Damaged Iron Keel

[mister_j]

I know there have been lots of posts on repairing and sealing iron keels, and I've read lots of 'em. Another question, though. This year the boat yard had some sort of "problem" hauling my Hunter 28.5, and knocked out some areas of epoxy on my keel, exposing large sections of iron. I'm worried:

A) that the yard may have actually dropped the boat in the yard, in which case I would think there may be damage to both the keel joint and the hull where the keel bolts attach,

B) and that if I or the yard reseal the keel, that the new epoxy might not join well to the old.

I had originally planned to redo the keel this year, but after a careful examination in the spring, before commissioning, I decided that it was in decent enough shape to not worry for a few more years. Murphy's law, I guess. Now I'd like to simply repair it, but I'm not sure the new epoxy will bond well to the old.

One more detail: I'm going to talk to the yard to see if they'll own up to their careless handling, and repair it themselves. Like most sailors, I'd rather do all repairs myself, and if the yard makes the repair, I worry about the care they'll use in cleaning the iron and keeping it dry before fairing.

What would you do?

 

[Steve Dion]

I would report this to your insurance company now. If it turns up that there is some hidden damage, they can go after the yard.

 

[mister_j]

Good idea, Steve. That'll be the FIRST thing I do. Thanks

 

[Manny]

After contacting your insurance company I would also hire a competent surveyor to inspect the keel and hull to look for any signs of damage. I would talk to the yard owners and let them know what you plan to do, hopefully they will cover the costs of the survey.

Manny

 

[peptobysmol]

All the above are good ideas, I'm a little skeptical of how it may unfold. For instance... do you have chunks of epoxy as proof that this happened moving the boat? Do you have written statements saying the boatyard had a "problem" hauling it? Before and after pics?
Not trying to imply anything, just stating you'll likely have to prove that it was the boatyard and not an accidental grounding that caused the damage.
HTH and good luck!