Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass damage

[Alctel]

Hi all,

The following are some pictures taken from under the sofa where there is a compartment where the pump for the pressured water goes. The first picture shows the location.

There is some cracking of the fibre glass, some staining? It looks like where some water leaked and damaged the fibreglass and a small hole.

Am I good to just patch these up? Or could there be large structural damage?

 

[centerline]

Re: Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass dama

honestly, the pic you posted are about as good as no pics at all... we cant see what your seeing with that little flashlight beam....
you need a work light in there to light up the area, rather than a spot...

but its not likely to be major structural damage, but drying it out and sealing it up would be good either way.

it could be the edge of an overlay that did not get laid in proper and now is a crevass to hold water... better pics would help...

dry it out really well, open it up a bit and work some epoxy in there, and then use a stick cut to the right length to jam against it to hold it closed tightly for about 24hrs... then sand the surface of it and the surrounding area for about a foot in diameter and wet the area with more epoxy, then lay a couple layers of glass over it, wetted in, and you should be good to go... after it cures! give it a minimum of 48hrs cure time before stressing it in the wind and waves...

 

[kito]

Re: Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass dama

It looks to me that it's all cracks not exposed to the hull. The second pic looks like tabbing that pulled away...no big deal. Just follow Centerline's suggestions and you should be good to go. I see this on my H30 Cherubini project boat. I am first going to fix the cause of the leaks before patching the bad areas.

 

[Jim Legere]

Lots of times that heavy roving was slapped on to keep in place some of the plywood that is used in interior construction for locker partitions, etc. I have similar 'cracks' on my boat. Never had a problem with them...never will. They don't affect the structure in these old Hunters, which have all of the interior fiberglass pan, including sole, bunks, cabinets, etc. bonded to the hull. That's my $0.02.

 

[Angus Fleming]

Re: Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass dama

Jim,
does the fibreglass liner attached to he hull give any structural support to the hull? I've been cutting in to mine to lower the galley stove, and remove the original freezer unit.

Angus

 

[Nelsonhow]

It's not structural. Have the same on my old h30. Just sloppy glass work where no one sees.

I think the pan does add some structural support but not a lot. My old hunter is built pretty tough.

 

[Jim Legere]

Jim,
does the fibreglass liner attached to he hull give any structural support to the hull? I've been cutting in to mine to lower the galley stove, and remove the original freezer unit.

Angus

I haven't had a close look at the icebox, but the V-berth, the 1/4 berth and the liner in the area of the starboard cockpit locker are definitely structural - they are bonded with about 1/4" - 3/8" of glassfiber, layed-up with about 4" of overlap where they are tabbed to the hull. I believe the same goes for the vanity across from the head, the pan under and behind the head and the setees in the main cabin. Its pretty obvious which bits are structural by the amount of glass used to tie them to the hull. I think you would have a hard time removing any of these bits. On the other hand, some of the plywood in the bilge and under the cabin sole and a few locker partitions up forward are just slapped in place with a bit of roving - not structural. Your modifications to the galley sound pretty minor and probably don't affect the structure. If you are unsure, I would consult a good marine surveyor.

 

[Alctel]

Re: Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass dama

Thanks for the help all. I'll make sure its dry and then either use marine tex or layup some fibreglass.

 

[DianaOfBurlington]

Just fill it.

This isn't a problem; it's rather typical. I 'fixed' these cases on my boat by dumping epoxy into the cracks. Just, whenever I had some left over in the cup, poured it in. So long as the bottom edge of the tabbing isn't open, it'll adhere to anything that's in there-- dust, dirt, bits, whatever-- and fill the gap, which is the most important thing. In other cases I've squeezed 5200 into it. Fiberglass resin will work too, or anything you're using for something else that might have some thickener in it, like microballoons, etc., so long as it flows well into the crack.

I would not use Marine-Tex-- it's less valuable as an adhesive than as a filler. Anything that sticks well, takes up space, and is impervious to water will suffice. It doesn't have to be pretty-- you can paint over it, which, if you use Bilgekote (and not something from HoDePo), will help keep water out as well.

You should be more worried about this if the hull structure itself shows any chipping, peeling, delamination or weeping. From what you show that isn't the case.

* * *

 

[centerline]

Jim,
does the fibreglass liner attached to he hull give any structural support to the hull? I've been cutting in to mine to lower the galley stove, and remove the original freezer unit.

Angus

the fiberglass liner absolutely does give a LOT of structural support to the hull... but thats an overall view of it...
the hull is built as a shell and without any other stringers, cross members or other means of support for the strength it needs to support the taut rigging as it does. when the liner is installed and tabbed in, it makes it stronger than any other way it could be built, and still maintain a reasonable weight.
by cutting out a spot here and there, you wont hurt it a bit, but if you were to cut the whole liner out for some reason, it would indeed ruin the structural integrity of it entirely, as a sailboat....

 

[pvtpotter]

Re: Should I be worried about this? Internal fibreglass dama

Totally normal for the vintage.