Diagnosis: cracked & flaking gel coat. HELP

[Red Ryder]

Well I got bad BOAT news today. She is a 1984 O'Day 222. I took my girl to Little Rock toady for maintenance and repair. One of the things I had thought about was to have her professionally painted. The minimum was to have the bottom painted. I was shown where the last bottom paint job was applied over the previous bottom coat by the prior owner. It hid the fact that the gel coat below the water line is blistering, cracking and flaking off. In places you could see the fiberglass on the hull. Not happy... I like every thing prefect. The owner of the shop is an experience and knowledgeable sailor... his suggestion was to sail the boat like she is... and pull her out of the slip and power spray her a couple times a year to keep the bottom from fouling. Suggestions?

 

[Joe5893]

I used to own a Catalina 22 that had some blistering. I sanded off all of the old bottom paint to get to the gel coat. I then applied Interlux barrier coat. Here is a description of it from Defender.com.

Interprotect 2000E is a 2-Part Epoxy Coating used to protect fiberglass hulls from water absorption that can lead to a saturated hull and osmotic blistering. It is also a key part of Interlux's system to repair gelcoat that has already been damaged by osmotic blistering.

Features:

• Two-part epoxy water barrier with Micro-Plates that create an overlapping barrier to eliminate any direct path for water migration.
• Available in two colors, Gray and White, so you can alternate colors to ensure full coverage
• Up to two weeks is allowed between coats of InterProtect 2000E
• Fast drying, easy application
• Sag resistant to insure the elimination of sags and runs during application
• Can be used above and below the waterline as a universal primer for all surfaces and has proven itself to be an excellent primer for all metals.
• Coverage:
  • 240 Sq Ft / Gallon when sprayed
  • 180 Sq Ft / Gallon when brushed

This stuff comes in gray and white, get both colors as they recommend you put 4-5 coats on, alternate colors to ensure good coverage. I am not saying this was an easy project, but I think once it was done it was worth it.

Joe

 

[RichBone]

Power washing a few times a year is not nearly enough to keep the bottom clear of growth.
Two or three weeks in the water with no bottom paint up here on Lake Erie is enough to noticeably make a difference in the performance of the boat. In two weeks you can run your hand over the bottom and feel slimy gritty things growing.
You should redo the bottom. That's the only way to fix it. It can be done on the trailer. Gonna be a lot of work. Check around for someone doing sand blasting. Saves a ton of work and is whole lot safer health wise. Since it's on a trailer you can take it anywhere you need to. I had mine sand blasted. $200. It would have been cheap at there times that price.
If the topsides are in good shape and just oxidized why don't you consider wet sanding and polishing the hull. Fairly easy, goes quicker than what you think it would and almost foolproof. I did it. Keith did it. and there's plenty of info here on doing it. A lot cheaper than painting.

Here's what my 83 Oday looked like when I splashed her last year after a two year rebuild.

Rich

 

[emergpa1]

Man, you have a 22 foot boat for a reason..... They r easy to maintain. Do not pay anyone to do your bottom. Do it yourself. They yard is feeding you a line of bull. Crazing of gell coat on the bottom? That is BS! Just clean it off with a power sprayer ,then finish cleaning it off with a green scrubbing sponge(s) then paint it with ablative paint, and stick that baby back into the water. It is just that simple. Don't sweat blisters, don't sweat crazing. As long as there r no large deep grounding cracks in your hull ( there wont be) then just do it . This ain't no thinking thing. Don't think about it, Just do it and move on. No kidding.
Paint? Here's your sign....

 

[emergpa1]

Well I got bad BOAT news today. She is a 1984 O'Day 222. I took my girl to Little Rock toady for maintenance and repair. One of the things I had thought about was to have her professionally painted. The minimum was to have the bottom painted. I was shown where the last bottom paint job was applied over the previous bottom coat by the prior owner. It hid the fact that the gel coat below the water line is blistering, cracking and flaking off. In places you could see the fiberglass on the hull. Not happy... I like every thing prefect. The owner of the shop is an experience and knowledgeable sailor... his suggestion was to sail the boat like she is... and pull her out of the slip and power spray her a couple times a year to keep the bottom from fouling. Suggestions?

On the re-read, let me restate:. I agree with the shop. Sail her. But at least scrub and paint her with ablative as above. As for sail boat refinishing above the waterline see this forum for threads like "sailors helping sailors" etc.

