Hello All,
I am currently under contract to purchase an '83 Ericson 38. Today the marine survey was done on the hard. There were typical old boat issues like old wiring that needs to be organized and secured better, small physical defects, review of previous repairs, etc. The one issue that is at the forefront is the deck is wet around the molded in dorade box just forward of the mast.
Its not wet to the point of rot or delamination, its still structurally sound, but it should be delt with sooner than later. It appears that Ericson just laid up the upper deck, tossed in the plywood reinforcement and then glassed over that. The problem is the plywood is exposed inside the dorade box itself so any water that makes it in ends up on the plywood before it runs out the drain holes. Visual inspection by removing the dorade vents shows the plywood was painted at some point but the paint has peeled.
The suggested solution was to dry out the dorade box with a small fan type heater for a week or so. Then seal the plywood with epoxy resin and put a fillet around the interior of the dorade box with resin/filler and lastly drop in some FG cloth to strenghten it. This would all cause the water to run off over the epoxy/glass surface and protect the wood.
Several local "experts" state that sealing it off is the key and the moisture will go away over a long time as long as it doesn't continue to get wet it will be fine. The hardest part may be working inside the dorade box.....
This repair is well within my capabilities. I just want opinions on the moisture, it was wet but not pegging the meter.
Let me know what you think, Thanks, RT
I am currently under contract to purchase an '83 Ericson 38. Today the marine survey was done on the hard. There were typical old boat issues like old wiring that needs to be organized and secured better, small physical defects, review of previous repairs, etc. The one issue that is at the forefront is the deck is wet around the molded in dorade box just forward of the mast.
Its not wet to the point of rot or delamination, its still structurally sound, but it should be delt with sooner than later. It appears that Ericson just laid up the upper deck, tossed in the plywood reinforcement and then glassed over that. The problem is the plywood is exposed inside the dorade box itself so any water that makes it in ends up on the plywood before it runs out the drain holes. Visual inspection by removing the dorade vents shows the plywood was painted at some point but the paint has peeled.
The suggested solution was to dry out the dorade box with a small fan type heater for a week or so. Then seal the plywood with epoxy resin and put a fillet around the interior of the dorade box with resin/filler and lastly drop in some FG cloth to strenghten it. This would all cause the water to run off over the epoxy/glass surface and protect the wood.
Several local "experts" state that sealing it off is the key and the moisture will go away over a long time as long as it doesn't continue to get wet it will be fine. The hardest part may be working inside the dorade box.....
This repair is well within my capabilities. I just want opinions on the moisture, it was wet but not pegging the meter.
Let me know what you think, Thanks, RT
