How too?

Posted By: Bob Frak
Date: 3/12/08 7:50p.m.

Report: outside forum guidelines

Read the WEST SYSTEMS guide on how to repair boats with epoxy. I think they are free. I own a 2023C and a 30' cutter that was home built with West and plywood 25 years ago. In my opinion epoxy by itself is very brittle. It bonds very well BUT it really needs glass cloth to make it a strong "flexible" repair. Yes it does bond to the wood and it penetrates but not very deep and by itself without cloth will crack and craze and allow water in. Your ballast tank needs to be as sealed and as strong as the exterior of your hull. Your bulkheads and their seems are holding in 1,000 pounds of water that pitches and pounds with every wave and swell. You may have guessed I'm in favor of using cloth. Your tank was initially coated, did it last? Do you ever want to do this again? Can you see a time where you may want to keep the boat in the water for more than 2 weeks without the need to "dry out" the tank? If you get the cloth with bound edges, in comes in varying widths, get 6"s for the floor to bulkhead and bulkhead to hull joints all you need to do is cut it into 2 or 3 foot lengths, wet the ply and put the dry cloth to it, butt the next one with a 2 " overlap and just keep going. Immediately do the next layer and keep staggering the butt seams. I'd go 3 layers. When you're at the last layer use the 402. It's trying to use big sections of cloth with unbound edges that will make this job a mess. Overlapping the seams will make it stronger than using big pieces. As for the cutter? The hull was done with 2 layers of cloth and is as strong and dry as the day it was built. The deck that was sealed and coated with just epoxy and painted started rotting off 8 years after it was built. Then it was covered with 2 layers of cloth and epoxy and went another 15. It's only my 2 cents worth take it or leave it. Search the site for lots if tips on this project and there are pictures on the web as well. BOb