hull repair

[ferdly1]

I have a 1988 stratos with some nicks and dents and even a few gouges on the bottom of the boat. Would it be ok to use a good waterproof putty until i decide to repaint at a much later time? I also have another problem with water entering the boat. I have this rubber bumper or ( rub rail ) that goes around the boat. It covers the two halves of the boat where it is joined together. Problem is water always finds away to get under this thing and enter the boat. I have removed it and even caulked it. Nothing seems to work very long. Any suggestions?

 

[GT1000000]

Re: hull repair

Any repairs you make to the nicks and dents now may or may not be able to stay in place when you decide to repaint your boat...
It will depend on what you decide to refinish it with...
If it is currently gel coat, you can get some gel coat repair kits right here on Iboats...
Boat Gel Coat Repair - iboats
If the damages are deep, you might have to make a repair with fiberglass resin, thickened then faired back...
There are other products that you can use, like Marine-Tex, PB-11 and others, but like I said, it depends on what you plan to topcoat with down the road...
To really be able to help you out we need to see what you see, post up some clear pictures...
If you have used regular caulking on your boat, you will have to remove it and use a quality marine sealant equivalent to 3M's 4200 or 5200...
After you thoroughly seal around the rub rail, if water is still coming in you may have larger issues...like water coming in through the transom...engine mounting bolts, thru-hull fittings, maybe some broken plumbing in the boat, etc., etc...

 

[jigngrub]

Re: hull repair

This is good stuff for repairing scratches, dings, and gouges:
Loctite 0.85 fl. oz. Marine Epoxy-1405604 at The Home Depot

It wouldn't surprise me if the water was coming in through your transom because of rot instead of the rub rail. You should check the transom of your 25 yr. old boat... it may be restoration time.

 

[GWPSR]

Re: hull repair

... and, if your rub rail is in the water, well ...

:facepalm:

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: hull repair

How have you determined that the rub rail is allowing water to come inside the boat? Have you observed this?
If you want to fill gouges and scratches you first need to prep them properly in order for the filler to adhere properly. 3M Premium Marine Filler is a good retail filler or you could make your own.

 

[pauloman]

Re: hull repair

use a kelvar reinforced epoxy putty for the chips etc. for a very strong repair. (wet dry 700). Might work on the deck seam but will not stick to silicon seal etc. so you might have 'closed that door"

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: hull repair

Just bear in mind that if you want to use gelcoat to finish the repairs, it does not adhere well to epoxy based products.

 

[ferdly1]

Re: hull repair

Thanks guys for you quick replies. The water is definitely coming thru rub rail. When i take the rub rail off there ia about a 1/2 gap between both hulls. should they be screwed tight together. Second when i put rub rail on there is a gap on the bottom. I have been filling that with marine grade silicone caulk. Mainly because I was afraid to use something that I could not remove. After i go thru the process of resealing the rubrail. A few trips out into the ocean will loosen all this up again. The boat is a trihull and when i am riding the boat produces a huge spray from both sides of the boat. this spray hits against the rubrail. just wondering if there is a different kind of rubrail I could buy or do you think that 4200 adhesive will hold. i know one of the biggest problems with this boat is it is a freshwater boat . It sits low in the water like a bassboat.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: hull repair

Remove your rub rail and take pics of the gap and post them here, I'm sure someone will come up with a good fix for it.

It sounds like your cap may not be sitting down on the hull properly to me.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: hull repair

What's the spacing of the screws/rivets that attach the rail to the hull? There should not be 1/2" gap so if you removed the rubber insert from the rail and put more screws/rivets in, you might be able to pull the two together a bit more.

 

[ferdly1]

Re: hull repair

What's the spacing of the screws/rivets that attach the rail to the hull? There should not be 1/2" gap so if you removed the rubber insert from the rail and put more screws/rivets in, you might be able to pull the two together a bit more.

should the two hulls be tight against each other. On the inside of the inner hull is a wooden strip that goes around the boat. This strip maybe 2" wide. The screw goes from the outer hull into the inner hull then thu the wood. There are lots of screw probably every inch or so along both sides of boat. Is this normally how they attach the 2 hulls together?

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: hull repair

Does the cap fit down over the hull, sort of like a shoebox lid over a shoebox:

Where is the 1/2" gap between the cap & hull?

If I had to guess based on your description, the gap is between the backside of the cap & the exterior side of the hull. If so, the screws may no longer be holding the rubrail & cap tight to the hull, they should be. If water has been getting thru the joint, the 2" wood strip on the interior may be compromised. That wood strip may need to be replaced.

Boat manufacturers often pack the backside of the rubrail w/ filler and over time it often fails & falls out.

My 1960 Glastron & Sphelps MFG both had the filler.

Most boat cap & hull are held together w/ a few rivets or screws, just enough to keep them in place. Then when the rubrail is installed it's screws (mine was done w/ bolts) clamp the rubrail to the cap, and then the cap to the hull.

Some rubrails slip over the hull & have a channel for the cap to sit down in. But the rubrails thru bolts/screws holds it all together. A 1960 Glasspar G3's does.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: hull repair

Yes thats common. There should be no more gap than 1/4" or so.

