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The instructions direct you to clean the cracks out with a fine needle and then to wash rinse and dry. You can apply gelcoat to match the color of your boat over the repair or you can use our pigments to tint the gelcoat putty and complete the repair all at once.
Polyester filler if the channel is of medium depth.
Repairing spider cracks in gelcoat. Hairline spider cracks must be opened wider and filled with an epoxy filler to be permanently repaired. Learn how in this tutorial with Andrew Price. BoatUS Magazines Mark Corke shows you how to easily repair those pesky spider cracks that show up in your boats fiberglass gelcoat.
While this may seem lik. Use a putty knife to fill in the spider cracks. Once dry sand the surface to a smooth finish.
You can apply gelcoat to match the color of your boat over the repair or you can use our pigments to tint the gelcoat putty and complete the repair all at once. I restored a Black Gold Bell Wildfire that had a lot of fine spider cracks in the clear polyester gel coat. The appearance was considerably improved by wet sanding the entire hull down to 2000 grit then applying several thin coats of System Three Clear Coat epoxy which is a very low viscosity epoxy.
The instructions direct you to clean the cracks out with a fine needle and then to wash rinse and dry. Although slightly tedious the needle step is very important. Do not attempt to widen the crack-the Fix will seep into very thin cracks.
They then direct you to carefully fill level and wipe around the crack. I did such a repair to a well worn Colvic Victor about a month ago. With a fairly large spider crack on the topside about six feet aft from the bow.
First washed the area on the hull. Treated the area with oxalic acid solution to remove the staining. Lifhtly sanded 400g the area to.
Repairing Minor Gelcoat Cracks. Use a rotary tool or scraping tool to open the crack into a V shape. You will need to go through the gelcoat to the fiberglass and open the full length of the crack.
Next use 80-grit sandpaper to scuff up the opening you created. Fold the sandpaper so you can get a corner of it into the opened crack. Note that I have started to route out the hairlinespider cracks emanating from the hole.
To repair these cracks and have the repair last IMHO you need to route out the gelcoat down to the glass and provide enough surface area for the new gelcoat to adhere. If you dont get down to the bottom of the crack the crack will telegraph and. Brush a thin layer of gelcoat onto the sanded area feathering it out a bit onto the surrounding fiberglass surface.
Step 9 Allow the gelcoat to sit for three hours then spray it. What causes spider cracks in gelcoat. Cost of fiberglass and gelcoat repair can vary depending on the level of damage on the surface.
The usual repair cost can vary from 75 to 110 per hour. This includes the material costs and labor charges as well. Chips and gouges can take a few hours to repair.
Here is the step by step way to repair stress cracks spider cracks hairline fractures in gelcoat and fiberglass on your boatTo buy MagicEzy HAIRLINE FIX. Gelcoat cracks also known as spider cracks indicate that your boat has suffered from severe structural problems or impact damage. As such you need to address cracks in gelcoat on boat surfaces immediately to prevent them from spreading.
While it is possible to fix these cracks yourself your best option is to hire a contractor to fix the cracks. Step 4 As soon as the crack has been channeled out wipe it clean with a solvent like acetone and using a plastic putty knife flush-fill it with gelcoat matched to the color of the surrounding area if the channel isnt too deep. Polyester filler if the channel is of medium depth.
Or polyester resin and fiberglass strands if the channel is very deep and wide. Its a good idea by the way to mix up a couple of small batches of gelcoat. Repairing Spider Cracks.
The good news about these cracks is that theyre largely cosmetic problems. This means you can apply a simple cosmetic fix. Move your boat to a safe workplace.
First get your boat to a well-ventilated area where it can be sheltered overnight. Clean the crack area with acetone. The instructions direct you to clean the cracks out with a fine needle and then to wash rinse and dry.
Although slightly tedious the needle step is very important. Do not attempt to widen the. Spider cracks in the floor will not generally lead to water intrusion unless a pressure washer is applied directly to them.
I see your options as this. Leave as is and enjoy boat regardless of minor spider cracks. Repair cracks by your self for under 50.
Pay someone else to do it for you for over 500. The other repair for spider cracks involves a little more work. Start by wiping down the area with acetone and sanding the damaged gel-coat down to the fiberglass.
Try not to remove any of the fiberglass resin or cloth. Next wipe down the area with acetone again. CHECK OUT OUR NEW FIBERGLASS GUIDE HERE.
Anyplace where the gelcoat is cracked is a potential entry point for water. Where the cracks are very small you can just cover them with more gelcoat. Your problem is that you have places where it is missing altogether and the fiberglass is completely exposed.
Thats asking for water in the hull. Spider cracks andor crazing is usually an indication of stress - where the underlying fibreglass is flexing more than the gelcoat can manage. You can grind out the cracks and re-gel but they may reappear.
In which case you need to strengthen the fibreglass - talk to a pro at that point.