Boat Pox On a 192

[Art Devlin]

Hi,I just bought a 1986 192. After I cleaned the bottom, which has never been painted,I noticed many small blisters. After I opened about 25 of them to start repairs, I went online and did some research. This condition seems to indicate a serious problem with the original gel coat quality. I intend to epoxy the opened ones, leave the rest alone, and paint the bottom with a barrier coat to at least arrest the condition. Removing the entire gel coat is not an option at this time. Has any one had a similiar experience?regards,Art

 

[J P Turkey]

Don't Pox My boat

I have owned a 1986 O'Day 192 for the last two years. I bought it from a good friend. I have had no problems with the hull at all. previous owner painted the under water part of of hull with Interlux Fiberglass Bottomkote 6 years ago when when he left it in the water for a couple of seasons. Our seasons are short up here in Minnesota. As the Bottomkote wears off I have not replaced it or even touched it up. I trailer it to several lakes in a season and leave it only for a few weeks in one lake. Obviously cool fresh water has less effect on the fiberglass. However, my hull is in perfect shape. I did a little preventative touch up on the rudder where it had taken a beating on the leading edge. However that took only a few minutes with 3M 5200. I do not have any experience with blisters and hope you find a good and cheap response.Have you rigged a spinnaker on yor 192? I have been thinking of doing so but am stuck in inertia. If you have any ideas about putting some blocks aft to handle a spinnaker let me me know. I hope you have better experiances soon.We just had a wonderful weekend on Lake Pepin (a wide spot on the Mississippi just south of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul). It is two miles wide and twenty miles long with beautiful bluffs on both the Minnesota and Wisconsin sides with old old river towns on each side.Good luck,With a boat I like,John Staloch

 

[Dave K]

My 192 has some blisters too

My 192 (also an '86) sat in the mud behind a houseboat for several years and developed some blisters. The boat had bottom paint but no barrier coat. I would estimate there were 30-50 blisters, most the size of a penny. Since I am dry-sailing the boat I haven't opened any of them to see what will happen as the hull dries out. My impression after three months is that the number of visible blisters is decreasing and those that are still visible are not so prominent. If you can keep your boat out of the water for awhile, I'd suggest you let it dry out before applying the barrier coat. From what I've read on blisters, the barrier coat is a critical step in ensuring a good repair. Since the barrier coat is waterproof, any moisture already in the hull will be trapped there if you apply the barrier without drying the hull and blisters out first.