Hull blistering 26M

[ksatterlee]

My 2007 26M spent it's first season in the salt water last summer. A boat yard applied a single season ablative and did not recommend epoxy barrier coat pre-season. This season I re-coated the bottom myself w a multi-season ablative. I noticed quite a few blisters in the bottom of the hull, especially where the previous bottom paint came off. I plan to apply a barrier coat for next season. I really don't want to pull it out and do that now as I would lose too much time on the water. How much additonal damage (and hours of work for me/add'l cost) will this cause? What is the procedure for removing the blisters prior to epoxy coating. Not sure what my best course of action would be here.

[MSN-Travelers]

I think all of us tend to call any bump that we see on the hull a blister. I'm not sure many of as have suffered a real "blister" (i.e.: a large bump that, when pierced, actually has water drain out). Many of us have had the surface take on the look and feel of a football with bumps about the size of a pencil eraser.


I sanded the hull, bumps an' all, with 80-grit. A few areas had divits left where larger bumps had been. I filled these with marine epoxy and sanded smooth again.



I used a yard that lifted the boat off the trailer, put it on blocks/stands and launched it from a travel-lift for $150.



Then it was 4 coats of Interlux 2000E barrier and 2 coats of Petitt Vivid bottom anti-fouling paint (1 gallon). I used 2 1-gallon kits of the 2000E and alternated grey and white to ensure coverage. I selected the Vivid because it was a multi-season hard finish designed for trailer boats. It took me four long days, start to finish, and a good part of that time was waiting between coats.

I think the real work for you will involve sanding off the ablative bottom paint to get a clean surface for the barrier coat to adhere properly. In the sanding process, you will get rid of the majority of your bumps.

Paul

[ksatterlee]

Thanks for the info. I feel much better about this now. I was pretty stressed since this is a new boat and I want to keep it up properly. I'll try your technique when I pull her out in the fall. (My hull does have the "football" look like yours though not nearly as many yet.)
Thanks again.