Peeling bilge paint

amajamar

Active Member
Sep 9, 2013
228
Onset, MA
Boat Info
2001 380 Sundancer
Engines
8.1S Horizons
I was looking at a '02 380 DA yesterday and noticed that there was quite a bit of the bilge paint peeling off. Not just at the lower sections that could have some winter freeze/thaw gelcoat failing, but pretty much throughout. Not sure if it is just one of the idiosyncrasies of this one particular boat, or if it means something specific about a particular issue or situation that this boat has been exposed to.

Thanks in advance!
 
It's a cosmetic issue only, and it's probably gelcoat as opposed to bilge paint. It is likely that the gel was sprayed on for appearances when constructed but was put on too thick or the surface was not properly prepared. Others here on CSR have taken off as much gel as they could get to, then apply a bilge-coat product (paint) that can be closely matched to the original colour and makes it all look like new. Again, a cosmetic as opposed to structural issue.
 
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As I expected, I suppose. I have had some of that happen in my boat too, but this one is pretty extensive. As opposed to too thick, this seemed very thin, like paint, but I was thinking that the prep may have contributed more to the peeling than the coating thickness.
 
I have a 2004 Searay 500 Sundancer, same thing going on in my bilge. A friend of mine has a 2006 52 Sundancer, same problem. Apparently, from the information I found is that the gelcoat has a wax base and the paint applied to the bilge peels off, some small pieces, some large. I've been cleaning it up in the bilge for years. One SRC member had once recommended sanding and re painting the bilge, I'll just keep cleaning it I guess. Searay knows it's a problem, and they don't do anything about it. Nice R & D!! Searay!
 
I have a 2004 Searay 500 Sundancer, same thing going on in my bilge. A friend of mine has a 2006 52 Sundancer, same problem. Apparently, from the information I found is that the gelcoat has a wax base and the paint applied to the bilge peels off, some small pieces, some large. I've been cleaning it up in the bilge for years. One SRC member had once recommended sanding and re painting the bilge, I'll just keep cleaning it I guess. Searay knows it's a problem, and they don't do anything about it. Nice R & D!! Searay!
I would doubt there is a gelcoat then paint atop the gelcoat; that would be redundant and unnecessary. I would also doubt they use wax in the layup of the hull; there are too many other more efficient ways to cure the top coat of the laminating resin and wax is only used with polyester resins. I believe epoxy resin is used pretty much globally these days which does not require a surface sealant to cure. This appears to come down to surface prep and/or environmental conditions before the epoxy paint is applied.
 
Sea Ray does not use paint in the bilges. The gelcoat they use has a waxy cure to it….no wax is applied for curing or any other reason. When the gelcoat cures the surface is kind of waxy, so it repels water.

I have seen photos of the 380DA mentioned in post #1. The bilge gelcoat is not properly bonded to the FRP structure it was sprayed to. It looks like a "cold bond" where there is no chemical bond between the resins involved. While this is not a structural problem, it is a serious issue because it will affect the boat's future value……the more of the gray gelcoat that flakes off, the greater the depreciation hit for whomever owns the boat and tries to trade it or resell it in the future.
 
Sea Ray does not use paint in the bilges. The gelcoat they use has a waxy cure to it….no wax is applied for curing or any other reason. When the gelcoat cures the surface is kind of waxy, so it repels water.

I have seen photos of the 380DA mentioned in post #1. The bilge gelcoat is not properly bonded to the FRP structure it was sprayed to. It looks like a "cold bond" where there is no chemical bond between the resins involved. While this is not a structural problem, it is a serious issue because it will affect the boat's future value……the more of the gray gelcoat that flakes off, the greater the depreciation hit for whomever owns the boat and tries to trade it or resell it in the future.
That sounds more reasonable - However, wax (paraffin) in the polyester gelcoat is added so it's surface can cure. But, wax is not used in gelcoat if it is sprayed into a mold. Polyester resin (which is what gelcoat is) will not cure in air; wax is added and floats to the surface upon application and provides an air-tight seal for the cure process. In a mold the FRP layup after the gelcoat is sprayed is what provides the air tight seal to allow the gelcoat surface to cure so wax is not used.

To further compound the seriousness as Frank is talking about, the FRP in itself is not a water-tight material; it will absorb moisture and eventually delaminate / or blister if continuously subjected to moisture. The gelcoat or paint is the moisture barrier.
 
Hello all,
I really don't think any of these explanations of what it is and what it isn't explains why the manufacturer of the most successful boats in the world would allow this to happen in the first place. It's not limited to one model or one year! I've owned many, many boats and a couple of them Searay. It seams only later years have this problem. Because it's common doesn't make it acceptable! These boats are not cheap and when paying $100,000 to $1,000,000 should it be "acceptable"? Should the owner be the one who takes it on the chin for additional depreciation?

Bow Tie
 
So, now that we know what the problem is...what is the solution to keep the boat from delaminating in the bilge would be my next question.
 
There were photos in a different thread and I was sent several more by email when the OP was considering making an offer on the boat. You can search for the other thread but I deleted the others over the weekend because the boat was no longer being considered as a viable candidate.

This is a fairly rare occurrence and I have only seen one boat with flaking bilge gelcoat. Our marina fixed it by wet sanding with a solvent and 80 grit wet or dry paper then brushing on new bilge gray gelcoat. It was a time consuming tedious job that took a very long time because the glass guy had to wear an oxygen mask.
 
Mine is doing this too. I'm sure it's not worth the expense to fix. Sounds like an expensive job. Can you share?
 
The repair was done on a boat that is not stored at the marina. I saw the work in progress, but when they were finished, the owner paid the bill and moved the boat to his house. The glass guys were tied up on the boat for more than a week and the marina billing rate is $125/hour so you can do the math, then add about $500 for gelcoat, solvent and shop supplies. Sorry, but I just don't know more than that.
 
I have owned 8 Sea Rays from 28 to 50 ft and never had this issue. If I did I would be very concerned, I would assume the gelcoat also protects the fiberglass as well. I also understand these are 10 year old boats, but it seems like a isolated issue, so I would think something went wrong at the factory, be it improper prep or a group of bad materials from the supplier. Sea Ray has always been very helpful with any questions or assistance I have ever needed. After all they helped a buyer with wrong props on his boat that he bought used that was 10 years old. I would be contacting Sea Ray for some assistance in this matter. As said earlier in this thread, these boats are 100K-1,000,000.
 
I did not have this issue with my 450 DA. Was on a lot of Sea Rays in the Florida Keys and do not remember seeing anything like this. I did have some cracking in the bilge but it was small and not structural. I did see that on a few other boats as well. Would love to see a few pictures of this? JC
 
I did find one photo of the boat in question....the flaking bilge gelcoat was pretty much everywhere. Note the inside of the stringers and the transom:


380DAdirty bilge.jpg
 
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Good night Frank. I would not like to see that happen on my boat. Are there any consequences to leaving it that way?
 
The FRP beneath the gelcoat is not impervious to water. Leaving it as in the photos can lead to delamination and a loss of structural integrety. I am pretty sure what we see here is a product of a cold bond between the FRP and the gelcoat where, over time, the gelcoat flakes off. I think this is a latent mfg. defect that surfaces months or more after the boat leaves the factory and I feel certain Sea Ray would have repaired it had they seen it. Once in the hands of the dealers, it is up to the owner and the dealer to get approval from Sea Ray and do the repair. Why nothing was done on this particuar boat is most likely due to an inexperienced owner and why his dealer didn't catch it is another question altogether.
 
It's there a "bandaid" procedure that can be done to at least waterproof the FRP - so as to "buy time" until a proper fix can be done?
 

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