J
Jim Baggs
I recently bought a 1980 Ranger 20 trailered sail boat. The previous owner said it sat in his yard for 8 years. There is evidence that it had over a foot of rain water inside it for an unknown time(i.e., dirty area showing a waterline inside the hull). Water got into (probably seeped in slowly) the forward floatation compartment , which I assume is foam filled, and weeped out slowly, while trailering to the launch ramp or during sailing. I drilled an 1/8" hole at the bottom of the side of the floatation chamber, which is under and around the cabin seating area. I took approximately 25 gallons of water out of this area, and it still weeps some when the boat is rocked. Previous owner said he never kept the boat in the water more than a few days at a time. My question is: could this water have damaged the hull and has it destroyed the floatation foam? I have read all the articles on gel coat blistering and osmosis, etc., but they all talk about water coming in from the outside. I have tapped around on the hull and can't hear anything that sounds like a weak point. There are some small "bubbles" in the gel coat on the bottom, less than 1/4", in some areas, not exclusive to the area under the floatation. Should I open up this area and dry it out thoroughly, replace the floatation foam, etc?Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.