what is this...

[rblatter]

This summer I bought a used Boston whaler, 9ft. We would use it to travel around the marina and adjoining canal. I bought a 5hp Honda, and it ran real well. Today I brought the small boat into my garage for the winter, and to repair some minor damage and re-do the wooden seats. We installed it upside down, and removed lots of Zebra mussells, a problem up here. I then noticed small bubbles appearing, seemed like under the gelcoat. After cleaning the bottom, I noticed many such bubbles, what is hapening here... and what can I do to fix it. I did not pay much for this boat, a 1988, but liked it for its looks and stability. Can anyone tell me what is going on...

R. Blatter
310 Sundancer 2001
5.7L Bravo IIIs :smt100

 

[Hampton]

It's called blistering. It occurs when moisture comes in contact with water soluble elements in the fiberglass resin. Pockets of acid form and expand out to form blisters. The standard fix is to grind the affected areas down, repair, and re-finish. Extensive blistering may require a complete grinding and new barrier coat be applied.

EDIT: It seems the oil embargo of the 70's may have caused blistering. The extreme increase in the cost of crude oil led to companies seeking cheaper methods of producing resins. Cheaper costs led to an increased incidence of cheaper products which led to a quick increase in the occurence of blistering. 1 in 4 fib boats will blister in their lifetimes. Usually occurs after 10 years age. Best way to avoid - buy quality fiberglass boat and keep barrier paint on.

http://www.diybob.com/HotBlister.htm

http://www.cncphotoalbum.com/doityourself/gelcoat_repair.htm

http://www.boatbuilding.net/article.pl?sid=06/02/06/1923200

 

[Mooner]

....what Hampton said

 

[Hampton]

Too much info: http://www.daviscoltd.com/nams/Documents/Blister_Report.html

 

[Lazy Daze]

Excellent links above.:thumbsup:

Depending on how blistered it is, may determine your course of action. If it was me, and they're not huge, I'd turn the boat right-side up again for the winter and let them dry out. Then, in the Spring, put a couple coats of epoxy paint on it and call it done.

 

[rblatter]

Thank all of you for the excellent information. Long winter ahead...

R.Blatter

 

[sbw1]

We owned a 13 foot Whaler of that vintage that our kids kept in the water for a few years. It developed a few blisters but only 3 or 4 that were not visible until you looked for them while the boat was on the trailer. I never fixed them and they never got any worse. It sort of surprised me because those boats were very well built and had high quality components.