Inside repair of fiberglass & plywood deck

[John Connolly]

Inside the cabin, I have some areas in the "ceiling" of a sailboat where moisture has caused some corrosion.

The cause of the corrosion has been, in theory, fixed as the various nearby bolts through the deck have been removed and re-bedded.

I have drilled holes from below to allow the moisture to drain and now that they appear dry, I need to put some filler in these overhead areas.

Any suggestion as to the specific epoxy to use and the best way to work in these areas where gravity is an issue in this overhead area.

thanks

john

 

[Bob McL]

When I have encountered this problem I resorted to an 1/8th-in thick piece of doorskin (plywood) covered with Saran Wrap. To hold it up I cut wood strips very thin so they would easily bend. I then cut them about an inch longer than the distance from the deck (floor - counter - what ever was directly below the area being repaired) to the plywood and wedged them in place. The wood strips act as a spring and hold the patch support in place until it has cured. Be sure you have some paper or cloth in place under the repair in case of drips. I usually add micro balloons to the epoxy mix to make it thicker and avoid runs.

 

[John Connolly]

Question for Bob L

Bob,

That is a good idea on those strips of wood. Any thoughts on the epoxy itself and troweling the material up into those above areas?

thanks

John c

When I have encountered this problem I resorted to an 1/8th-in thick piece of doorskin (plywood) covered with Saran Wrap. To hold it up I cut wood strips very thin so they would easily bend. I then cut them about an inch longer than the distance from the deck (floor - counter - what ever was directly below the area being repaired) to the plywood and wedged them in place. The wood strips act as a spring and hold the patch support in place until it has cured. Be sure you have some paper or cloth in place under the repair in case of drips. I usually add micro balloons to the epoxy mix to make it thicker and avoid runs.

 

[Ross]

Re: Question for Bob L

I persume that the holes are small and a putty knife will be adequate to fill them. But if the holes are large you need to plug them with solid material and then fill the gaps. The epoxy should be the consistancy of peanutbutter.

 

[Bob McL]

Check out the "Epoxy School" on this site: http://masepoxies.com/