 

[emergpa1]

Power washing a few times a year is not nearly enough to keep the bottom clear of growth.
Two or three weeks in the water with no bottom paint up here on Lake Erie is enough to noticeably make a difference in the performance of the boat. In two weeks you can run your hand over the bottom and feel slimy gritty things growing.
You should redo the bottom. That's the only way to fix it. It can be done on the trailer. Gonna be a lot of work. Check around for someone doing sand blasting. Saves a ton of work and is whole lot safer health wise. Since it's on a trailer you can take it anywhere you need to. I had mine sand blasted. $200. It would have been cheap at there times that price.
If the topsides are in good shape and just oxidized why don't you consider wet sanding and polishing the hull. Fairly easy, goes quicker than what you think it would and almost foolproof. I did it. Keith did it. and there's plenty of info here on doing it. A lot cheaper than painting.

Here's what my 83 Oday looked like when I splashed her last year after a two year rebuild.

Rich

Ok rich, but shards out this shine?

 

[Joe11688]

Well I got bad BOAT news today. She is a 1984 O'Day 222. I took my girl to Little Rock toady for maintenance and repair. One of the things I had thought about was to have her professionally painted. The minimum was to have the bottom painted. I was shown where the last bottom paint job was applied over the previous bottom coat by the prior owner. It hid the fact that the gel coat below the water line is blistering, cracking and flaking off. In places you could see the fiberglass on the hull. Not happy... I like every thing prefect. The owner of the shop is an experience and knowledgeable sailor... his suggestion was to sail the boat like she is... and pull her out of the slip and power spray her a couple times a year to keep the bottom from fouling. Suggestions?

I don't think that it's such a big thing Red. I read where someone said that hull blisters can be compared to a young boy with pimples. They can be fixed. Who really cares about the condition of the gelcoat under the old bottom paint? If its flaking, you have the guy sand it out, fill in the gouges, and finish it off with a barrier coat. Then, you can decide on a bottom paint to use for your sailing area. Talk to some people at the slips and ask them what they are using. If you do purchase a bottom paint make sure that it's a good bottom paint.
As far as the DIY on bottom paint goes; if you can afford to have someone do it, go for it. I can think of a lot of special little jobs that I thoroughly enjoy doing on my boat and bottom painting isn't one of them. My friend Wayne hates it with a passion. He's even contemplating selling his Seaward and buying a small trailerable catboat.
I would go to another boatyard or someone who does this type of work, tell him what you want done and if he can do it, get a price off him. I would check out his work first though. Some guys who do this type of work have been known to come up short in their overall workmanship and some do excellent work. We have a fellow in my area who owns a boatyard with slips who does exceptional fiberglass repair and is able to apply a matching Gelcoat that is so good, you'd be hard pressed to tell where he made the repair. He has all the equipment and knows how to use it. I'm sure that there are a few in your area who are as good as this guy. If not, I would go out of town and find one.
Good luck Red!
Joe

 

[OdayDave]

I never had any gel coat problems on bottom of my old 222, but if I had, I would have just fixed it myself after consulting with the expertise on this site and Don Casey's book. Matching the color (which is what I'm bad at) is of no concern on the bottom and I can do simple fiberglass/gelcoat repairs on my own. I definitely wouldn't cut my sailing season short to deal with the problem unless you thought there was some type of structural issue and I can't believe there would be based on what you describe. One thing I learned over the years is that even an unhandy guy like myself can take on boat repair projects and do a decent job. My advise would be to enjoy the rest of the season and then tackle it yourself.

Dave
O'Day 25

 

[Joe11688]

I'm with you on that Dave.

 

[25yearslater]

Hey RBone. How about getting over on 'And so it begins' thread and posting your technique for sanding and polishing. That is exactly the outcome I'm looking for with YOT. What buffer speed, pads, compound(s) etc? And post that picture of the boat on the trailer, that is gorgeous.

 

[RichBone]

Hey RBone. How about getting over on 'And so it begins' thread and posting your technique for sanding and polishing. That is exactly the outcome I'm looking for with YOT. What buffer speed, pads, compound(s) etc? And post that picture of the boat on the trailer, that is gorgeous.

This is where I got all my info on polishing my hull-
http://forums.oday.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=117266

Rich

 

[Red Ryder]

Thanks everyone for the advice and help. This a fantastic forum... I have learned so much from the collective knowledge and wealth of experience. Thanks again...

 

[Joe11688]

Thanks everyone for the advice and help. This a fantastic forum... I have learned so much from the collective knowledge and wealth of experience. Thanks again...

Red,
Check your email. I just sent you a better sketch on the tension bar for your mast. Good luck with that.
Joe

 

[Red Ryder]

Thanks Joe... I received the email.

 

[Joe11688]

Maybe you could mock up a bar and flange out of wood just to make sure that the angles will come out right for your boat.

 

[Red Ryder]

Great idea...