is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

[imraan47]

Hey guys.
Ok so i just had to get pictures so that i can get better response's to see how this can be fixed.

the first 6 pictures..you can see tons of crazing and in this area which is all pretty much at the sides of the boat and some on the transom. You can see the cracks and also some of the paint or is it gel coat that has come off and its exposing whatever is under there that is black in color.
What can i do about this situation?

Also next 2 pictures picture you can see the brown marks and that i guess from the boat being in the water. i don't understand though why its that low since the water line should be much higher but anyhow how can i get rid of that? on previous threads i was told to do a acid wash by using some good janitorial type of stuff. is there anything else that perhaps can get rid of this marking. i doubt that a simple cleaner will get it all out so that i can make it shine again.

since there are a lot of cracks (crazing) and those area's where it looks like holes, i was thinking of fixing that and I'm sure i need to paint so if i did that then the brown marks are taken care of..so in this case whats the right paint to be used on this.

Thanks to all in advance and to iboats.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

here are the "next 2 pictures"

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

The brown line looks like a typicall scum line from dirty water.

The crazing is from a poor gel coat job, it was possibly too thick, but there was also a problem with the bond between it and the dark layer. It looks like the hull is two different colors, the white and the dark or black color, when the second color is sprayed it will overlap the first color a great deal and the overlap area can create problems if not done correctly.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

All of the crazed gel coat needs to be sanded off before you can paint it.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

All of the crazed gel coat needs to be sanded off before you can paint it.

Thanks for replying. I have read some of your advice on threads.
So whats your take on this...would i need to do the gel coat or will just paint make this look fine?
Also how much of the area is being sanded? I mean should i be looking into the entire bottom to be done or just where the crazing is?

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

You'll need to sand off everything that looks bad, as you sand it off you should be able to see where it gets better. Make sure this is the only area affected, otherwise you'll need to do it again later.

depending on how well you sand it you should be able to paint it easily, if the surface becomes uneven as you sand then you will need to fair the surface for it to look smooth.

Paint or re-gel coat.....that's up to you, gel coat is more work and may be difficult to match what's there now.

 

[slasmith1]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

With that much cracking I would first inspect the structural integrity of the glass in the affected area. In most cases extensive gelcoat crazing is caused by delamination of the underlying structure.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

You'll need to sand off everything that looks bad, as you sand it off you should be able to see where it gets better. Make sure this is the only area affected, otherwise you'll need to do it again later.

depending on how well you sand it you should be able to paint it easily, if the surface becomes uneven as you sand then you will need to fair the surface for it to look smooth.

Paint or re-gel coat.....that's up to you, gel coat is more work and may be difficult to match what's there now.

well i am sure that the crazing is just on the white part so that means i will have to sand all the way till it shows that bottom black paint or whatever that is. now if i choose to paint that matching the paint with the rest of the bottom will be tough so should i then just paint the entire bottom?

also i don't understand if i just sand the area of crazing all the way down then i paint, wont it be evident as to why that area is so thin and then gets back thick..i mean it will be a matter of a few millimeters unless i apply a lot more coats to even it out with the rest of the surrounding area that didn't get sanded.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

If you paint it then you would do the entire hull, gel coating the entire hull would be a big hassle, so you would try to do just that area.

The gel coat will be about 10 to 20 mils (.000s thick) so it can be tapered at the edges over a foot or two to hide the difference. You can also use a high build primer to raise the surface slightly if needed before painting.

You can also change the paint scheme and use a different color to hide the repair.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

With that much cracking I would first inspect the structural integrity of the glass in the affected area. In most cases extensive gelcoat crazing is caused by delamination of the underlying structure.

That doesn't look to be the issues here, it looks thick and there's a poor bond to the black.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

That doesn't look to be the issues here, it looks thick and there's a poor bond to the black.

Yea because thos black marks are area where its chipped of sort of like paint chips but a few millimeters thicker since its gel coat. the cracks arent even in the black part.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

If you paint it then you would do the entire hull, gel coating the entire hull would be a big hassle, so you would try to do just that area.

