fiberglass delaminated from stringers

[fieromx3]

i am in the mids of doing work on my boat, the stringers are solid and good and like most boats the fiberglass from factory only stems 2/3 of the way up the stringers. well the fiberglass has delaminated from the fiberglass and want to fix it. i just want to know what the best glue is to re bond them?

PL Premium??

epoxy?

also found some stuff called 'E-6100 industrial strength glue' which actually sounds better than PL glue!

im not a cheap person by any means and only want the best!

i assume something ticker would be better to fill in between the stringer and fiberglass?

 

[jc55]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

PL Premium isn't for water immersion. It's only water resistant according to the label. Then you have the possible bonding issue with existing resins and epoxy.

I have some delamination in accessible areas between a bulkhead and the hull. When the time comes, I'm going to cut the loose tabbing off then grind back and reapply new. With regluing, you're unable to clean and re-scuff the area for adhesion, imo.

 

[Bondo]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

i am in the mids of doing work on my boat, the stringers are solid and good and like most boats the fiberglass from factory only stems 2/3 of the way up the stringers. well the fiberglass has delaminated from the fiberglass and want to fix it. i just want to know what the best glue is to re bond them?

PL Premium??

epoxy?

also found some stuff called 'E-6100 industrial strength glue' which actually sounds better than PL glue!

im not a cheap person by any means and only want the best!

i assume something ticker would be better to fill in between the stringer and fiberglass?

Ayuh,... Got any pictures,..?? I'm thinkin' Epoxy,....

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

sorry i dont have pictures it is at a boat dealer right now, just had the under side blisters fixed and new bottom paint applied.

i would really like to keep the oem glass on them as it is very thick and 'part of the hull' instead of new glass just bonded to the hull

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

Are you certain the wood inside is 100% rot free. If so the wood and the inside of the glass will need to be cleaned really well in order for any adhesive to do it's job and then it's still a toss up as to whether or not you'll be successful with it. Honestly, I'd be very skeptical. I'm also skeptical that the the glass on the stringers is part of the hull. Although it may appear that way, it's more than likely like all the rest and just typical woven roving tabbing. What kind of boat is it? How big is she? What year is she?

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

yes im pretty positive the wood is good as i had the stringers and floor replaced last year at a shop over winter. but the freakin idiots they are only glued the bottom side to the hull and didnt make sure the glass tabbing was bonded to the stringers. the original stringers were mush that they were able to scrape them out without cutting off the tabbing. im pretty much re doing the work all summer long making sure its done right in which they failed to do!! the transom was redone a couple years ago by a different place and was done AMAZINGLY well so im happy about that

its a 77' fiberform 18

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

for a portion of them when i was doing glass work in the fall i was able to put shims in between the stringer and tabbing and open it up about 1.5 inches anymore than that would have resulted in damaged. not sure if i can get a cloth in there to wipe it and then blow it out with an air gun.

im thinking maybe peanut butter epoxy

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

yes im pretty positive the wood is good as i had the stringers and floor replaced last year at a shop over winter. but the freakin idiots they are only glued the bottom side to the hull and didnt make sure the glass tabbing was bonded to the stringers. the original stringers were mush that they were able to scrape them out without cutting off the tabbing. im pretty much re doing the work all summer long making sure its done right in which they failed to do!!

^^^ I'm not sure how those 2 statements can be in agreement, if the channels are again recycled. It wasn't done right last time because they didn't re-glass the new stringers into the boat. They had full access to the stringers when they had to replace the deck (floor) & stringers didn't they? Why was the repair done in this fashion?
Money spent poorly last time, IMO. But to re-do it in a similar fashion seems counter-intuitive,

for a portion of them when i was doing glass work in the fall i was able to put shims in between the stringer and tabbing and open it up about 1.5 inches anymore than that would have resulted in damaged. not sure if i can get a cloth in there to wipe it and then blow it out with an air gun. im thinking maybe peanut butter epoxy

IMO, ^^^ still less then ideal. If you again have full access to the hull & stringers, why attempt to re-do it in the same fashion as last time?

If the poorly done stringers were covered by a new deck last year, how did you discover the delaminated stringers?

BTW, I wouldn't call them delaminated, they were more then likely NOT laminated into the glass channels, or so poorly that they should be considered not laminated rather then delaminated.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

I wouldn't waste my time trying to patch together a previously halfassed job, it'll still be of poor quality when you're finished.

I'd cut those things out so fast it'd make the previous boat butchers head swim... and then install them the way they're supposed to be installed.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

I wouldn't waste my time trying to patch together a previously halfassed job, it'll still be of poor quality when you're finished.

I'd cut those things out so fast it'd make the previous boat butchers head swim... and then install them the way they're supposed to be installed.

