ODAY DSII small cracks in hull

[patriciasailing]

Thanks Brian. I appreciate your time to reply with all this information!

Regards,

 

[Sunbird22358]

Hello again..... I started grinding the cracks on the hull and more water came out, so after enlarging the cracks I decided to make a viewing hole on the cockpit sole and found lots of water which I vacuumed out.

Question: Did I make the hole on the wrong place that might compromise the integrity of the sailboat? I made the hole in the middle on the farthest aft part of the cockpit sole, on the elevated sole. What I ended cutting out looks like a fiberglassed foam shaped like a backbone.

If this is the wrong place for the viewing port or should I finish it, and if it is on the wrong place can it be fixed? how?

Thanks again everyone!

Patricia

Well, it sounds like O'DAY was still building the cockpit sole in 1984 the same as 1979! I remember that the first Winter after I bought my DS II, I thought the cockpit sole seemed a a little "springy" aft of the CB trunk, so I decided to try to inspect the core for delamination. I cut out a 4" hole to install an inspection port about 6-12" aft of the CB trunk. What I found was that the was no core, just a fiberglass panel about 1/8" thick that was supported by a glassed-in foam "beam" (the fiberglass actually provides the strength, the foam is just to give the glass shape as it cures. WOOPS! What do I do now?? I just cut through the support for the deck!

OK, don't panic! What I did was to cut 2 pieces of marine plywood (about 3/8" thick +/-) to fit around the hole and then secured the deck plate (inspection port) to the cockpit sole using bolts through those plywood pieces. I also bolted through the 2 ends of the fiberglass beam. I wish I had a picture of this, but could try to take a few pics next weekend when I am aboard my boat. I did use a good marine sealant between the deck plate frame and the cockpit sole to avoid leaks. Below are 2 pics of the piece that I cut out, that was 19 years ago, cockpit sole is still as solid as it was before I "severed" that beam..... so don't worry, just splint the gap like I did.

I found a pic showing the location of my cut-out, still searching for a pic of the underside (I have had too much fun sticking my digital camera into nooks and crannies of my boat!) Also note that I added a small deck across the aft end of the cockpit, not to confuse any other DS II owners who look at this photo.

 

[patriciasailing]

Thanks Sunbird22358. That cutout looks exactly like mine, but I did it farther aft, behind the small border showing on your cockpit sole picture. Glad all is not lost!