black, wet, wood

[tim3057]

I've found some of this - under a panel covering the centreplate case on my Finesse 24. It's below the waterline. With the boat now on dry land, what should I do? it seems fairly solid, not rotten & crumbly. To replace it would be a HUGE task!

<hr width=100% size=1>Wayfarer Woodie done, now I need a new fix..

 

[Peterduck]

You have two choices, as I see it; one is to attack it now, while the boat is out of the water and everything is easy to get at. It may end up being a lot less dramatic that at first appears. The alternative is to do nothing and continually worry about it and the boat's buoyancy [is she still afloat?] Sometimes there are huge jobs to be done, but the ramifications of not doing them are greater. Eg; notice from harbourmaster to remove sunken wreck or have them do it at your expense. You have my sympathy.
Peter.

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[mickshep]

I'd hang fire a moment before assuming the worst and doing something drastic. From your post I'm assuming that the timber is very wet but still solid? I would uncover the effected area and allow it to dry out properly then re-access the situation. It could just be that the wood is wet through which in itself is not the dreaded rot. Having said that, if the timber is not yet rotten, it sounds like the ideal place for rot to start in the future. once dry it wants a good soaking with a wood preserver and well protecting with paint. Mike.

<hr width=100% size=1>My Mum say's I'm not a fat b@st@rd, just heavy boned.

 

[tim3057]

Yes, it's soaking wet and black, but still very solid. The area is not structural, exactly, but it the casing for a lifting centreplate and is as such always underwater. I wondered if, when it's dry, I could drill a few tiny holes to help the wood preserver penetrate, then use some of that ronseal wood hardener stuff, then paint up.

How can you tell rot? And does it spread like an infected wound, or just settle in to damp wood? I mean, why don't the bilges rot where it's wet most of the time?

<hr width=100% size=1>Wayfarer Woodie done, now I need a new fix..

 

[tcm]

i thinik different wood is affected diferently. Certainly teak if left damp goes black - but won't rot for quite some time and even tho black a good drying out and bleaching it's good as new. I think also that rot isn't binary like rot/not rotted - there are various stages of rot. As others say, I wd dry it out first and reasess.

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[tillergirl]

How can you tell rot? Well if its rotten it is obvious - soft, flakey. the problem is the period when its going rotten. Wet rot takes hold in wood which has become too wet exacerbated by poor or nil ventilation. You can get fungus growth and a fungal smell. Clues of the timber getting too wet is blackening, poor adhesion of paint around fastenings. But centre board cases sit in water and bilges in wooden boats generally have water in them. If its salt water, its not so bad. Fresh water is the killer. That said, all timber that gets wet ought to be treated to some sort of coating. My last survey found a little blackening and poor paint adhesion on a couple of frame ends in the bilge The suveyor recommended drying out and recoating - which I did and they remain hard.

Is the blackening on the outside of the centreboard case? What is the paint finish on the affected area like? If the wood is hard on all sides don't panic. If you get a thin spike deeply into the wood - woops. A little penetration is a sign that something needs to be done. Where does the water come from that is causing the blackening? Is there quite a lot of standing bilge water causing this or is it water leaking through the centre board case?

Dry out and if hard recoat with something appropriate. I'm not a fan of B &Q type remedies. Wooden boats have existed for years with normal marine paint jobs. Problems occur when the paint job is allowed to fail or leaks go unresolved rather than the quality of the paint products. I would not drill to insert preservative; I don't think it will penetrate much further than if you liberally coated the surface.

Tell us a little more about where this blackening is and the extent of it.

Hope this helps

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[tim3057]

Thank you, very helpful. It's all around the bottom aft end of the casing, which has until now had a small amount of reddish brown sludge seeping out under the edges of a 5" wide vertical plank that covers the aft face of the centreplate box. Now on dry land I removed the 5" plank to find a vertical 2" x 4" beam sandwiched bewteen the case sides, which are about 3/4" thick. The lower 6" of this beam is black and wet, but very firm and hard to the touch; but a stab with a sharp screwdriver does make a slight dink in the wood so I guess it's not totally rock hard. The lower inch or so of the case sides are simliar, for about 6" forward along the case.

The keel is only an inch off the ground, so I can't get underneath to look up the slot, and I'm not sure if I can lift the plate up and out the top, which is now open. Maybe - I'll have to ask a Finesse owner. The bolt, which I think I should replace anyway, is at the front, but there are two of them 3" apart - again, specialist knowledge!

As for the bilges - there are one or two areas without paint now, as I a gave it all a good clean, so I guess I will need to repaint. Is there special bilge paint? Out from under the engine came chunks of old paint, some of it very gummy and thick, which has again left bare wood. Difficult to see, impossible to paint! Shall I just pour a bit of thinned paint into the bilge to try to coat it all over?

I'm not trying for shortcuts exactly, I want to make the most of it being accessible for the next few months, but there's a lot else to do!



<hr width=100% size=1>Wayfarer Woodie done, now I need a new fix..

 

[tim3057]

Oh, and I don't think it's due to standing water. It's about 3" above the bilges, and I would say is coming in from the sea.

<hr width=100% size=1>Wayfarer Woodie done, now I need a new fix..

 

[tillergirl]

Coming in from the sea is good! Well better than the sky. I think the task is to let the wood dry out and then coat it. Judging by what you say, it still has a lot of life left. But it sounds like your centre board case is leaking and that needs to be addressed. The reddish brown sludge is rather typical of a bit of rust, bit of silt (in the sea water) and a bit of the usual bits and pieces that find their way into a bilge. A clean up and a bit of work to make her a bit drier sounds the winter task.

I think asking a Finesse owner is a good idea. The centre plate is probably L shaped and drops out the bottom of the slot. But it would be a good idea to get some idea of the construction of the centreboard case to see if something can be done about water coming through. I understand Platt's who built Finesse's are no longer trading but I bet there are some people in Leigh on Sea where Platt's had their yard who know about the construction. Is there a Finesse owner's association?

Failing that since diagnosis is so difficult without seeing it finding someone with experience of wooden boat repairs who is prepared to give it a look and give advice would be helpful.

Bilge Paint - I think International still call their's Danboline in red or grey. Blakes do a similar paint in red called Bilge and Locker Paint. It does seem a little bit more tolerant than normal yacht enamel but I don't think you'll get good adhesion with what you propose under the engine. think how good you'll feel once you've lifted the engine, scraped out all the c**p and done a good paint job thorough the bilge! (once the aches and pains have worn off of course). I suspect the ease with which the paint under the engine came off is not unrelated to a similar method of application.

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