Repairing keel with concrete

[navphoto]

I thought about it and realized that this boat hasn't been in the water since 1987. PO said that the inside had completely filled up with water, he just had a piece of plywood over the hatch, water seeped down from the inside and turned the keel into a water balloon that was made of glass.
I'm wondering if drilling and filling voids with apoxy then coating bottom with apoxy would work

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by navphoto

I thought about it and realized that this boat hasn't been in the water since 1987. PO said that the inside had completely filled up with water, he just had a piece of plywood over the hatch, water seeped down from the inside and turned the keel into a water balloon that was made of glass.
I'm wondering if drilling and filling voids with apoxy then coating bottom with apoxy would work

I think it would, at least good enough. I even bet roofing tar would hold the water out, it's a $150 boat, don't go putting hundreds of hours of labor in it.

[navphoto]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I think it would, at least good enough. I even bet roofing tar would hold the water out, it's a $150 boat, don't go putting hundreds of hours of labor in it.

I need to find some marine grade roofing tar.

[Cheechako]

Well... the right way to fix it is to grind the fiberglass around the hole. For instance, if the glass is 1/4" thick.. you want to grind maybe 2.5 inches around the hole. Coat all that with fiberglass resin (mixed with catalyst!) then start laying in fiberglass cloth one layer at a time. The layers can be progressively smaller until the hole is filled. Let it harden up and grind it smooth and fair. It doesn't have to be super fair and smooth... you'll never notice the difference in performance.
Alternatively.. like mentioned above you could use roofing tar, polyurethane sealant etc etc for a temporary fix.
I would do the glass work... if it's been out of the water that long... why get water in there now with a lousy sealing job!

[cattar]

Drifter 17, nice looking boat.
Those grey circles on the bottom of the boat mean that water soaked into the fiberglass as well.
Does the concrete and fiberglass feel dry in the hole in the bottom of the boat?
You might get an estimate on the trailer weight and add that figure to the boat's factory weight of 1100 pounds, and then go weigh the boat at a truck scale. See how much water weight is soaked into the concrete and fiberglass over those 20+ years of sitting out in all weather.
The drill and let dry for the winter, before you fill.

[waikikin]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Well... the right way to fix it is to grind the fiberglass around the hole. For instance, if the glass is 1/4" thick.. you want to grind maybe 2.5 inches around the hole. Coat all that with fiberglass resin (mixed with catalyst!) then start laying in fiberglass cloth one layer at a time. The layers can be progressively smaller until the hole is filled. Let it harden up and grind it smooth and fair. It doesn't have to be super fair and smooth... you'll never notice the difference in performance.
Alternatively.. like mentioned above you could use roofing tar, polyurethane sealant etc etc for a temporary fix.
I would do the glass work... if it's been out of the water that long... why get water in there now with a lousy sealing job!

Above is what you should do,
Really don't push tar/hydroseal into it as when you want to fix properly the grinder will melt & spread that stuff onto the bonding surface.
If you really want a quick fix make an eliptical or rectangular "tingle" out of ply/glass sheet/pvc that overlaps the opening by 1 to 2" & screw with short(of the concrete) 8# staino screws about every inch around the perimeter & bed onto sika/polyurethane adhesive sealant.

Then you can test your boat & fix properly if you like it

Jeff.

[hpeer]

Try again now.

Nothing special, just as described above.

[navphoto]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Well... the right way to fix it is to grind the fiberglass around the hole. For instance, if the glass is 1/4" thick.. you want to grind maybe 2.5 inches around the hole. Coat all that with fiberglass resin (mixed with catalyst!) then start laying in fiberglass cloth one layer at a time. The layers can be progressively smaller until the hole is filled. Let it harden up and grind it smooth and fair. It doesn't have to be super fair and smooth... you'll never notice the difference in performance.
Alternatively.. like mentioned above you could use roofing tar, polyurethane sealant etc etc for a temporary fix.
I would do the glass work... if it's been out of the water that long... why get water in there now with a lousy sealing job!

This is the plan I'll keep you posted on progress. Thank you all for your help