Used Boat Blisters and Hydrolysis - Part 9

9/21/2008

6:15AM

Since the last posting, we completed the final epoxy barrier coats on the spots where the jack stands and blocks were. We then had to overcoat those posts with bottom paint too. In the midst of all this activity, I repainted the dark blue boot stripe on our trawler as well.

Well the day finally arrived, Friday September 19, 2008. It was time to splash the Patricia Ann. It had been 102 days since she had seen the water.

Now keep in mind, that storing a boat out of the water for this long will be cause for concern. Why? The systems have not been used and an idle boat will usually not work as planned.

The launch was made and I had David, the yards Master Mechanic on board with me to inspect his below the waterline work for leaks; there were new sanitation hoses, a new Electra Scan, the rudders had been dropped, and the trim tabs had been removed. No leaks found!

A quick run to our "new" slip was made without trouble; the good looking Swedish twins performed their best as usual. But as expected, we had problems; the aft AC will not work, there was a cracked water main in the forward stateroom and the freezer will not power up. Go figure?

The girl was absolutely filthy, everywhere. So yesterday I repaired the water leak and began cleaning her up. Today, we'll complete the cleaning. Tomorrow I'll address the AC and freezer issue.

It's sure good to be back home!

Used Boat Blisters and Hydrolysis - Part 8

9/8/2008
2:30PM

Step 6
Today we began the final step in the barrier coating of the hull.
We chose to use the Sea Hawk brand of epoxy and it's easy to use and provides a thicker coating than does the Interlux. Three coats will be applied to the hull by hand roller, allowing three hours drying between coats.


Here is the port side with one coat of barrier coating. Looks pretty good huh? Now for some of you that may be thinking about what we'll do about the areas where she's resting on the blocks and jackstands, we'll move the boat and coat them when we have completed the rest.


Three coats of barrier coats have been applied; next we'll move the boat so the remaining spots under the jacks and blocks can be reached.



After than, two coats of bottom paint and we're all done.



It's been 92 days for the duration of this project. If you choose to undertake a blister project on your used trawler, motor yacht, or sailboat, just remember, you can't rush it.
Mike

Used Boat Blisters and Hydrolysis - Part 7

9/2/2008
3:00 PM

Week 13

Today was the beginning of Step 4, Filling the Bottom.

Tom was here right on time and after a few brief showers got to work.

Tom mixed up a mixture of epoxy resin and 410 microlight filler, mixing it into a peanut butter like consistency.

After rolling clear epoxy resin onto the hull and allowing it to become tacky, Tom troweled the mixture onto the hull filling small voids as he went.

On Wednesday Step 5, Tom was back at work, even with the threat of the Tropical Storm Hanna. Tom again faired the epoxy to a smooth surface with 60 grit paper.

Its now time for the barrier coats on our used boat.