bubbles in fiberglas Cat 30 1983

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Alex

I've been looking at Cat30s and am interested in buying one. While looking at the last one the broker told me the hull fiberglas had five or six bubbles on it but it wasn't a problem. What is the significance of the "bubbles" and should I be concerned. Alex
 
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James Taylor

Blister Problem

I just bought a 1984 Cat 30 with some blister problem on the bottom. If your serious about the boat, spend the money to have the boat surveyed. Most blister problems are cosmetic only but should be fix eventually. Good luck, the Cat 30's are a great boat!
 
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LaDonna Bubak - Planet Catalina

Blisters

Don't fret! Blisters are not that uncommon and quite usual in older boats. Boy, you should have seen my C27 when I hauled her out!!! We're talking THOUSANDS of blisters. If this one only has a few, count yourself lucky. Anyway, to answer your question, blisters usually are caused when the fiberglass is esin-poor. This means that during the layup process, this area received less polyester (or epoxy) resin than normal. This is not usually a structural problem, it just means that if a little water somehow works its way through the gelcoat to the fiberglass, it seeps in a little. This causes a little pimple to form in the gelcoat, which is the "blister". Sometimes, they can even just be surface blisters, where the water has just formed a pimple between the fiberglass & gelcoat. These are even less of a problem. To fix them, if you're interested, you simply grind, dig, drill, etc out the blister, so there is no more water left in it and then let it dry out. Once it is dry, you fill it with epoxy & fiberglass (although the actual fix-method is varied from yard to yard, sailor to sailor), sand it fair & paint over it. Simple yet messy. But James was definitely correct, have any boat you buy surveyed first. Blisters can either bring the cost down or they'll get fixed before the deal is done. Either way, blisters (usually) are more cosmetic than anything. Good luck - C30s are GREAT boats! LaDonna
 
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Dan Ruffin

Just Bought One Also

I just recently purchased a 1982 Catalina 30. The surveyor found some blistering also, but more importantly.. signs of "first layer delamination" basically a technical term for water in areas of the fiberglass hull. He said the most basic minimum cure was to haul the boat every year for the winter to let it "dry out". He said the hull glass will eventually have to be stripped and refinished. An expensive task. My local yard says about $225 a linear foot. (times 30...) I was able to bargain a significantly lower price for the boat based on this info. I plan to haul it this winter and have it evaluated in the spring again. Dan
 
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