Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

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mdidriksen
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Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

This picture shows what I found when I hauled out this season. These two horizontal cracks started weeping water, and I'm curious to get others views on the issue. There was a previous repair job done in this area (by a prior owner) and when you tap it with a ball peen hammer you can hear the difference. Almost sounds as if there is some slight delamination in the hull at this point. This was picked up on the survey of the boat, so I've known about it and ignored it so far (and it has been 5 years now without any issues). Because it borders on the topsides paint, I always figured that when I get the topsides painted I would have this ground out and glassed. This weeping, though, is a new one. Cause for concern? My guess is that the water got between the paint and the hull, but I probably need to sand this off and inspect it further. Sigh.

Image
Figment
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by Figment »

Yes, exploratory sanding/grinding is in order.

What's on the inside of the hull in this location? bulkheads? Tanks?
CharlieJ
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by CharlieJ »

I would darned sure grind it out and fix it. Not something to ignore
TampaBay
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by TampaBay »

It looks like the right side one, already has seen some grinding.
Paulus
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by Paulus »

Some freeze/thaw cycles might add to the damage.... agreed with the previous answers - I would find out what's there and fix it.
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Figment wrote:Yes, exploratory sanding/grinding is in order.

What's on the inside of the hull in this location? bulkheads? Tanks?

No bulkheads or tanks other than a water bladder.
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

TampaBay wrote:It looks like the right side one, already has seen some grinding.
My guess is that what is showing was due to a pressure wash when the boat was hauled. Has not been ground out.
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Paulus wrote:Some freeze/thaw cycles might add to the damage.... agreed with the previous answers - I would find out what's there and fix it.
Guess I have a new entry on the to do list ...
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Just to update this, it turns out that a prior owner built a little extra IOR bump into the hull in the early '80s, and that is what has failed. The bump adds almost 3 inches in width on either side of the boat amidships. Next time she gets painted, I plan on grinding this off and going back to the original hull shape, but for this year I'm just going to patch it up and go sailing.
TampaBay
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by TampaBay »

Holly smokes I can't believe that someone would add that much bondo to the side of a sailboat.
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

It's not just bondo. They put in three layers of foam core sandwiched between layers of fiberglass. I'm in the process of patching it now. Will post pics when I have them.
TampaBay
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by TampaBay »

You are going to need a grinder.
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earlylight
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by earlylight »

Duh !!!!!!
Dick Coerse
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TampaBay
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by TampaBay »

It was a joke.
Figment
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by Figment »

Very interested to see pics of the deconstruction/repair.

S&S 34 is a great boat, it's just crazy to think of someone trying to "improve" it, even for a rating measurement!
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Well, I can't say I understand it either. The effect of the accentuated tumblehome makes her look a lot more like a Catalina 38, also designed by Olin. Unfortunately, to fix it in the way I would like to (i.e., to take it back to the original shape) will require a new paint job after grinding everything off (and yes, I own a grinder ;-)), and that isn't in the budget at the moment. For comparison purposes, here are two photos showing the difference in tumblehome between my boat (first) and another S&S 34 (second):

Image

Image
LazyGuy
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by LazyGuy »

The boat looks a whole lot nicer than the picture I had in my mind's eye. The topsides look pretty fair. PO put a whole lot of work into that bump and it would be a whole lot of work to return it to original shape. It certainly looks like a "seal it, paint it and put her in" at least for this year. Take some time to think about taking on the project. Not sure the work would be worth the gain.
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by TampaBay »

I wonder if the PHRF rating was ever adjusted. This is such a big project, I have to wonder that it might have been done at the factory (as a prototype.)
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

So here is an update on the process of repairing this (which I plan to finish this weekend so I can finally get splashed).

When I ground open the cracks, things opened up in dramatic fashion. I stopped when I realized it went up into the topsides paint. Here are a few pictures of what I found:

Image

Looking up inside:

Image

I removed all of the wet foam core I could get to (which I believe was all of it), cleaned up the surfaces and let things dry out:

Image

I then shot some expanding foam up inside the cavity, and also used it to fill in some of the space where the hole now was. Here I'm using a flexible cutting board to hold the foam against the hull while it cures (don't tell the wife):

Image

Since then, I sanded down the foam, added a couple of layers of fiberglass, added some fairing compound, and another layer of glass. This weekend my hope is to do one or two more rounds of fairing and it will be ready for paint. I'll take some more photos next time I'm at the boat. If this were truly structural, I would probably use a different approach, but since it is really more cosmetic I'm comfortable that this will get me back on the water and when I next paint the boat I'll grind this all off to take her back to the original shape.

Cheers,

MD
mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Ready for paint:

Image
Figment
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by Figment »

Good stuff.

I love that boat.
galleywench
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by galleywench »

I'm curious, is the expanding foam you used something like this product:
http://store.hamiltonmarine.com/browse. ... wKBLnw_wcB
1963 Rhodes 19 #731
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mdidriksen
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by mdidriksen »

Yes, that is exactly the stuff. It worked ok. I wanted a closed cell foam and that was the only one I found that I could shoot out of a can, which was necessary given that I couldn't pour it but instead had to get it up inside the cavity. I didn't take a picture of it, but the first round of foam was done with a thin plywood form taped over the cavity, with holes punched in it that I could shoot the foam through and up.
galleywench
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Re: Weeping Crack in Hull/Paint

Post by galleywench »

Excellent. It never even occurred to me to use closed cell foam for projects of that nature. I already have something in mind. Thanks.
1963 Rhodes 19 #731
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