Problem with Gel coat repair

[kitcat]

A couple of years ago I had to have some gel coat damage on my 2009 rectified. It was a fairly large area of approx. 2 square meters on the port side below the rub rail and about 3' either side of the chain plate and not quite down to the waterline.

I had a local boatyard do it and I have to say it wasn't cheap, but they appeared to have done a good job, but ever since then, I have been having water coming in on that side every time it rained, and it has been getting worse. I have tried sealing everything, taped up the windows, taped up the rubber rail cover in case water was getting through the join, but still couldn't stop it.

Anyway, long story short, yesterday we put a hose onto it, very carefully and in selected areas, after an hour or so, I concluded that the water was actually coming through the gel coat and wetting the carpet from the underneath. No wonder I couldn't spot where it was coming from. It would seem that there are a few little pin holes, not many, about half a dozen or so, and the water must be wicking in from these, or else the gel coat itself is not waterproof?

The question here is what should I do next. If I can persuade the yard to strip off the existing gel and redo it, there is no guarantee it will be better, and they probably won't want to redo it for free anyway, I could go to another yard and pay them and try and claim back from the first people, or just try and locate each small pinhole, and fill it individually, and hope it works? I have given the whole side of the boat two coats of marine polish today in the hope that this will help seal the gel, but haven't as yet tried the hose - too tired, it's bl**dy hard work that hand polishing!

Over to you all, I'm open to any good advice [I'll even listen to bad advice ]

Thanks all.

Paul

[paj637]

It could be your hull to deck joint leaking. I damaged my 26 on the fwd stbd bow section and had it repaired. Before I put the rubrail back on, I leak tested it and found the sealant between the deck and hull had failed due to the hull flexing. I put some 5200 sealant on that area and the lifeline stahchion base and it solved my problem. I would pull your rubrail and check the hull to deck joint, but you may have to replace the rubrail due to stretching when you pull it off.

[Divecoz]

Gel coat is NOT the issue..

[Mac26Mpaul]

Deffinately something funny going on. The fibreglass is pretty thick in that area (trust me ) Holding a hose on the side of the boat is not going see water go through the hull! Is this an April fools thingy
Deck join or stauntion base is probably it...

[kitcat]

Nope, not a joke, too annoying for that.

The deck join was my first thought, but as I've taped over it, I've had to exclude that now, if it was a stanchion the water would drip off the liner, and it doesn't, and even pulling the liner back a littlr and looking up under it, I can't see or feel any water in that area, yet there it is wetting the carpet a few inches below the window, [which I
I have also taped].

Paul

[Mac26Mpaul]

Was it just the gelcoat which was repaired, or was there a hole in the boat. spraying a hose on the side of the boat just isnt going to go through fibreglass (unless the glass itself has holes in it somehow) Okay, the glass is thinner in that area, but not that thin....

[Divecoz]

Fiberglass is impervious to water..Gel Coat is for color and a smooth appearance.. I refer to it as...Glamour Coat... You can remove the rub rail without damage but it takes patience and two people IMHO.. There are only two areas that would appear to be potential problem areas.. Chain Plates and Deck to Hull joint..

[Steve K]

I'm no professional, but have worked with boats and fiberglass for much of my life.

Don't understand what you mean by taping, but I don't believe this would seal anything. Rain water can migrate all along the rubrail until it finds a place to get in. I think it could get underneath any tape.
Normally, with all these boats, the rubrail is the prime suspect. If the hull/deck joint was damaged along with the other problem, water could migrate in, from another area, along the rubrail.

And, btw, I've owned two Macgregors and they both stayed bone dry inside.......... unless it rained. My X boat seemed to leak at the chainplates. I found a place up by the bow, where the hull/deck sealant was missing. I re-sealed this and my leak near the chainplates stopped. Go figure

Very unlikely that water could leak in through the hull itself. I scraped a dock about five years ago and had about a 6sq inch area where gelcoat was chipped off. Finally fixed it last week. It never leaked.

I'd remove the rubrail to inspect the joint itself...... if you are sure it's not chainplates, or windows.

Best Breezes,
Steve K.

[kitcat]

Thanks for all the advice so far, it seems that it is pretty impossible for water to get through the gel coat and the underlying fiberglass layup, so it must be the join somewhere or maybe the chain plate. I doubt it is the windows as I have had them taped up several times and I'm sure no water could get through. Successfully putting sealing the rub rail with tape is more difficult, as is covering the chain plate, so it looks like I'll have to make a start with the rubber over the joint and carry on from there.

All and any other ideas welcome.

Paul

[Don T]

Hello,
The only way I was able to get a good test is with the water running (not splashing or spraying) at various suspected places starting from lower to higher. Where you see it inside may be completely different than where is getting in from outside.
For example, water was getting in at a window and running between the deck and liner (X boat) then running down to the cupped lower edge of the liner, running aft and coming out on the head floor. It also would run all the way forward and wet the V birth cushions. I thought for sure the forward windows leaked but they did not.
Here is a pic of the broken seal. you can see where it was not adhered.


Being very methodical about where water is running and tracking inside is the only way. In an X boat I can use flour or dust to track the water drips. Your carpet makes that more difficult.

[K9Kampers]

Don-

Can you post a description / photos of your galley mod?

[Don T]

I did many years ago.
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/modt/index.php?view=402

Enjoy

[Gater Dunn]

around your windows try captain tolly's creeping crack cure http://www.captaintolley.com/. not fun to do on the water easy on the hard on a step ladder. this is runny silicon sealant that wicks into the smalles cracks, may take multipull applications to fill larger leaks.

[Mac26Mpaul]

Yeah, some will disagree no doubt, but I'd be running a bead of that or whatever you can find similar in your area all down the rub rail, around the window and chainplates and seeing if you can solve the problem that way. Taking the the rub rail off sounds like a right royal pain in the ass and I'd be trying to fix the problem without doing that if I were you...

[Divecoz]

Some times you just HAVE to bite the bullet....Sometimes, band-aid fixes and chewing gum work for awhile. That's Not...usually the case however..If I was to attempt to Band Aid fix it.. I think I would try Captain Trolly's... You never have the time or the money to do it right the first time? But you can always find ....Quadruple the time and triple the money to do it Right... the Last Time hahahaha

Yeah, some will disagree no doubt, but I'd be running a bead of that or whatever you can find similar in your area all down the rub rail, around the window and chainplates and seeing if you can solve the problem that way. Taking the the rub rail off sounds like a right royal pain in the ass and I'd be trying to fix the problem without doing that if I were you...