Got a vacation starting 7/9 and just noticed this on the boat, must have rubbed on some rocks while beached at my buddy’s house on the lake. I’m in Greenwood, SC but can take it almost anywhere if it’ll get done by Friday. I need some help quick. Any suggestions?
Go to West Marine, buy a fiberglass repair kit. Slide the boat back on trailer, sand smooth and fill it up with glass. You can get my until you get home and have it done right. Option 2 is fill it up with 5200 until you get back home.
Marine tex. Just finished doing similar (if not as deep) repairs to the front of my hull. Marine Tex will do the trick and you can sand it to a nice surface.
One suggestion. Mix a pencil eraser sized blob of it and play with it until it ‘ticks off’ or begins to set. When you put it on the boat remember about how long it took and STOP playing with it before it begins to set. Otherwise, the more you play, the worse it looks and you get to sand it off and try again.
Also, I think you’ll probably want to use at least two layers. Getting it that thick and making it look decent will be real trick.
Since no one will really see it, I agree with these guys as far as the Marine Tex. I have worked with it (on smaller jobs) and it is easy to work with. I would consider taking a Dremel tool or something like that and smoothing/evening out the jagged areas. I may make it a little easier to finish and sand it.
Thanks for the tips, marine tex sounds like some good stuff. I’ve got it as plan B, I try not to rig too many things if I can avoid it. Marine Pro out of Irmo has me calling them first thing Tuesday morning for Plan A. Any opinions out there? Costs reasonable? ■■■■■■■■ on them? I’ve got some other fiberglass dreams for storage on my boat, so knowing a decent option is a good thing and their photos look great.
Looks like your schedule might be kinda’ tight. If the shop can’t get it done in time for vacation, I’d go ahead with the marine tex. Just use enough to seal up the wound. The shop can sand it back out easily after the vacation is over to do the full repair.
Also, while that looks horrible, I bet the is plenty of glass in the spot. The likelihood of a leak or structureal issue would be very small, in my completely amateur opinion. What boat is it?
If it were me, I’d have a pro repair it. It looks like some layers of glass were penetrated, or at least had the resin crushed out of them. Whatever you do, don’t do a botch job on it and leave it. Per the way insurance policies work in general, that kind of thing can lead to uncovered future losses. Since it’s more than just cosmetic, make sure it’s done right. Otherwise, I would probably tell you to Marine Tex it like the others are saying.
Gotcha Covered,
Lee Strickland
Strickland Marine Insurance Agency, Inc. https://stricklandmarine.net
843-795-1000 / 800-446-1862
I’ll definitely do it right, whether it is this week or after my vacation. The guys at Marine Pro </font id=“blue”> say they can get it done this week.
Roger that. I just wanted to encourage you to have a pro fix it instead of doing a gelcoat patch yourself with a kit from the store. The latter is fine on minor cosmetic dings, but if you’re not experienced with doing fiberglass, you’re better off going to a pro for the stuff where there’s damage into the glass–in my opinion.
You obviously know that and made a good choice.
Gotcha Covered,
Lee Strickland
Strickland Marine Insurance Agency, Inc. https://stricklandmarine.net
843-795-1000 / 800-446-1862
Not to steel this thread. Does anyone know of someone in Conway, MI, Little River, Georgetown area that can do the kind of work that btodag has posted a picture of?
I have a two inch crack in the bottom of my boat that has started leaking. I found it Saturday.