 

[ferdly1]

Re: hull repair

Does the cap fit down over the hull, sort of like a shoebox lid over a shoebox:

Where is the 1/2" gap between the cap & hull?

If I had to guess based on your description, the gap is between the backside of the cap & the exterior side of the hull. If so, the screws may no longer be holding the rubrail & cap tight to the hull, they should be. If water has been getting thru the joint, the 2" wood strip on the interior may be compromised. That wood strip may need to be replaced.

Boat manufacturers often pack the backside of the rubrail w/ filler and over time it often fails & falls out.

My 1960 Glastron & Sphelps MFG both had the filler.

Most boat cap & hull are held together w/ a few rivets or screws, just enough to keep them in place. Then when the rubrail is installed it's screws (mine was done w/ bolts) clamp the rubrail to the cap, and then the cap to the hull.

Some rubrails slip over the hull & have a channel for the cap to sit down in. But the rubrails thru bolts/screws holds it all together. A 1960 Glasspar G3's does.

Hey nice drawing. I was gonna try to draw it myself yours looks better. That is exactly how mine fits.there is about a 1/4 to half inch gap between the lower hull and the upper hull represented by the black and brown lines. There is no filler. There are screws goin all the way around the hull that screw both halves together. The rub rail mounts over this like in the photo. There are way fewer screws that go thru the rub rail then both hulls all the way around However there is a gap only on the bottom. It is aprox.1/4 to half an inch. That is where water enters. I have filled this with silicone caulking but it just doesnt stick that well. I hate to use 4200 because it is white and looks so bad. at times when the water is real ruff -quite a bit of water enters the boat. Thank goodness for the bilge pump.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: hull repair

Water getting into the boat were it shouldn't, IMHO, should be addressed, bilge pump or no bilge pump.

The water has to make it's way back to the pump, below decks, to be pumped overboard. What's in coming into contact w/ on it's journey back to the pump & for how long?

 

[GT1000000]

Re: hull repair

I hate to use 4200 because it is white and looks so bad.

4200 is available in Black.
5200 is available in Tan, Mahogany and Black.
Unless you plan to de-cap-itate your boat anytime soon, I see no reason not to use 5200...?

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: hull repair

If the wood back up strip is in good condition you should be able to remove the rubber insert as I previously stated and by adding additional screws or even drilling and using bolts and nuts, tighten the gap. A 4" - 6" spacing should provide adequate "clamping" effect to pull the two halves together. I Don't like the idea of caulking this area until you have ensured it is mechanically fastened in the appropriate manner.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: hull repair

X2. POST UP PICS!!!!!! No reason to try and half azz it. Until you make sure the hull top and bottom are pulled together as tight as they can be, there is no reason to caulk it. Once you have made sure of that then 4200 or 5200 to provide a water tight seal. Your rub rail should cover this joint that is caulked. Then install rub railing and caulk the bottom and top of that with life seal or I have found ge brand 1 hour dry time silicone works well . Make sure when before you caulk anything, you clean it with acetone. This will prep it for a good bond.

If the wood back up strip is in good condition you should be able to remove the rubber insert as I previously stated and by adding additional screws or even drilling and using bolts and nuts, tighten the gap. A 4" - 6" spacing should provide adequate "clamping" effect to pull the two halves together. I Don't like the idea of caulking this area until you have ensured it is mechanically fastened in the appropriate manner.

 

[ferdly1]

Re: hull repair

Thanks guys for all the advice. I am sure glad I found this site. Lots of good info. I have one other question. is there a way to save this thread so I can quickly review it later. won't be able to do this now. Looks like I have to put a transmission in my wifes car. Trying to find a decent repair manual for that. Changed plenty of transmissions in rear wheel cars . Never changed one in a front wheel car. First time for everything.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: hull repair

As the original poster (the [OP] next to your user name) of this thread, you shouldn't have to subscribe to it. So when there's a reply to your thread, you'll get an email notifying you that there has been a reply posted in your thread.

You should get 1 for my post once I submit it.

Once you get an email update notice, the iboat's server won't notify you of any further activity to this thread until you log on & 'open' this thread (or any thread you subscribe to). So CC254 & I could post back & forth a couple times discussing my or his suggestions for how to proceed, but you'll likely get only the 1 email.

That email will contain the text of the reply that was posted, and a link to the most recent (last) reply. They may not be the same reply so you may have to scroll forward or back to see all the replies that have been posted.

I have my iboats acct setup to auto-notify me of replies to any thread I post in. You can choose immediately, daily or weekly (There are choices, & I think those 3 are all of the choices) for each individual thread you subscribe to, or set 1 choice as an automatic default (I think, I'm on several forums & each operates a little different).


Save at least 1 of those update notices to a folder @your email account. When you want to visit your thread @iboats, just open that email & click the link. It should always take you to the most recent (last) reply.

You can also click your user name, click view profile, and under user name on that page, you can click the link to any recent post you've posted, or click thru to the list of threads you've started.

These are those 2 links from your profile:
[h=1]ferdly1

Seaman

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