A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

[kameika]

Everyone,

Here's a product of "Hurricane Sandy." The boat is a 1994 Egg Harbor Sportfish. .. 42' length.

The boat was on the winter storage cribbing. ..Then the 15' storm surge came in... And boats do what boats like to do: It floated. When the tide retreated, the boat gently landed on a piece of railroad tie.

Anyhow, the railroad tie slowly pushed through the hull (see photo).

The insurance company paid up. Ready to put good people to work! Then the estimates started to come in for fiberglass work - the estimates were one-sentence with huge numbers. No warranty. No guarantees. No pride. No way.. I am hoping to cover the damage with the insurance money, though I am watching the clouds gather.

In truth, with all the devastation in NJ, I am wondering if anyone who is able to repair fiberglass is more interested in a 68' Viking than my lowly 42' Egg Harbor. Besides, I want to be drinking beer in May of 2013. Not August of 2014.

..So, I may explore doing the work myself. I'm experienced. Though this is bigger than projects I've tackled myself. No fear..


Your opinions please: With the railroad tie pushed through the hull, it left a "flap." ..Like a trap door.

is it recommended to remove the flap and grind around a new patch, or is it recommended to re-bond/re-laminate the flap into the repair.

any and all opinions are recommended!

Thank you,
Ken - Red Bank, NJ

 

[Georgesalmon]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

If you can get to both sides that would be best. I would cut it out to good glass all around and then grind to a 6:1 scarf all around on one side. Put a board (waxed formica or plastic covered) on the other side and put layers of 1708 or Woven roving alternate with CSM using larger and larger sized pieces until the original thickness is reached. Then remove the board grind it good and put layers of glass on the other side. Poly resin would work fine though if its in the water all the time I might opt for vinylester for the outside last layer or two.

 

[Mi duckdown]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

Confused. How did the insurance company pay off without estimates? May have to pay a visit to the insurance company.

 

[kameika]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

Ahh, to answer your question: Boat US. GOOD people. Explanation: The world in New Jersey is upside down. Insurance companies are in a triage mode. They're making (conservative) estimates quickly to expedite processing of thousands of claims. Boat US came to the accident scene and made an on-the-spot estimate. A check soon followed. The fiberglass work was estimated at $11K (rounded.) Rails and other damage were estimated at a couple thousand beyond.

Boat owners were encouraged to get independent estimates and allowed to "contest" the insurance companies. The insurance company would then review the additional repair quotations and judge.

Mr. Duckdown, I was absolutely in favor of hiring the work out. *I WANT to hire a person to do the work.* The estimate came to $15,400. That's $4,400 beyond the insurance company's estimate. I do not mind kicking money into the effort...

However:

The response I received was a late, terse quotation. It was careless and largely unprofessional. The people involved didn't seem to give a damn. Did not want to commit. ..And didn't want to answer questions. They didn't want to answer calls. (And I am very polite and very generous.)

In my industry the joke is, "The paperwork is the easy part. If you can't get the paperwork right, the real work ain't gonna be right."

That means, "Ken, go get your hands dirty." Not the first time, will not be the last. I figure I can do all the work for $4,000. I'll give the remainder to someone who gives a sh**.

 

[kameika]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

And George -- good answer. I have a fresh water tank to be removed to gain a full assessment/access to the rear-side. Likely, the water tank had been compromised. It can be replaced.

Hull: A few gouges and scratches. Not bad. The recommendation is to fill/sand/paint. I thought gel-coat and wet sand would be better for a nice SF boat. Am I cutting corners by painting??

 

[F14CRAZY]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

I think I'd cut a new, round or oval hole around the flap, grind down a bit around it from the inside and out, put a couple layer sof thick glass w/ epoxy on the inside, same for the outside, then fill and fair, then reapply bottom paint.

I take it the little gouges are above the waterline. If the hull hasn't been painted I'd still with gelcoat personally

 

[Georgesalmon]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

Probably wouldn't hurt to put some gelcoat over the raw glass of the repair. Don't have to but it would fill those microscopic holes thats always in the laminate. I would not spend a lot of time wet sanding and buffing though. Just sand it smooth to a maybe 80 to 100 grit finish and bottom paint it. The gelcoat could even be brush applied in a couple of layers with no surfacing agent or wax in it, or sanded between coats. Brush or roller applied is actually better at filling pin holes than spray.

I don't think you need to use epoxy, not sure what the gain might be for this type of repair and it limits the type of glass you can use.

 

[kameika]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

Gents, I sure to appreciate it.

Good advice..

All The Best,
KEn

 

[a1964rn]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

I would also recommend epoxy. Especially on this size of repair. Epoxy has a much greater adhesion strength to cured polyester than polyester resin does (2000psi as opposed to about 500psi). There is a way to apply gelcoat over epoxy repairs. I forget the name of the procedure but here's a video showing it.
gelcoat over epoxy repair - YouTube

 

[tazrig]

Re: A quandary.. How to address this "hole-in-the-hull"?

Ahh, to answer your question: Boat US. GOOD people. Explanation: The world in New Jersey is upside down. Insurance companies are in a triage mode. They're making (conservative) estimates quickly to expedite processing of thousands of claims. Boat US came to the accident scene and made an on-the-spot estimate. A check soon followed. The fiberglass work was estimated at $11K (rounded.) Rails and other damage were estimated at a couple thousand beyond.

Boat owners were encouraged to get independent estimates and allowed to "contest" the insurance companies. The insurance company would then review the additional repair quotations and judge.

Mr. Duckdown, I was absolutely in favor of hiring the work out. *I WANT to hire a person to do the work.* The estimate came to $15,400. That's $4,400 beyond the insurance company's estimate. I do not mind kicking money into the effort...

However:

The response I received was a late, terse quotation. It was careless and largely unprofessional. The people involved didn't seem to give a damn. Did not want to commit. ..And didn't want to answer questions. They didn't want to answer calls. (And I am very polite and very generous.)

In my industry the joke is, "The paperwork is the easy part. If you can't get the paperwork right, the real work ain't gonna be right."

That means, "Ken, go get your hands dirty." Not the first time, will not be the last. I figure I can do all the work for $4,000. I'll give the remainder to someone who gives a sh**.

It sounds like you just got one quote? Granted the guy sounds like a jerk with more work out there right now than he can look at. Is it worth calling in a few more people to see if you can find someone decent on your own or giving BOAT US a call and seeing if maybe they have a list of "approved contractors" or vendors etc.? You might have better luck if you looked for someone in NY or even CT. I would think for a job that size there should be somebody out there who isn't quite so busy, gives a s**t and is willing to take a little trip to take a look. Just my 2 cents. Good luck!!!