Cockpit hull repair

[BravoVita]

I have some issues in the cockpit where the gel coat is failing for some reason and this deep pitting, flaking and cracking is occurring. I plan on repainting the deck because the Finnish is starting to pit and leaves these grey spots making it look dirty but I think the cockpit repair will be much more involved so I want to start planning for it. Does anyone have some info on what is occurring or what the proper repair would be?

[barnakiel]

Looks like gelco deterioration due to old age and poor lamination procedure (or poor gelco mixing, whatever).

At this point you clean it, fill it, paint it.

A more thorough scheme is to get rid of all gelco (sanding, wet) then painting over the laminate substrate (paint: mostly 2 p polyurethanes).

Etc. Just as if you were fixing a car or a house.

b.

[zeehag]

that looks more like paint over gelcoat.
scrape it off and start over. not as hard as destroying entire cockpit and re gelcoating the probably still good gelcoat.
this is why many boats that have been painted over gelcoat lose value.
the stuff peeling of the wood is cetol, btw....

[barnakiel]

That is teak???

Oooops. I took it for a plastic or molded liner.

Very odd the grp was painted rather than g-coated. Must be an American thing.

Apologies for messing up!

b.

[JPA Cate]

barnakiel,

I think zeehag is right, the white that is cracking and peeling looks like paint to me, too, and the blistering is due to improper preparing of the surface prior to painting.

It still leaves the question, of course, of why it was painted, and it is possible the gelcoat is trashed underneath.

I have no idea what the stuff on the timber is: I'm not even sure that is teak!, but it looks like citrus paint remover might clear it off, and the OP could see what it really is.

I think the first step is to strip the stuff and find out what he really has going on there. This one might actually be easy or a long slippery slope, and hard to tell yet.

Of course, others more knowledgeable than me, may come along with a definitive response.

Ann