Wet deck?

[Tim R.]

I had my boat surveyed by a reputable surveyor. He found moisture down the stb side of the deck. No delam or soft spots but his(and my) meter pegged. He suggested I rebed the stanchions which I had planned to do anyway. He also instructed me to drill a 1 1/2 inch hole with a hole saw and dig out as much mush as I could and then fill with thickened epoxy. I already knew to do this but at least he did not say to just rebed them as some others might suggest.

Here is a video of what I found on every stanchion base:

http://www.treilley.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album47&id=pict0009_xvid

I do not doubt that the wood has some moisture content but his meter suggested it was saturated and rotten. This has caused much stress for both myself and the buyer. The buyer is much happier after showing him what I found especially since I had already conceded a couple thou for the issue.

What are your thoughts?

BTW, the port side meters completely dry.

 

[Bob S]

Tim,

If you found the wood saturated would you have continued to drill it out? I'd love to see what you do next.


I just removed one stanchion that I thought was leaking. Catalina uses a 1/2-13 threaded post and (2) 1/4-20 screws. I have a little moisture in the post area but not in the 2 screw holes. I picked up some cabosil filler and syringes today. Now I am thinking of doing my starboard side this spring and the post side next. It is a bear removing them I had to use a dremel tool to grind enough clearance to gain access to the underside.

Bet you'll miss her!

 

[Tim R.]

Bob, if I found mush or soft wood I would have dug out as much as I could and then filled with Cabosil thickened epoxy and redrilled the bolt holes. Bedded it all with Butyl.

I replaced my clutches last year and did find mush under one of them. I overdrilled the holes, dug out all the mush and filled, redrilled and bedded.

We will miss her. The new owner wants me to help sail her to the Chesapeake so I will at least get one last sail. We will be coming through your neighborhood which will feel a little like closure as we found her in Mattapoisett in 2006.

 

[Maine Sail]

Tim,

It is not uncommon for core to read wet and be wet but not yet brown or rotted. If the core got wet then the fittings were sealed it may not rot rapidly as rot generally requires some oxygen to speed the process. The problem with 30% plus readings is that they can sometimes go both ways. I've seen what looked like coffee grounds and nearly new and well adhered balsa all with the same reading. You can also get an area that is rotted next to one that looks like just damp balsa. Rot usually sounds out badly though and non rot but wet can still sound ok.

This whole section read 30% or better yet only the areas that are showing some brown were rotting. This stuff was still very, very well adhered to the skins in the non brownish areas...

 

[FastOlson]

hammers and meters

I would suggest that both the hammer and the meter readings need some interpretation.
I once had an expert (really he was) do a full tap on our whole cored deck on the prior boat. He found some odd sounds around one stanchion base and suggested that I open up the screw holes for a probing. I did. Dry as the Sahara. What we found was a small area of dry laminate about 4 inches by 2 in that area. Injected some resin and bolted the base back down with new sealant.

Someone else just applied a new moisture meter to most of the deck on our present boat a week ago. Meter was in the green thruout. Since the deck and cockpit sole walks and thumps solidly, this was additionally nice to know. Also, Ericson used really good sealant under all fittings -- anything I have needed to remove over the years has been really tough to un-stick!

Hope the new owner of Tim's Ericson appreciates just how much boat he has! It represents top-notch improvements on a strong foundation.

Cheers,
L