The gel coat will be about 10 to 20 mils (.000s thick) so it can be tapered at the edges over a foot or two to hide the difference. You can also use a high build primer to raise the surface slightly if needed before painting.

You can also change the paint scheme and use a different color to hide the repair.

I really want to go with paint pretty much because i know from reading that gel coat work is a big hassle.

I want to go with white anyway and i want to get it to shine so i mean in terms of paint what would you recommend. i have hear awlgrip is good and its easy to get here in Canada since there is a store here in Toronto. but what am i looking for in terms of what kind of paint. is there anything i can get from iboats since i am ordering some stuff anyway and i can add this to the list.

also what do you think about spot gel coat repairs? there are various kits so do you think i can use those to cover the area that is chipped then sand it a little and paint?

 

[BobsGlasstream]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Hello imraan47,
I would recommend you to follow ondarvr's advise. If you don't get down to the problem area and correct it then even the paint will start to crack. I would do it correctly and then you don't have to wory about it.
As for the line, it looks like a water line to me and you can try some different household cleaners, some special cleaners made for gel coat. You mave have to sand it out too.
Good luck with the restore.
Bob

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Hello imraan47,
I would recommend you to follow ondarvr's advise. If you don't get down to the problem area and correct it then even the paint will start to crack. I would do it correctly and then you don't have to wory about it.
As for the line, it looks like a water line to me and you can try some different household cleaners, some special cleaners made for gel coat. You mave have to sand it out too.
Good luck with the restore.
Bob

Great thanks Bob.
Yes definately will go with ondarvr's advice and he has been a great help here.
I'm just waiting to hear more from him on my last post interms of what paint i should be going with and also what he thinks about gel coat repair kits

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Lots of options on paint and you pretty much get what you pay for, single part paints are low in cost and easy to use, then you move up to two part paints that can be very costly, but are extremely durable. So its up to you on the what you want to use. I don't recommend any particular brand, but many people here use them and have reported their results.

Gel coat repair kits can work well on small areas, but for a pre color matched kit the cost will be high.

Read this thread on using gel coat.



http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=234392

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Lots of options on paint and you pretty much get what you pay for, single part paints are low in coat and easy to use, then you move up to part paints that can be very costly, but are extremely durable. So its up to you on the what you want to use. I don't recommend any particular brand, but many people here use them and have reported their results.

Gel coat repair kits can work well on small areas, but for a pre color matched kit the cost will be high.

Read this thread on using gel coat.
http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=234392

So based on my chips there..could i use a gel coat repair and then perhaps paint the bottom with white color or are you not supposed to paint over gel coat? in this case i wont have to get a pre color matched and i could get the white color gel coat repair kit.

I was reading that thread all day. Its got some good stuff but for me, there are some bits and pieces missing to make it all a procedure. Just need to ask more questions and read more. Thanks

 

[ondarvr]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Sand off the bad stuff first so you know what you're working with. You can use gel coat and paint over it, it works well, just a little more difficult to sand than some other products.

 

[SBTOM]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Just looking at those photos it seems like maybe when they went to apply that thick coat of gel that is chipping off, they didn't de-wax the hull properly. Even if it were too thick, it shouldn't come off in big chunks like that. Just my 2 cents.

 

[imraan47]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

Sand off the bad stuff first so you know what you're working with. You can use gel coat and paint over it, it works well, just a little more difficult to sand than some other products.

Thanks.
ok so another thing is i will be storing the boat in the water for the most part of the season. is there anything i need to do interms of antifouling paint or give it a special bottom coat of paint. what is your advice on that since here lake ontario is big time poluted and dirty water is common. that why in two months of keeping it there last year got me those brown and green marks every where

 

[slasmith1]

Re: is this gel coat gone? help to make this better

I had one other question after looking at your pictures again. Is the black graphic line gelcoat or is it a sticker or paint?