Hull Deck Joint Repair

[dwedeking2]

Had an accident while I was at work yesterday. My sailboat got in a fight with a trawler and lost (the trawler had a mechanical issue and smashed into the stern while under power).

Curious how others would handle the repair. I'm thinking to rebuild the area where the divot is (this is where the bow of the trawler struck) with epoxy and fiberglass cloth. Then use 3m's 5200 to reseal the hull deck joint. There is some minor cracking on the deck fiberglass (the stern rail peeled back the deck as you see in the pictures). I was going to add some cloth and epoxy to the underside of the deck to reinforce this area, then just repaint the top)

Thoughts?

[JardiTancat]

Ohh....that's nasty. I hope no one was injured. If, as you say, it was the trawlers fault, perhaps you ought to discuss the repair process/cost with him.


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[dwedeking2]

The insurance surveyor is coming out in a day or two and I'm getting estimates for the costs. While I'm waiting for the outcome of that process I'm trying to decide if I could do the work myself.

And yes, luckily no one was injured.

[appick]

I think you're going to need to examine the hull very closely for fractures in the glass then your going to need to cut and grind back to good glass and replace. Just adding some cloth to the inside is not going to get you anywhere close to where you need to be for strength.

[appick]

If insurance is paying I'd let a pro handle it if you don't have much fiberglass experience. With your backstay there the whole stern is a critical part of the structure to keep the mast up. The damage always goes much farther than you think.

[Orion Jim]

Originally Posted by appick

If insurance is paying I'd let a pro handle it if you don't have much fiberglass experience. With your backstay there the whole stern is a critical part of the structure to keep the mast up. The damage always goes much farther than you think.

Excellent advice. Heed it.

[dwedeking2]

Originally Posted by appick

If insurance is paying I'd let a pro handle it if you don't have much fiberglass experience. With your backstay there the whole stern is a critical part of the structure to keep the mast up. The damage always goes much farther than you think.

Appick. Good point, I agree.

[roverhi]

The hardest part of any repair is getting to look nothing has ever happened to the boat. You should be able to do the structural with a lot of boat yoga and saturating yourself in resin if you have to work on the inside. Hard to see from the pictures but looks like you will have cut out a fairly substantial section of the deck and remold it. That alone is a pretty large task akin to carving a sculpture. Then there is matching the gel coat. Know of a guy with a less damaging altercation got his entire boat painted because of the color matching issue.

It it was me, would find the most expensive and presumably best glass person in the area and have the other guys insurance cover it.

[sailcrazy]

We've never had damage as extensive as yours, but have "enjoyed" a few leaks via the deck/hull joint. Based on our experience, I would NOT recommend 5200 as a sealer. We've done that a couple times, putting a 45* bevel both inside and outside the caprail, but it never lasts. The 5200 sets up fine, but the flexing and movement, or???? cause the bead to wx check, crack......and then leak some more. We've had much better success using 4200 as a sealer-it seems to stay flexible and work alot better.......when you get to that point in your repair!

[dwedeking2]

Yea, I'm shelving my idea of a self-repair at this point. Talked with a local fiberglass repair person today and it's looking like a lot more than just the minor cosmetic work and resealing the joint than I originally thought. If insurance wasn't a factor and I had to save the boat on my own dime I'd probably take it on but since I didn't cause it and there are means to do it right I'll just let a pro take care of it.

[carlheintz]

I vote with appick! Let a pro do it... and don't just let the insurance company select the cheapest quote. Vet the people.... this is a seriously important part of your boat, and fiberglass ruptures and laminate failures can be difficult to spot, and tricky to repair.

BTW, looks like a nice boat... a shame!!!

[baycruiser]

Yes it sounds like you are up for it an easy repair stay away from everyone else and get it done simply and qiuck and save yourself and the trawlerman headaches with boatbiulders surveyors and ins cos....john

[notiesbob]

Damaged stern rail = need a qualified marine stainless shop to create a new one
Damaged teak = need a qualified carpenter with marine experience to create & install new material
Damaged hull & deck = need a qualified and experienced fiberglas repair person to isolate hull from deck (open joint far enough back to uncompromised material), execute repair, match gelcoat color & reassemble
All this adds up to getting a pro on all fronts
BTW - you should still crawl in the hole, take pictures to record before damage, evaluate other potential damage (any wiring in this area - 12v, VHF, gps, etc), interior joinery like laminated structure plywood. Be on site regularly to keep an eye on the work being done (without being a PITA) and establish a start finish timeline once the insurance has authorized work. Be prepared that it will still cost you money - deductible, age related depreciation by insurance (our new rudder was only covered to 50% because it was 34 years old), and of course any changes you determine that make sense while this work is being done.

[dwedeking2]

Notiesbob -

The insurance company surveyor is coming out tomorrow. The surveyor told me to get a local pro to come out to do a quote for the fiberglass, wood and stainless rail. The backstay also snapped a few strands, but I have a rigger I was already working with and he's working up a quote on that work.

Just by what the fiberglass guy said just from pictures it's not the easy fix that I originally thought.

I'm not use to dealing with insurance companies (only had two fender benders when I owned cars, and that was with the wife driving) and a little concerned I'm going to have to come out of pocket to make myself whole, which sucks as I wasn't even in the area when the accident happened (so didn't do anything wrong).

[SV Bacchus]

Originally Posted by dwedeking2

Yea, I'm shelving my idea of a self-repair at this point. Talked with a local fiberglass repair person today and it's looking like a lot more than just the minor cosmetic work and resealing the joint than I originally thought. If insurance wasn't a factor and I had to save the boat on my own dime I'd probably take it on but since I didn't cause it and there are means to do it right I'll just let a pro take care of it.

A wise choice.