can i postpone fixing blisters ???

[aerojet777]

Hi all,

i have about 75 blisters below the waterline all about dime to quarter size. can i postpone fixing the blisters until the next boating season ?

also i have NO barrier coat ONLY antifouling paint, boat will be in the water for total of about 3 months, then on a trailer.

Thanks for your input

c

[Randyonr3]

Forget the blisters, thro her in the water, and go sailing...

[aerojet777]

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

Forget the blisters, thro her in the water, and go sailing...

Thanks Randy thats great news. but why is everyone so adamint about repairing blisters and applying a barrier coat to keep out moisture ? my boat will be in the water for 3 months during the summer season (in the slip) and i thought since i have some blisters and no barrier coat it would hurt the fiberglass. i dont want to have to fix this now if i dont have to. i do have antifouling paint though.

[F51]

I have found that the "fix it now" group is comprised mainly of the fixers. Randy is right--go sailing. Fix the skin when you have time.

[skipmac]

Blisters and how to deal with them is almost as bad as asking about anchors, guns or catamarans.

I have had blisters on a couple of boats and had to deal with the problem on many others when I was in the business so have established some opinions.

First, how bad are the blisters and how quickly are they forming, spreading and growing; especially how deep are they?

If they have been there for years and have grown slowly and are just into the gelcoat then certainly, go sailing.

Then depending on the cause of your blister problem, how bad it is and how fast it's growing you could just ignore them for years or you might need to deal with it soon, but left alone they will keep growing and spreading/

Their is a lot of fear associated with blisters and if it's a bad case it can be justified but in most cases it isn't that serious. However I have seen boats with serious delamination that required cutting out large sections of glass to repair. I saw a Camper-Nicholson in a yard in FL once that had two or three holes cut out of the hull that were big enough to climb into the boat from under the hull. Now that will put the fear of blisters into you.

Have you popped any? How deep do they go? Is their liquid inside? Yellow/brown and smelly or clear?

[Randyonr3]

You have to understand that most of the people on this forum dont have boats and opperate from
An armchair.. and over half of those lye about having boats . Or their history, **** dude, this is the internet...
À boat never sank from blisters, and 3 months in the water wont do it any harm, if you feel frisky and want to do some work, pop the suckers and stick some paint in them..

[cabo_sailor]

I've had blisters on my last two boats, it seems a fact of life in warm water. In both cases I waited until the next haulout and then took care of them. One the first boat it looked as though it had measels so I had it sand blasted and the blisters repaired. I then applied 5 coats of barrier coat and 3 coats of bottom paint. 12 years later the blisters are gone (he docks across from me). On my current boat I had about 1-2 dozen blisters on the keel, I cleaned them out and faired them and then put bottom coat on. It took about a day and they've not come back. Perhaps a bit of overkill on the first boat but hey I was new and it was my first boat.

Sounds like you will have plenty of time to work on them if you decide you need to, meanwhile I echo the others..... go sailing while you can.

Rich

[Anonymous7500]

I have blisters on my bottom, no wait...my rudder. We aren't fixing them this year. Next fall, after seeing if they have changed, they may be repaired.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

You have to understand that most of the people on this forum dont have boats and opperate from
An armchair.. and over half of those lye about having boats . Or their history, **** dude, this is the internet...

On the other hand, there are members on here that are boat builders, designers, yard managers, experienced rebuilders and round the world sailors. I would not recommend dismissing out of hand a recommendation from someone on the forum.

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

À boat never sank from blisters,

I'm not sure I would put a lot of money on that. I don't personally know of any boats that have sunk from blisters but I have seen boats with total delamination of every layer of fiberglass, all the way through, in some spots areas 4' across. These boats would certainly have sunk if left much longer.

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

3 months in the water wont do it any harm, if you feel frisky and want to do some work, pop the suckers and stick some paint in them..

Based on the OP's description his blister case is probably quite minor 3 months in the water will not cause major harm.

[capttman]

Only thing to worry about, in my humble opinion, is the fiberglass worms to borough in the blisters.
Go sailing!!
😎⛵

[Dos Gatos]

Originally Posted by aerojet777

Hi all,
can i postpone fixing the blisters until the next boating season ?
c

You can postpone blisters until the next owner.

[daddle]

I would go sailing. They will still be there, essentially unchanged, in three months. On the other hand, grinding them out, washing, drying, filling, priming, antifoul for 75 coin size blisters is no more than a few hours work over 5 or 7 days time.

[AnchorageGuy]

Severe delamination has little to nothing to do with blisters. I have been dealing with them for decades and I think I can say, don't worry, go sailing. Blisters have never sank a boat or cause the hull to fall apart. You can never deal with them if you like, and your boat will still be safe and the sailing will be great. The only one that will complain is the next owner. Don't waste time fixing them of you plan to grind a little off and fill them in a week. They will indeed return. To fix them properly, the area that is being repaired needs to be dry to 3% or less. This can take months just sitting in the yard or less if the boat can be put in a climate controlled environment. Wait until you won't be using the boat for a while and fix them then. In the mean time, deal with other stuff that will affect your sailing pleasure. Chuck

[zeehag]

i have had 2 boats with blisters.
dont worry about them.
monitor them so you see if they tunnel, fix those that do. barrier coat when you fix those that tunnel.
otherwise, fuggedaboudit for a bit-they wont sink ye, nor will they detract from the performance of the boat.

happy sails.

[boatman61]

Go Sailing...