It looks like Commander 303 has boat pox on the port side of the bow to about halfway back. This seems to only go thru the gel coat and not the glass underneath.
So how bad is boat pox, exactly and is this indicative of bigger problems?
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It looks like Commander 303 has boat pox on the port side of the bow to about halfway back. This seems to only go thru the gel coat and not the glass underneath.
So how bad is boat pox, exactly and is this indicative of bigger problems?
I've had localized pox near the water line. If it is the same thing, I punctured them and they only went into the gel coat. Fill the little pimples with a fiberglas fairing compound (not Formula 27, unless it is above the waterline), and voila, you have a new boat.
Any compound that you can suggest? These are right at the waterline, but only in the gelcoat.
If you are near a marine store, they must have a ready mix sandable 2-part epoxy putty filler. What brand won't matter too much for cosmetic work, I don't think.
The main thing will be getting the holes clean and dry. Don't use acetone as residue may attack the new epoxy. Xylene might be the right solvent stuff. I would work small, just filling each hole with a little extra mound so block sanding might be done down to a paint coat - one time.
Some sandable epoxy filler in a boot top or bottom paint can't be noticed. And if some more show up next hauling, filling the depressions will just be part of the prep, no problem. Trying to think how to do it without taking the paint off first down to the gel coat, which is the trowel it on option. Depends on how many buggers you got.
Sometimes when you are filling with a putty knife a bubble is created underneath. I might take an acid brush or a small natural bristle brush, shorten the bristle with scissors and scrub the putty into the holes, making sure it's in there good. then smoothe it over. :)
I popped the pox, let them dry and then cleaned them out and slightly expanded them using a Dremel tool to make sure the surface was clean. I then cleaned out the area with M.E.K. (Methyl Ethyl Keotone, I believe) which is available from the hardware store. Make sure you use rubber/latex gloves as this stuff, like acetone, will penetrate your skin.
There are epoxy fillers available at the marine store but they are expensive. I used West System epoxy with the fairing filler to make a stiff substance. Your choice.
EBB is right though about the air pockets. They are difficult, if not impossible to take out. When you sand down the filler, you may encounter an air pocket at the surface, and have to fill the pocket (a second pass). Do your best to make sure there are no air pockets where the filler meets the old epoxy/gel coat.
Sand so that the paint surrounding the pox hole disappears (so that the filler is flush with the underlying surface) re-prime, and paint
If you don't mind, let me say this:
MEK is about to be banned by the Air Force, as I understand it. This is a vile unnecessary product to use, anyway, by us. Just because you can get it at the hardware store doesn't make it a safe product to use. It is NOT safe, altho it is an excellent dewaxer.
This solvent has caused a number of deaths in special situations, like workers in enclosed spaces. There is no need to use this stuff in everyday boat work. MEK is extremely caustic, highly aromatic (which is, generally, an excellent indicator of toxicity, always a bad sign).
It'll probably curdle the paint on your hull, and it will denature whatever it touches, your skin, your nasal passages, and your brain. Acetone is much milder but has been known to linger in the work and screwup epoxy bonds. Xylene is a common denominator for thinning epoxy (it is the smell in gasoline - which does not make it OK to breathe!) It is a mid level solvent like denatured alcohol, and breathing these will (supposedly) not kill you as fast. What does the FDA know anyway!
Simple Green will do just as good a job cleaning out the pox if you have the time to get it dry. Can always use the heat gun or a hair drier.
So think of your relatives leaning over you on your hospital bed when choosing your blister cleaner.
All this stuff is really bad, and think of your relatives in this regard, if you light up a cigar while cleaning those pox holes!