Cracked Seams

Seah0rse

Seah0rse

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I stripped off all the paint on the Top Sides of my wooden Hull last year (40 years worth) and filled some gaps between the planks, which are splined, with marine filler. All looked great after sanding priming, undercoating and painting.

The cracks have reappeared this year and are worse not better and I suspect that they are in the same places plus one below the waterline which caused some alarm while sailing recently.

I have moved the boat from the UK to the Algarve since painting and while heat may be a factor I think it is also flexing of the Hull.

The questions I have are;

Should I refill with marine filler

See if I can jam in some caulking first then fill

Use Epoxy such as West System

Is this a sign of failing fixings

The boat was surveyed a few years back and the Hull declared sound.

Thanks for your comments and suggestions.
 
When we had a wooden boat, we had similar problems. In our case it was the wood drying out. If we kept it wet it was ok. If she was out of the water for a week or two having work done, she sank when relaunched. It happened! We had to spray water on, several times per day, until the planks took up, then she was tight again. The decks had the same problem. We painted them with a thick bitumen type paint to protect them and stop them drying out. (As you can tell by that, it was roughly 60 years ago!) That worked, but it made my father sell the boat as it was too much trouble and risk.

Mike
 
If your suggesting cauking some of the seams they must have opened up quite a bit for splined seams indicating that the glue line has broken.Maybe you need a reliable surveyor to diagnose the problem......unless its just the hot sun.
 
Med climate is notoriously unkind to wooden boats - no matter how well they are built. The extremes of temperature and humidty cause the wood to expand and contract far more than in wet temparate climates. Keeping heat off with some form of awning helps, but the problem won't go away. Splined hulls with conventional fastenings (as opposed to the modern epoxy saturated methods) are difficult to deal with as there is no flexible seam to take up the movement.

You probably need an experienced wood boat surveyor who knows and understands the construction method (rare beast!) to advise on the best way of dealing with it.
 
mogy said:
If your suggesting cauking some of the seams they must have opened up quite a bit for splined seams indicating that the glue line has broken.Maybe you need a reliable surveyor to diagnose the problem......unless its just the hot sun.
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Yes they have. Under sail, iron or canvass, causes water to flow to the bilge pump like a 'babbling brook! Fortunately the bilge pump can just keep up with some support from the manual one. No intake when not making way.
 
I had a traditional wooden boat,carvel construction and it always laid the same way on its moorings on the Medina,the sun opened up the seams and water used to flood inwhen heeled.What colour is the hull painted.....ypu will have to go out sailing more often!
 
mogy said:
I had a traditional wooden boat,carvel construction and it always laid the same way on its moorings on the Medina,the sun opened up the seams and water used to flood inwhen heeled.What colour is the hull painted.....ypu will have to go out sailing more often!
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AWB colour with black transom to camouflage diesel deposits. I sail as often as I can risking that I will still have a family to come home to......
 
Filling seams can best be done with ordinary glazers putty mixed with linseed oil,this will the spill out as the wood takes up.It will stop the water comong in at least..well it did on my boat!
 
The correct way to fill seams is by using lead putty.

Red lead putty below the water line and white lead putty above.

The putty is to protect the cotton seam not to stop water ingress, I would suggest going on the Classic forum and asking the question there were many more knowledgable people will be able to talk you through the process.

One point I will comment on is "NEVER" fill the gaps with epoxy filler you can destroy the integrity of the hull by doing so. One thing you will see with wood boats, by people that dont know better is covering below the water line with fibreglass......thats the quickest way to ruin a traditional vessel.

Tom
 
Think I would be slightly wary of stuffing traditional seam filler into a splined hull. Splines were used primarily to avoid seams. You could find the inside faces of the seam are close fitting and the spline is wedge shaped, so using a filler could force the planks apart. You also don't say whether the splines are glued in - in which case it could be the glue line failing. If the planks are traditionally fastened to the frames with either screws, nails or copper rivets, it could be these are failing allowing movement.

Too many unknowns to be definitive about the best way to deal with it, which is why I suggested getting advice from somebody who is familiar with the specific construction method of your boat.
 
Can't see any filled fastening heads so looks like all glued construction with close seams. One way of dealing with it is to router out a slot where the glue line has failed and glue in a new spline. Could be just a one off job as the wood is adjusting to its new environment - but could be the start of a "Forth Bridge" type job where you have a steady stream of small failures. Any sign of previous repairs?

Was she built by Mitchells in Poole? - not that it really helps as there is nobody there now that would remember those times.
 
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