Convertible13 Posted April 3, 2017 Report Share Posted April 3, 2017 I had my 2002 MA 21 in the water for a week, put it on the lift to detail and found blistering in the gelcoat under the waterline. What happened and how do I fix it? The blisters are small but there are hundreds of them. I've left her in the water before and never had the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFD rtrd. Posted April 3, 2017 Report Share Posted April 3, 2017 I had that happen on a boat a few years ago, but it sat in the water for a month. When mine dried out, the blisters went away. Gelcoat is pours and will absorb water. Hopefully, when it dries the blisters will disappear. I keep my new boat in the water about 4 days, sometimes 5 days, but it's got several layers of polish on the hull. I think that is the secrete for short term stays in the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RipTide Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Only way to make them disappear permanently is sand completely down to glass and re-gel coat. Running it through a few sand bars might help with the removal. As SCFD stated, it's water intrusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polliwog Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 I don't know what is going on because boats are made to be in the water continuously. I have 2 that stay in the water for 6 mos at a time. I have never had that happen. Let us know if the blisters go away with drying out process. The under water part of the hull should have no sun damage to the gel coat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonV Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 I'm assuming "I have 2 that stay in the water for 6 mos at a time" these have bottom paint? You won't do that in the warm Florida waters without bottom paint, especially in the summer months. The growth of scum will be so bad you won't be able to get your boat on plane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polliwog Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 They have bottom paint,but the paint isn't water proof and in fact absorbs water. The rear of the Hewes LT tackle has some 1-2 inches in the rear that is always in the water and doesn't have bottom paint. They are NE and even there you will have growth in weeks during the warm summer waters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linesider 159 Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Are you sure the boat hasnt been repainted? Most paints arent meant to be kept in the water and will blister after only a couple of days. Ive seen several boats blister where bunks were but never on the hull side like yours. Generally the type of resin at factory comes into play, but not after 6 days usually. If i had to guess, your boat was repainted at one point and its not actual gelcoat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Linesider could be correct. I've seen bubbling on a Skeeter and a Sterling after they sat in the water for about 5-6 days. Both of those boats were gel-coated, not painted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fsusteve Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Could be, they used a good quality gel coat on the 21's, mine sits n the water in the keys for several weeks at a time and never does that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Convertible13 Posted April 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 How can I tell if it's gel coat or Paint? It looks like gel coat to me. I called Maverick and talked to Ray in customer service. He wasn't much help. The attitude I got was sh@t happens. He said their boats are built more for day use and kept on trailers or lifts and not to be kept in the water for extended periods of time. Seriously? 6 days is not a long time to me. Basically he said I have a boat that can't be kept in the water. His suggestion was to use bottom paint which I'm not going to do since I rarely have the boat in the water for more than a day and will look like I'm trying to cover damage up whenever I sell it. Plus it looks like crap in my opinion to have bottom paint on the side of my boat. Although I don't know if Maverick does this, apparently, a lot of high volume boat builders bid out for resin. Resin is expensive. They may get resin from 2 or more companies a year. That would explain why the same model and year boat might have some that blister and some that don't. Maybe my boat and others who bought Pathinders and Mavericks and have blistering problems, got an inferior resin. I'm finding out there are others with this same problem. I was a true blue MBG follower until this mess happened. If I can't leave one of their boats in the water for a week without severely damaging the hull, I'll buy another brand. I'd planned on going to the SW Florida owners tournament this year but now I'm worried I'll do more damage keeping my boat in the water for 3 days. The boat has been out of the water for a couple weeks. The blisters went way down but I can still feel them and see them if I look closely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlivierHPS2300 Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Never understand why a manufacturer won't stand behind their products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fsusteve Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Maybe run it by a glass shop and talk to them, the answer you were given was pretty piss poor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linesider 159 Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Your issue has happened before, and yes a lot can be caused by resin. As far as checking if it's paint I'd talk to a glass guy and see if they could help you. Maybe mbg can take your hin and tell you what color the boat was and see if it matches current color. