Very interesting article but it says the same thing. The gelcoat is normally not porus. It has some sort of injury, imporper bonding, improper curing or other factor that has compromised the topcoat allowing water to penetrate the gelcoat to the fiber of the mat. This allows water behind the gelcoat and blisters form between the layers.
Maybe I should have mentioned that I built prototypes and made the molds used on large yachts. From these molds many boats were constructed. We had very strict proceedures that had to be followed to the letter. I won't go into proceedures but it was quite intensive. These boats are top of the line and very expensive. They were custom built for a spicific customer. We had no showroom of finished yachts. They were all delivered as soon as they passed sea trials. We never heard of blistering problems on one of our boats. We had several other yachts come into the yard for gelcoat
repairs by our crew. Unless damaged in an
accident we never saw one of our yachts return. I worked there a few years. Fiberglass construction is something I know very well. I know that
layup is so important that you do not let a
hull set for weeks between layers because the laid up layer will over harden and not adhere as well if left for weeks between coats. As I said, if the outer layer of gelcoat is compromised it will allow water to penetrate the hull into the mat. Water behind that coat causes blisters. Most
boatyards are employing what I refere to as yardmonkeys who are there to learn at your expense. They screw up and you get to pay again. I don't want some kid
learning on my dollars. I know more about hulls and proper proceedures than most
boatyards. And deffinately more than a herd of yardmonkeys. Chemical reactions to various coatings can destroy an otherwise good looking job. There is no way to tell a great job from a nightmare until time goes by. Then it's to late, so why would they care if you have to pay again for the same repair? They don't, they have your
money and you won't get it back.
David Pascoe knows his fiberglass. As a
surveyor he gets to see a lot of wrong way repairs. He also knows the repairs are usually the reason for ongoing returns to a yard. Amature yardmonkeys who are
learning will cover up a mistake instead of reporting it to a supervisor and being in trouble for wasting time and materials. That would cost them thier job. So, they cover it up with another grinding and layer of fillers. The mistake will come back to haunt you, not them. His statements about barrier coats being less than 100% impervious to water penetration indicates that there is an underlying reason like the gelcoat having been compromised with chemical intrusion or damage. Properly applied a fiberglass hull will not blister or separate. Also, I was also a
marine surveyor until an auto
accident crippled me to the point of not being able to crawl through all the very tight places to do a proper
survey. And I still can inspect the hull and topsides and find
delamination and structurial issues. They are easy, hard is knowing what some yard did to your boat while you were waiting for them to call.
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