screw holes through the hull.

After alot of research, found out that Home Depot had a product (Aquamend) that would fill the hole. The guy at the store said I should also fiberglass the inside of th boat as a precaution as the holes are below the waterline. my question is this: a) Is the fiberglassing necessary? the holes are all #8 screw size. b) Is fiberglassing the inside after the fill enough? Should I fiberglass the outside as well?

I am new to fiberglassing and have the following products for the task:

1. Aquamend to fill the holes

2. Bondo Plastics spreaders

3. Bondo Fiberglass Cloth (Tight Weave)

4. Bondo All-Purpose Fiberglass resin and hardener kit

5. Mouse sander with 60 grit sandpaper

Your comments are appreciated, Please help me!

Frustrated in Ohio

 

[ondarvr]

Re: how to fix a small screw hole? - The Next Generation

Yes, you should glass over the holes from the inside, they'er small and if they were above the water line it wouldn't be that important, but if they get bumped hard the filler could fall out. You won't need to do anything more from the outside.

Polyester resin or epoxy will work, you will need very little of either one and a small amount of epoxy is easy buy at the local hardware store. If you think you can work fast, use the 5 minute stuff, if not then get a longer version.

Sand an area an inch or two larger than the hole, then cut a few 1" or larger pieces of cloth, use a very small brush and applied some epoxy to the sanded area, then put the cloth on and work the epoxy into it, apply more as needed, use two layers of cloth over each hole.


If you use the Bondo resin, you need to use fiberglass mat under the cloth to get a good bond, but the rest is the same.

 

[1stboat@40]

Re: how to fix a small screw hole? - The Next Generation

Yes, you should glass over the holes from the inside, they'er small and if they were above the water line it wouldn't be that important, but if they get bumped hard the filler could fall out. You won't need to do anything more from the outside.

Polyester resin or epoxy will work, you will need very little of either one and a small amount of epoxy is easy buy at the local hardware store. If you think you can work fast, use the 5 minute stuff, if not then get a longer version.

Sand an area an inch or two larger than the hole, then cut a few 1" or larger pieces of cloth, use a very small brush and applied some epoxy to the sanded area, then put the cloth on and work the epoxy into it, apply more as needed, use two layers of cloth over each hole.


If you use the Bondo resin, you need to use fiberglass mat under the cloth to get a good bond, but the rest is the same.

Thanks for the quick reply. I've just finished putting the Aquameld in the holes after sanding and prepping the areas. Once the cure time has past I'll be going forward with the fix. One question, after the fiberglass is applied and set up, will I need to do more sanding? The locations are near the floor along the sides of the boat. I'm not too worried about astetics, more about function. Also would it be a good idea to put a dab of resin on the outside of the repair? No mat or cloth, just the resin as a sealer? I'm new to this so any light you can shed on this would be great.

Thanks again.

Scott

 

[ondarvr]

Re: how to fix a small screw hole? - The Next Generation

On the inside, you don't need to do any sanding after it's hard unless you want to, if the inside surface has a smooth mold finish you may want to try and get the repair smooth, if it's a rough fiberglass finish just paint it to match. And make sure you are actually repairing the hull and not just the liner, some boats have a liner and there is a space between it and the hull.

I'm not sure what aquamend is (I've never used it), but if you don't like how it looks you can paint the area, you shouldn't need to seal it though.