Hi all, I recently had to have my '79 H33 surveyed due to a change in insurance companies. The results have me a little befuddled. First of all, the results state that,essentially, the whole cabin top and most of the decks suffer from a moisture level of 30% (or more). I think this is a little high, but the only DIY remedy I can think of is the "drill and fill with epoxy" routine. Would this be a good enough fix? Although the surveyor said he found all this moisture present, he did not find any voids. Secondly, The survey informed me that the cockpit sole was very high in moisture content and there were a couple af void areas present. My thought on repairing this is to glass in a new piece of plywood over the existing sole. Would this be sufficient or is it really necessary to cut out the old before putting in the new? By the way, yes, I did check out the archives, but it still left me a little confused. Something else that might be worth mentioning is that I don't seem to feel any sponginess in the sole, and I'm a big guy (6'3" & 250 lbs). Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!!
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Daryl
You Asked for it!
Let me start by saying that moisture meters are very innacurate and results are subject to interpertation. Surveyors generally use them on prepurchase surveys to impress clients with their tools and fancy software. For insurance surveys I would ask he either leave it home of not put his findings in writing. It's an old Hunter. Go Sailing. If it ain't broke don't fix it. If you lay up the boat for winter maybe drill a few holes up from the bottom to vent the suspected wet area
Let me start by saying that moisture meters are very innacurate and results are subject to interpertation. Surveyors generally use them on prepurchase surveys to impress clients with their tools and fancy software. For insurance surveys I would ask he either leave it home of not put his findings in writing. It's an old Hunter. Go Sailing. If it ain't broke don't fix it. If you lay up the boat for winter maybe drill a few holes up from the bottom to vent the suspected wet area
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KennyH
I agree with Daryl
I agree with Daryl. Sounds like you really don't have much of a problem. If the deck or cabin top has lots of flex then I might consider a rapair. Same for the cockpit sole. Again if lots of flex I might consider a repair. I think the plywood would be overkill. I had an owner in the next slip use the injection of west epoxy into the decks etc with very satisfactory results. I think his was more than just a meter check. Just jump around a little and if it appears sound it probably is sound.
I agree with Daryl. Sounds like you really don't have much of a problem. If the deck or cabin top has lots of flex then I might consider a rapair. Same for the cockpit sole. Again if lots of flex I might consider a repair. I think the plywood would be overkill. I had an owner in the next slip use the injection of west epoxy into the decks etc with very satisfactory results. I think his was more than just a meter check. Just jump around a little and if it appears sound it probably is sound.
I would also wonder about a high moisture
reading with no evidence of water incursion in the areas you mention. If you are in Conn. I bet the humidity of the air is more than 30%, gotta wonder if the gauge was being used right.
reading with no evidence of water incursion in the areas you mention. If you are in Conn. I bet the humidity of the air is more than 30%, gotta wonder if the gauge was being used right.
An accurate test
The simplest test is to sound the deck with the butt of a screwdriver. A sharp "rap" indicates a sound core. A dull "thunk" indicates deteriorated wood. A definitive and (slightly) destructive test for problems with wood core: 1. Pick a key area of the deck. (I suggest near the mast step.) 2. Drill a 1/4 inch hole through the wood core, but not through the fiberglass layer under the wood. (Note - some boats (like mine) have two wood cores right under the mast. So the deck is thicker under the immediate area of the mast. If this is the case, you want to go through both layers of wood, but _not_ through the bottom fiberglass layer.) 3. Examine the wood chips brought up by the drill. Nice clean wood means you have _no_ problem with moisture at that point in the deck. Anything else from nothing to black muck to rotted wood reveals that you do have a problem. 4. If you don't have a problem, (or don't want to do anything about it now) just fill up the hole with epoxy, and relax! Daryl is right about moisture meters. I wouldn't worry about the cockpit sole unless/until you have a structural problem you can feel. By the way, my purchase survey said that there was a problem at the mast step (from both sounding and the moisture meter.) The surveyor didn't think it required immediate action, so I took his advice. Our second year, the cabin liner began to wrap around the compression post. The complete story of our fix is in the archives. You could DIY, we paid about $1,100 for a professional fix. David Lady Lillie
The simplest test is to sound the deck with the butt of a screwdriver. A sharp "rap" indicates a sound core. A dull "thunk" indicates deteriorated wood. A definitive and (slightly) destructive test for problems with wood core: 1. Pick a key area of the deck. (I suggest near the mast step.) 2. Drill a 1/4 inch hole through the wood core, but not through the fiberglass layer under the wood. (Note - some boats (like mine) have two wood cores right under the mast. So the deck is thicker under the immediate area of the mast. If this is the case, you want to go through both layers of wood, but _not_ through the bottom fiberglass layer.) 3. Examine the wood chips brought up by the drill. Nice clean wood means you have _no_ problem with moisture at that point in the deck. Anything else from nothing to black muck to rotted wood reveals that you do have a problem. 4. If you don't have a problem, (or don't want to do anything about it now) just fill up the hole with epoxy, and relax! Daryl is right about moisture meters. I wouldn't worry about the cockpit sole unless/until you have a structural problem you can feel. By the way, my purchase survey said that there was a problem at the mast step (from both sounding and the moisture meter.) The surveyor didn't think it required immediate action, so I took his advice. Our second year, the cabin liner began to wrap around the compression post. The complete story of our fix is in the archives. You could DIY, we paid about $1,100 for a professional fix. David Lady Lillie
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Scott
What does the survey say?
Ernie, Is there any indication of a moisture problem in the cabin top and decks, other than what the moisture meter says? Like Daryl says, see if the surveyor will leave out the readings if they are questionable. I would be reluctant to start making repairs if you can't even flex the fiberglass, regardless of what the meter reads.
Ernie, Is there any indication of a moisture problem in the cabin top and decks, other than what the moisture meter says? Like Daryl says, see if the surveyor will leave out the readings if they are questionable. I would be reluctant to start making repairs if you can't even flex the fiberglass, regardless of what the meter reads.
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