Stress crack on skeg( pic included)

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Interesting comment, about it being an odd place for a stress crack. That was my thought, too when I first saw it, and went on to wonder about a plain old flaw in the layup, period. Then I decided to let wiser heads reign.

Ann

I think you are pretty wise and I agree with you.

[MicHughV]

as has been noted in most boat repairs...

the quick and easy solution is rarely the best solution....

one can come up with a 1,001 reasons to opt for the quick and easy solution.....I'll name a few....too lazy....no time...don't know how....want to get the boat back in the water tomorrow...no money....hoping for a quick fix solution on CF......not gonna do that....etc...etc...etc....etc.....

off course when your quick and easy fix fails in the first week....you'll have to do twice and the work, and it will cost you four times as much...

or you can...as suggested in several posts above...do it right...

so those are your options...pick one !!!

[OneBoatman]

You don't have stress cracks per say in your skeg, it is water intrusion into the laminate that allowed osmosis and likely blew out later due to freezing. This often happens around grounding plates and older fiberglass boats before vinyl ester resins became the norm which are less susceptable to osmosis. The best long term fix you could easily execute in good weather on land. Grind the blistered areas to expose clean glass and core material just as you've done. Drill a few quarter inch holes at the lowest point and rinse the skeg with plenty of clean water, set up a space heater to warm the skeg just shy of melting your paint for a day or so. Check to see that most all of skeg is warm to the touch after a couple of hours. It's ok if some of the paint blisters or melts a bit as you need to remove it anyway. Strip all paint off the skeg up to the hull and sand it with 60 grit emery cloth. Wipe the dust off using a clean cloth dampened with lacquer thinner. Once dry, you should pre-fill the drain holes and the areas below with epoxy putty slightly above profile. Once cured bring these areas to profile using 60 or 80 grit emery cloth. Then on a nice dry day, mix about 350 ml of Mas medium or slow cure epoxy, or West System and paint the entire skeg. 1/3 a qt per mix is more than you will need per coat. Sand lightly between coats and repeat this until you have the skeg well encapsulated with epoxy. It needn't be pretty but it must be sealed. If you read the directions, there is a time window for which the next coat can be applied without sanding but this can be tricky to meet. However, sanding an entire skeg only takes about ten minutes. 3 coats and you should be all set. The new epoxy is your barrier coat. Then apply two coats of bottom paint according to the mfgr's guidance. This fix should be good for another 10 years.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by OneBoatman

You don't have stress cracks per say in your skeg, it is water intrusion into the laminate that allowed osmosis and likely blew out later due to freezing. This often happens around grounding plates and older fiberglass boats before vinyl ester resins became the norm which are less susceptable to osmosis. The best long term fix you could easily execute in good weather on land. Grind the blistered areas to expose clean glass and core material just as you've done. Drill a few quarter inch holes at the lowest point and rinse the skeg with plenty of clean water, set up a space heater to warm the skeg just shy of melting your paint for a day or so. Check to see that most all of skeg is warm to the touch after a couple of hours. It's ok if some of the paint blisters or melts a bit as you need to remove it anyway. Strip all paint off the skeg up to the hull and sand it with 60 grit emery cloth. Wipe the dust off using a clean cloth dampened with lacquer thinner. Once dry, you should pre-fill the drain holes and the areas below with epoxy putty slightly above profile. Once cured bring these areas to profile using 60 or 80 grit emery cloth. Then on a nice dry day, mix about 350 ml of Mas medium or slow cure epoxy, or West System and paint the entire skeg. 1/3 a qt per mix is more than you will need per coat. Sand lightly between coats and repeat this until you have the skeg well encapsulated with epoxy. It needn't be pretty but it must be sealed. If you read the directions, there is a time window for which the next coat can be applied without sanding but this can be tricky to meet. However, sanding an entire skeg only takes about ten minutes. 3 coats and you should be all set. The new epoxy is your barrier coat. Then apply two coats of bottom paint according to the mfgr's guidance. This fix should be good for another 10 years.

Without adding glass over the cracked areas, this will fail.

[Manateeman]

Poke boat has a vast amount of experience and is simply correct. Epoxy alone has little strength. This is not a simple repair.
We looked at the parts online and at the photos and again we feel the correct method might involve replacing several of these plastic parts.
Mark

[OneBoatman]

I agree with Boatpoker that for damage that is deep into the laminate as this appears to be it is best to use epoxy resin and glass, chop or microballoons. It should properly wetted out and free of air pockets. Perhaps aim for about 60% glass 40% resin. Most folks are not up to wrapping the entire skeg with new glass layers, but of course this is a more permanent fix. Epoxy putty doesn't do well with stress. Skegs tend to be considerably stiffer than other areas of the hull but any flex that can lead to penetration can begin the process all over again. One can only speculate how much time it took until it first showed itself and what time, effort and money is appropriate within the expectation of the owner. An epoxy repair done even almost right would be way better than attempting a fix with polyester resin.

[Manateeman]

The manatee crew actually put down their cold pizza and expensive espresso breakfast and asked if I even looked at You Tube.
Not one video, but 3 just on the skeg.
So there it is after all. Everything you need to know.
Mark

[Manateeman]

If one of the more computer talented members could help, there was a video posted by Voyager269 on 13-01-2015 on this forum.
I don’t know how to stick it up here.
Mark

[Spot]

Nice find Mark! Other posts here and videos on their channel as well.

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...eg-139561.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqnUKV1lCvw

[MicHughV]

a lot of people never find the time to do it right...

then find the time to do it twice ???

[OneBoatman]

The boat would have to have Silver ballast before I would begin by doing a do over. Last I knew Dufour primarily uses Iron. This is proof that with enough effort you can fix just about anything and make it better than it was to begin with. Dufour is still in business, so perhaps they can send someone out to critique your video or at least give you a pass for a free tour of their facilities. The best float plan is to stay afloat.