Still Too Many Blisters??

[rpell1@msn.com]

Hi all,

I know I posted this topic before, but I am still concerned that maybe I missed something? I contacted Catalina and explained the 8 blisters on one side of the hull and 7 more on the other side. In addition, about 14 blisters on the rudder.

The response I got was that it may have been attibutable to a change in environment. Well, I did buy the boat in Georgia and had it shipped tNew York LAST December. But, it still doesn't sound right.

Has anyone had this many blisters on their Catalinas? If so, did you ever figure out why and once repaired, did any blisters re-appear?

Lastly, could there be something I am doing wrong regarding the maintenance of the hull? The boat was painted with an ablative when I bought her and I added another coat of ablative on top a year later. That is all that I have done so far.

Any feedback would be appreciated. Merry Christmas to all...

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

About the only certainty on which you can rely is that there is no rule when it comes to the appearance of blisters. Certain resins were more prone to absorption but that too is limited to older boats.
Bottom paint is not a deterrent to blistering nor is it intended to be. If you or a previous owner sanded the hull such that you/he cut through the gelcoat, that could promote the problem.
About the only thing you can try once the hull begins to blister is to carefully get the hull down to bare gelcoat and apply a barrier paint before bottom painting but this too may not solve the problem if moisture is present in the core.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Don't sweat it. Really. We have a 24 year old boat and we just hauled it for the fifth time since we've owned her from 1998. Dime to quarter sized blisters, NONE are structural.

If your boat boat is still under warranty, you may have an issue with the factory. If not?...

 

[rpell1@msn.com]

None of mine seem to be structural. None were deeper than the gelcoat. I popped them, flushed them out and then ground out the delaminated areas. These turned out to be about 4 to 6" in diam. The rudder blisters are all around 1 to 3". I am letting them all dry out until the Spring before I repair them.

Is any one epoxy better than the rest for blister repair? How about a good barrier coat? Any recommendations?

Thanks for the response.