[zz4gta]

I like the idea of stainless staples, thank you. Can you typically find them at home depot and the like?

 

[idontwantanaccount]

staples

I wouldn't think home depot would carry that kind of thing, but I have never checked. My favorite place to order that kind of thing is Jamestown Distributors.

 

[NOLAsailing]

McMaster Carr (click for link) carries them. They also carry everything else. Just type "stainless steel staple" into the search box.

 

[SimonV]

Call me stupid if I have missed something. How bad is this rotted/wet core? Could you possibly use the West System and saturated the area with epoxy pumped in under pressure. At my marina in Queensland there is a CT 41 that has had this procedure done and and it turned out very good and solid.

 

[motovationcycles]

Call me stupid if I have missed something. How bad is this rotted/wet core? Could you possibly use the West System and saturated the area with epoxy pumped in under pressure. At my marina in Queensland there is a CT 41 that has had this procedure done and and it turned out very good and solid.

I have done many repairs of this type. Pumping epoxy in is not the best repair. It is a good stop gap measure until a complete and proper repair can be made. There are several issues that need to be dealt with such as: Killing all of the rot spores present (if balsa or plywood)to prevent the rot from spreading, complete drying before injection, not causing more delamination by using too much pressure in an attempt to completely fill any voids., increased weight, and decreased strength.

 

[NOLAsailing]

Simon - unless you're dealing with a very small area (less than 1 sq ft) then "drilling and filling" is completely inadequate. I tried it when I was intimidated by the prospect of cutting open the decks and doing a proper recore.

What I found is that a recore, in addition to being the right way of repairing it, is also far easier.

I would not use the drill and fill for a stop-gap; it makes the eventual recore much more difficult as you have to get all of that cured epoxy out of there. That's no fun and causes unnecessary damage to the remaining skin.

 

[pcyc2]

Don't and try and reinvent the wheel. Coring is fixed from the outside. Cut out bad core, and leave inner laminate in place and rebuild on that laminate. Or hire a professional to do the job properly.

 

[Maine Sail]

While..

While you can drill & fill DRY deck delamination, as can happen in foam cores or in hot environments, you can not effectively fix wet core with this method. Wet core is wet core no matter how much epoxy you inject in. Epoxy only penetrates dry rot. If the core is moist the epoxy will not displace the water and take its place. In 25 years of tearing into boats I've yet to see a cored deck or cored lamination that exhibited dry rot. It's always either wet or dry but I've never seen dry rot..

Penetrating epoxies, or thinned West System, is meant for dry not wet core fixes. Even then it does not work very well and does not penetrate as one may think it would..

 

[chucklesR]

Heck Trevor just cut the top off, take it home and make a new one with the fittings you need where you need them, then tab and glass it back on and non-skid the whole thing.
Custom boat with a solid deck to walk on, lighter than the original.

 

[sailingdog]

LOL... while this sounds simpler, you'd have to make the fiberglass far heavier than the cored deck would be to get the same strength and stiffness.

Heck Trevor just cut the top off, take it home and make a new one with the fittings you need where you need them, then tab and glass it back on and non-skid the whole thing.
Custom boat with a solid deck to walk on, lighter than the original.

 

[TSOJOURNER]

Well - you sound like you and your posse are ready to take on a big project so I'll wish you well. A couple of suggestions...

Don't pull the entire underside ot the deck off at one time. The boat will flex and you'll be epoxying a few bends and twists into the hull that shouldn't be there. Do it a small section at a time.

Think about using an alternate method. Cut 2 1/2 inch longitudinal channels out of the existing underside. Lay in a 3/4" stringer (wood/foam/carbon fibre/whatever) and then cover the stringer with several layers of roving. Once you have a complete structure of stringers, finish it off with some trnasverese ribbing done the same way. Then core between the stringers - use Airex. Cover everything with a bit of roving.

Remember NOT to use balsa in areas where hardware will pierce the deck. It is not strong enough from a compression standpoint. Use plywood. Make epoxy plugs on each hole.

Good Luck - Post Pics !!

 

[SimonV]

I am just glad I have a dry deck, I would have messed (EDIT BY CD) it up. Good luck and keep us informed.

 

[zz4gta]

I plan to document this repair the best I can to help others considering it's a pretty common problem. I got my bags packed for the weekend, going sailing saturday, and dropping the mast when we get her back in the slip. Also going to clean her out, and ready for the start on Feb 8th.

Sailormann, thanks for the tips!

 

[sailingdog]

Well - you sound like you and your posse are ready to take on a big project so I'll wish you well. A couple of suggestions...

Don't pull the entire underside ot the deck off at one time. The boat will flex and you'll be epoxying a few bends and twists into the hull that shouldn't be there. Do it a small section at a time.

This is very good advice.

Think about using an alternate method. Cut 2 1/2 inch longitudinal channels out of the existing underside. Lay in a 3/4" stringer (wood/foam/carbon fibre/whatever) and then cover the stringer with several layers of roving. Once you have a complete structure of stringers, finish it off with some trnasverese ribbing done the same way. Then core between the stringers - use Airex. Cover everything with a bit of roving.

This is more work, but probably a better choice in the long run.

Remember NOT to use balsa in areas where hardware will pierce the deck. It is not strong enough from a compression standpoint. Use plywood. Make epoxy plugs on each hole.

Make the sections where the hardware comes through the deck solid glass that is tapered to meet the cored areas so you don't get a hard transition line if you can avoid it. Solid glass is a much better solution than pads of plywood, since the plywood can rot.

 

[TSOJOURNER]

Makes sense, wood rottens.

 

[zz4gta]

One last question on materials, I'm looking at picking up the following and wanted to know what else I was missing. Please feel free to chime in.


750361
Epoxy Resin 105-B 10.3 Lbs. $68.99 $68.99
This item is on sale. - Our Regular Price: $74.99 - You are saving: $6.00

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

750364
Fast Hardener 205-B 2.3 Lbs. $30.99 $30.99

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

750408
Colloidal Silica 406-7 0.8 Lbs. $17.99 $17.99

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

751507
Episize 9oz. Glass Tape 733 4.4 Lbs. $90.99 $90.99

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subtotal: $208.96

 

[idontwantanaccount]

what else?

Buy the dispenser pumps for the epoxy--well worth the cost. Also, I have always thought West episize fiberglass was overpriced, its much cheaper to buy a few feet off of a roll and to cut your own strips. Just make sure the cloth (esp. mat or cloth/mat composites) are compatible with epoxy. Last time I think I bought cloth from raka, but there are numerous sources if you search for them.

 

[Myblueheaven]

core repair photos???? please post your progress

Please take images and post em here of the process. I (we) would like to see how this works out. I need to do the same.

thanks, Chris
([email protected])

 

[Gary M]

I have done this on fairly small sections, no more than maybe a foot square. I used wax paper over 1/4" plywood propped up with flexible wooden pieces to first hold the coring in place then the two layers of glass. I will be doing 4 more small spots as soon as it is warm enough.

Worked fine, no real issues but I would be nervous about a large area. Start small and see how it goes.

Good Luck
Gary

 

[zz4gta]

I have two peices in place now. I do have photos but won't be able to upload them until tomorrow. I'll be down this weekend to continue the work. I may only repair about a foot in front of the chain plates this season, and complete the work next winter. We'll see how this weekend goes.