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polliwog Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Convertible, are you the original owner? I am begining to think that the hull was reshot with gel coat at some time to refurbish it. The answer given by MBC is totally bogus,boat is meant to be dry sailed only ,REALLY. I have a 1997 HEWES LT that has spent all it's summer life in the water as I stated, NO BUBBLES anywhere. Fiberglass is fiberglass. I also assume the hull isn't a carbon fiber/ kevlar boat. That shouldn't make a difference,but it would be good know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bamaskeet Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 I'm sorry you are having a issue with your Maverick, but what do you expect the factory to do for a 15 year old boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geeviam Posted April 18, 2017 Report Share Posted April 18, 2017 Actually, if Ray said those things, his explanation was correct. His attitude may not have been kind and helpful, but he knows his stuff. Polyester resin gelcoat is semi-permeable and will absorb water under pressure if it is not sealed. Boats made with epoxy resin are better at resisting the effects of water. However, epoxy resin boats are very expensive to build and would probably not be affordable for many of us. It sounds like the moral of the story is: Keep your hull sealed regularly with a good polymer-type polish/sealant. In a case where the hull has been neglected or became waterlogged and blistered - maybe the hull should be allowed to dry out, then sanded, then painted with a high-quality epoxy paint. Regardless, I would not expect any boat manufacturer to do much, in the way of warranty, on this type of issue after 14 years of use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnd Posted April 19, 2017 Report Share Posted April 19, 2017 My 1991 has sat in water 4-5 days, ostensibly in keys. Never a blister. Growth, oh yeah, but no blisters. btw: sorry to hear your experience calling MBC. That is not, in my experience, typical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarpon1215 Posted April 19, 2017 Report Share Posted April 19, 2017 Am I mistaken, but isn't there a warning in the owners manual not to leave these boats in the water for an extended time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polliwog Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Why would Maverick or Hewes boats have a different gel coat than hundreds of other boat manufacturers? Most boats stay in the water for months on end,obviously with bottom paint,but that doesn't do anything but prevent fouling the bottom. Water is on all these hulls and topsides continuously. I don't get it. I haven't seen the warning not to leave the boat in the water,can anyone point that warning in a catalog? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. Troy Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 If a boat is going to sit in the water for extended periods it needs to have a barrier coat applied and then anti fouling paint. The barrier coat is to prevent the gel coat from absorbing water and blistering. Age of the boat and the condition of the gel coat may make it more prone to blistering. Some gel coats are more prone to it than others. Google gel coat blistering. Tons of info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Convertible13 Posted April 23, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2017 The first sentence I spoke to Ray stated I wasn't trying to get warranty work done on my boat. I'm the second owner and the boat is 15 years old. No where in my above posts did I say I wanted them to fix it. I was trying to find out why it happened, how to prevent it from happening again and what my options were to fix it. I wasn't expecting to hear don't keep it in the water or if you do, put bottom paint on it. In its present condition, I guess if I go on a week long fishing trip, I'll have to put it on the trailer every night instead of leaving it in a wet slip since it was only in the water 6 days. I found out I'm not the only one that's had this problem. Another member of this forum and other forums have had similar issues. BTW Where in the manual does it say you can't keep it in the water? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurricane Posted April 24, 2017 Report Share Posted April 24, 2017 Do you keep your boat on a lift at home? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted April 24, 2017 Report Share Posted April 24, 2017 On 4/3/2017 at 3:05 PM, Convertible13 said: I had my 2002 MA 21 in the water for a week, put it on the lift to detail and found blistering in the gelcoat under the waterline. What happened and how do I fix it? The blisters are small but there are hundreds of them. I've left her in the water before and never had the problem. Can you provide more pictures and more of a perspective....are you sure that's the original gelcoat color? dc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted April 24, 2017 Report Share Posted April 24, 2017 As Capt Troy stated.....gel coated & painted boats alike require barrier & anti fouling coats on the hull bottom if they're kept in the water for extended periods of time. That's common knowledge in the marine industry. What Ray @ MBC told you was spot on. I'm not sure you'll find that info in a boat manual but it definitely should be stated for those that don't know. The more I look at the pictures of those bubbles the more I believe that the gel coat is either not original or has been painted over. Ray or Skip should be able to look up the original gel coat color of your boat if you PM them your HIN. A marine professional can tell you quickly if the boat has been painted but if it's been re-gel coated the original color then it may be harder to determine what you're dealing with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justfish Posted April 24, 2017 Report Share Posted April 24, 2017 While I don't think they should need to warranty a 15 year old boat, I gotta agree if it should only be in water for "X" many days, it should be stated somewhere in your manual. I've honestly only ever thought the danger of doing so was growth, not ruining a hull. I have kept my boat in water for up to 10 days in keys a few times and never had this. Some small hard growth that I had to press wash, but nothing like this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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