Need opinion on hull damage

[sikz3]

Okay we went out this weekend and finally had all the flaws worked out on our boat. (ran great) After a pretty rough but fun ride, I came back to shore and noticed a big chunk of fiberglass/gelcoat had cracked of above the water line. It looks as if there have been previous repairs on this area of the boat. |My question is how could this happen? We did not strike anything. Also could it be just a shotty fiberglass job? My major concern now is safety of family. Who can I have look at this to tell me if this is a structural problem and if the boat is unsafe?

 

[cmcpherson]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Pictures sure would help!

 

[Nandy]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Show us with photos where the crack is, Inside and out if possible. What you say so far does not sounds structural but there is not telling until we can see it better.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Here are some pics.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Ayuh,.... I'd call that a Major Problem.....

Almost looks like it took a Hit, from Inside the hull....

 

[Campylobacter]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Ayuh,.... Almost looks like it took a Hit, from Inside the hull....

Anything heavy (like an anchor) stowed in a locker or bilge near the hole? Rough ride may have launched it into the side.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

There is no damage on the inside. It looks like it is just the gelcoat on the outside that was damaged. What should be my next step? There is another large spider-webbed area in the gel coat a few inches away. Also the glass is really dry looking as if there was not much resin. Behind the real fibery stuff is some nice well resined glass. Could this been a faulty gel coat job? Who knows what the previous owner has done.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

I also want to say there is NO hole. Just a layer of the gel coat and some fiberglass that was stuck to it.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

I see areas on the hull that appear to be different colors, are these reflections, or are they in the gel coat? I'm just checking to see if there has been a major repair done to that side of the hull.

Normally when part of a laminate gets torn off like that, it's from water catching the edge of an old repair that wasn't done well. It can happen in original construction also, but you normally need to hit something to start a crack and then it gets opened up by water pressure.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

That was my first thought as well. Yes it is a different color and it is not as smooth around that area, more waviness as if it was sanded back to shape. And yes there are some spider webbed cracks as well in the surrounding areas. I am almost positive there was fiberglass work done in that whole area. You can even see where the pinstripe ran further toward the front and it was removed. Now, I would assume this is ajob for the proffesionals not a marine tex fix right? I really don't care how the repair looks as long as it is functional and safe. This will be our last season with this boat.

 

[Nandy]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Ouch, that looks nasty. I will let the pros go on in this one....

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

The prep work was most likely not very good, so the rest may delaminate too. Your best bet would be to grind all of it off and redo it, it's not that hard and people here will walk you through it.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

We have a trip planned for 2 weeks from now. Would it be okay to remove the piece that is cracked and resurface with marine tex then when I have more time do the full repair? If so, how do I prep it correctly? Thanks

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Marine Tex won't do it for this repair, but you can do a quick repair with glass almost as fast. You need to grind it thoroughly with 36 grit on a grinder, then find a store near you that sells fiberglass supplies, a specialty store would be great, but even Wal Mart carries most of what you need. Check out a few other threads discussing repair work, many have pics, and you should get the drift of it. Once you get the glass back on you don't need to finish it before you use it, it just won't look that good until you do.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Got estimate today. Looks like a buddy and myself will take this one on. I have searched and I cannot find any repair similar to mine. Lots of hole repairs though. Any ways how do I go about doing this? I also checked walmart today and the have the cloth and mat. And they have polyester resin and polyester resin JELLY. What should I use? All tips and info would be great! Thanks!!!!

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Also cloth first or mat?

 

[baconbiscut]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Not as bad as what we had when Our boat fell off of our lift and pile drived its way throught the side of our boat house. What you described sounds like it could be a structural issuse. Chunks of fiberglass shouldn't just fall off a boat. I would have it checked out by a professional. I have attached some pics of my boat. They had to grind all the way through and start fiber glass patching form the inside out. You can see the new glass that the patch form the inside of the boat in the pics. Then the outside was grinded out and and then patched then gel coated

 

[baconbiscut]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

sorry bout that here are the pics.

 

[sikz3]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Mine was not qite that bad and I removed the chunk yesterday. It was indeed just a hair thicker than the gel coat. There was no hole.Professional says it was probably from crappy prep work on prior repair.

 

[fixb52s]

Re: Need opinion on hull damage

Yep, it does look like a bad repair.​

The way to properly fix it would be to like stated before grind out all of the old repair and ensure the surface is CLEAN. I don't think you have to go all the way through the hull in this case if the underlying glass is good. Start with two layers of 1 1/2-ounce mat, then alternate mat and 6-ounce cloth. As a rule, you will roughly need one layer for every 1/32 inch. Cut the first layer of mat 1 inch larger than the deep area (as seen in the photo), overlapping the bevel by 1/2 inch all around. Subsequent pieces should be 1/2 inch larger all around than the previous one.​

When it is built up, feather edge the repair and smooth it to the hull, then shoot some primer on it for now. You can get it gel coated later after your trip. It might be ugly, but it will allow you to hit the water.​