obsessive
New Member
CPES Repair System - Soft Spot Near Swim Ladder
Hello, all.
I have noticed a soft spot in our swim platform in between the mounting rails for our swim ladder. I discovered a few years ago that SR appeared to use almost NO sealant to bed the fasteners as they passed through the swim platform surface. Eventually, this led to water wicking into the plywood in the center.
My attempt at the time as far as a stop-gap was to remove the fasteners and ladder and plug the holes from the top, which exposed the bottom (open) holes to the bilge area. I left these open while the boat was in lay-up, hoping that it would dry out.
Fast forward and it appears that either moisture has somehow found it's way in again, or the moisture didn't work it's way out. This being said, I'm stuck with a possibly expensive repair. After speaking with a local boat repair/restoration shop, they quoted me $2000 for the repair, given the fact that the wood is only really accessible from the top (non skid) area since it is an integrated platform. While there is a little space where you can get to the fasteners underneath the platform surface, it's not enough room to work in.
The gentleman did say that he had used CPES products for repair/sealing in the past, but not for this type of repair (where the wood was inaccessible), but said since it's a relatively small area, he suggested that it is worth a shot. He plans on plugging the bottom of the holes and chamfering out the damaged wood and slightly increasing the hole size. He then stated that he will inject the product (into the area in the center of the mounting rails, then also perform a pour of the epoxy (he said it's near water in viscosity) in the holes which should wick into the wood and then cure - providing a solid core.
He stated that we would know if it didn't work, as it would degrade over a couple of years, of course then we'd have to take the expensive road and have the non-skid cut around and separated, then dig out the affected wood and put everything back together.
He is going to charge ~$250 for the injection/pour - and I told him I'd be his 'experiment' in this repair. Another boat yard had performed this on jet skis with good results (pump housing areas).
What are the thoughts on this?
Eric
Hello, all.
I have noticed a soft spot in our swim platform in between the mounting rails for our swim ladder. I discovered a few years ago that SR appeared to use almost NO sealant to bed the fasteners as they passed through the swim platform surface. Eventually, this led to water wicking into the plywood in the center.
My attempt at the time as far as a stop-gap was to remove the fasteners and ladder and plug the holes from the top, which exposed the bottom (open) holes to the bilge area. I left these open while the boat was in lay-up, hoping that it would dry out.
Fast forward and it appears that either moisture has somehow found it's way in again, or the moisture didn't work it's way out. This being said, I'm stuck with a possibly expensive repair. After speaking with a local boat repair/restoration shop, they quoted me $2000 for the repair, given the fact that the wood is only really accessible from the top (non skid) area since it is an integrated platform. While there is a little space where you can get to the fasteners underneath the platform surface, it's not enough room to work in.
The gentleman did say that he had used CPES products for repair/sealing in the past, but not for this type of repair (where the wood was inaccessible), but said since it's a relatively small area, he suggested that it is worth a shot. He plans on plugging the bottom of the holes and chamfering out the damaged wood and slightly increasing the hole size. He then stated that he will inject the product (into the area in the center of the mounting rails, then also perform a pour of the epoxy (he said it's near water in viscosity) in the holes which should wick into the wood and then cure - providing a solid core.
He stated that we would know if it didn't work, as it would degrade over a couple of years, of course then we'd have to take the expensive road and have the non-skid cut around and separated, then dig out the affected wood and put everything back together.
He is going to charge ~$250 for the injection/pour - and I told him I'd be his 'experiment' in this repair. Another boat yard had performed this on jet skis with good results (pump housing areas).
What are the thoughts on this?
Eric
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