Uncured Fiberglass Interior!

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Peter C.

I own a 1995 Catalina 320. Surprisingly, there are some areas of the interior hull surface that are still a bit tacky. These are in the aft lazarette storage areas and in some of the interior storage spaces where the hull is exposed. Problem is that anything left resting against the hull sticks to it and comes off with a permanent white stain. Is there anything I can coat these areas with to complete the curing process or will a coat of paint do the trick?
 
Dec 2, 1999
15,184
Hunter Vision-36 Rio Vista, CA.
Check out this site!

Peter: Check out this site. www.fiberglass101.com You may be able to contact them and ask. I would think that if you just paint some mold release wax on the area, it would cure.
 
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Peter Albright

Heat is what you need

I only know this works with polyester. If it is something else, you can probably remove the uncured with olvent, and repair with epoxy. If the areas are tacky, but hard, try some acetone to remove the surface tackiness. If the areas are tacky, but soft, try a heat gun. Polyester resin is cured by heat. Not a lot of heat, and no flames please! If you can heat the overall area, and maintain it for 15 minutes, this will probably do the trick.
 
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mark v.

HOT COAT!

clean the area with aceatone as was previously sugested, mix up some gelcoat and add 1/4 to a 1/3 more catalyst than you would normaly with the same amount of gelcoat.apply it with a 'chip brush'.catalina uses a 'cloud white' for their bilges,lockers,etc...it does not necessarly have to have wax in it ,you can spray P.V.A. on it after you have applied it to the problem area.heat is a definite factor in getting gelcoat to cure.use a heat lamp,the kind with a clamp ,i have used a hair drier but my wife never saw the humor of resin,gelcoat or paint left on it! in shaded area's it's a must. outside in the sun it's usually no problem but boat interiors you'll need it.get the surface area WARMED up first,NOT HOT! be careful about ventilation when brushing it out,the fumes will disapate after a bit.its really easy to do this kind of project have fun and let us know how it turns out for you!
 
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Jim WIllis

I am wondering if wiping some Superwax ...?

Our Superwax has a self curing resin and is reslated to mould release anyway. One person who does professional fiberglass work uses it on the curing surface. e-mail to www.IslandGirlProducts.com with mailing address and I will send you a small sample to try - actually might be enough anyway. I would not recommend acetone on gelcoat as it also dissolves completely cured gelcoat. Use a little of our cleaner that will clean up uncured resin but not cured resin. I can also put a little of this in the sample pack. All you have to do is e-mail me with the results. THanks Jim Willis
 
Dec 2, 1999
15,184
Hunter Vision-36 Rio Vista, CA.
Sailnet article by Capt. Al

"Brush Cleaner (not to be confused with turpentine or mineral spirits)removes exhaust stains from fiberglass/gelcoat. It also cleans uncured fiberglass resin and unhardened epoxy and is good for cleaning vinyl."
 
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LaDonna Bubak - CatalinaOwners

Be careful with Brush Cleaner

Like most things that work well & easily, brush cleaner/thinner is highly toxic so wear rubber gloves! LaDonna
 
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mark v.

using aceatone for prepwork

i did not want to imply to use aceatone to completely clean off the old gelcoat,but to only do a quick swipe with a towel that has a fair amount of solvent on it.the gelcoat will be tacky and that is the time to do the hotcoat.latex gloves ,plenty of ventilation and if available a respirator are highly recomended.
 
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