Yea, I'm wondering how good the stringers really are if the glass has de-laminated from them . . . :noidea:

 

[pauloman]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

the professional fix is to cut back the unbonded areas and reglass with epoxy and fiberglass.

an alternative would be to pour/pump/feed a solvent free, low viscosity, bonds to damp surfaces, epoxy into the void between the glass and the wood. - this is how 90% of delaminated decks are fixed. Product used is called Low V Epoxy.

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

the fuel tank is an in floor tank so i took the floor piece that was covering the tank off. i inspected their work and found the glass wasnt laminated to the stringers. so i unscrewed all the floor panels and noticed it was the same thing all over. i wasnt going to bother taking it back to them (huge long story) they also dug out all the old foam and poured new foam into the entire hull and that actually came out nicely and not something i would like to dig back out lol

funny how a thread gets turned into a whole fiasco.... was just asking what the best glue would be to glue the fiberglass back to the stringers...

sometimes you never know in the boating world where you could think one type would be the best choice but turn out to be the worst for some reason... was just asking input

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

Answers weren't what you expected, doesn't make the replies any less accurate.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

By using the method you describe the bond will be questionable at best, and probably won't last very long. The surfaces need to be thoroughly sanded and clean for any product to provide a decent bond.

I think we need pics to get a better idea of what you are looking at.

 

[sphelps]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

Does the new foam go all the way to the top of the stringers ? If they had glassed over the tops of the stringers it might not have delaminated . This might be an impossibility but if you could take the wood out now and keep the glass intact . Maybe pour seacast .
Just a thought .. Pics are a must !

 

[jigngrub]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

the fuel tank is an in floor tank so i took the floor piece that was covering the tank off. i inspected their work and found the glass wasnt laminated to the stringers. so i unscrewed all the floor panels and noticed it was the same thing all over. i wasnt going to bother taking it back to them (huge long story) they also dug out all the old foam and poured new foam into the entire hull and that actually came out nicely and not something i would like to dig back out lol

funny how a thread gets turned into a whole fiasco.... was just asking what the best glue would be to glue the fiberglass back to the stringers...

sometimes you never know in the boating world where you could think one type would be the best choice but turn out to be the worst for some reason... was just asking input

From the way you describe your problem there isn't a good fix or a best product... pictures may help clarify your problem.

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

well apparently my brother still had some pictures on his cell phone when he made the visit to the shop one day... here it is..




they capped the stringers with a layer of cloth and polyester but i was able to peel it off with minimal effort as they didnt clean or prep the surfaces..

well after this thread i have decided since i am going to completly restore the boat between late april and end of october. i am going to take the stringers out completely and completely clean inside the tabbing and epoxy the stringers back in. i will cap them with glass and epoxy thoroughly.

they didnt remove the front bit of foam so i will remove it for access to everything and then repour new foam in it.

i will re install the flooring and tab it in all around and make sure no water can seep anywhere.

i will make a thread when i begin working on this thing in spring.

i have researched heavily about restorations and the more input is better i dont want to seem really dumb but always looking for new ideas

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

It's never a good idea, IMHO, to attempt to install stringers back into the original tabbings. You can never get a good bond. It's much better to cut out the tabbing and start from scratch. If you indeed want to "Do it Right" then this would be the way to do it. Like the old saying "We never seem to have the time to do it right, but always seem to have the time to go back and do it again.!!!!"

 

[fieromx3]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

lol its true... i wanted to do it right the first time well i sent it to a shop for a whole winter to do it properly.... i gave it to them in september and they didnt even start till late march!!!! it was a whole fiasco and we got into a yelling match and cops were involved etc. i paid 4000 for the resto and engine rebuild and got a **** quality restoration but the engine runs SUPER smooth.

i thought the oem tabbing was solidy in place with the hull and if i used epoxy to glue strimgers back in i *thought* that would have been more proper and stronger but i guess not! lol


sorry to all who have posted if i didnt seem like wanting to give info or hostile i didnt mean to at all i just notice alot of simple questions can come out to be much more involved than one thinks it could be

 

[jc55]

Re: fiberglass delaminated from stringers

People speak from a deep core of experience, sometimes it has absolutely nothing to do with boats and sometimes it does, but there are things that are understood which are hard to explain.

Picture a clean, moisture free, resin covered stringer glued in place. Then picture a fiberglass cloth mesh conformed to the shape of the stringer, resin brushed on, then rolled using different rollers. Almost any and all air is eliminated. A chemical bond takes place between the resin on the stringer and the resin on the cloth material. Add two more layers, extending further out with the tabbing each time.

Now, take two rigid, smooth flaps of fiberglass that have fully cured, are not clean, and have delaminated. Squirt a different bonding agent in those areas, squeeze the flaps of tabbing material against the stringer with a very small clamping area versus the actual surface area being "glued".

Sure it'll "work", it just won't really be right considering the amount of cost involved doing it both ways. So sorry to hear about your experience. It must be very frustrating but your boat must have a good owner to have not given up on her after all of that! Good luck Bro.