Small cracks in Hunter 28.5 fresh water tank

[SirMichael]

I put my Hunter ‘88 28.5 back in the water last week. I was checking out the systems and discovered some small hair line cracks in the corners of the fresh water tank under the V-berth. It really doesn’t look too serious but I’d like to keep ahead of it.

My first thought is to use some kind of epoxy paint (something like Interlux 2000E) to seal up the corners where it’s cracking. Unfortunately I used the last of what I had, sealing up the bottom...

We use the water only for washing our hands and such, obviously, not for drinking. We’re on a fresh water lake in Minnesota.

Any other ideas on how to seal it up?

Mike

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

What's the tank made of?

--Peggie

 

[SirMichael]

Oh, sorry, it’s made of fiberglass, same as the rest of the boat with a white gel-coat.

Mike

 

[Hello Below]

Mike, I have only general information for you that I found. You can put epoxy on gelcoat (polyester resin) but not poly on Epoxy. You will want to scuff the poly a we bit to give the epoxy some bite. Just get a sanding sponge medium grade or sand paper about 120-240 and just graze the surface. Wipe clean with alcohol. JB Weld seems to be the go to product for lots of marine repair projects that requires epoxy. West System would certainly fill the bill. Here is a link from the expert.

Don Casey - Water Tank - Epoxy

 

[SirMichael]

Which is exactly what I did. I cleaned out the tank, took some sandpaper to scuff up the corners where the small cracks were and used some JB Weld to seal up the small cracks. I've been letting it harden for over a week.

If it ever stops raining (we've gotten about 2.5" of badly needed rain), I'll get up there and put water in (with a bit of bleach) to clean out the system, drain it and then refill with water.

Thanks though.

Mike

 

[MikeHoncho]

3M 5200.