Nothing to worry about?

[jcwads]

Hello all.

I have been cleaning up my boat now it is out of the water, and whilst taking out the cabin bow berth seat cushions, the furthest forward bow storage compartment (which is directly underneath a seat cushion at the very front of the boat down below) has some cracks in the fibreglass. Now I am new to this boat ownership thing, and it may just be that its nothing. However, I just want to make sure its nothing to worry about, and not more serious! I have attached a couple of pics to see if anyone can help. Thanks!

 

[jcwads]

Hopefully with no response this is just me being unnecessarily worried!

 

[omega2]

Anything on the outside corresponding to these? any water inside?

 

[BruceK]

No expert by any means but my understanding is there will always be small air pockets between gel and grp and even between grp matting that can lead to cracks like that. Where that crack is, is a difficult place to lay up and could have resulted in the curing process or soon after. Could simply be a minor flaw or could be more serious. As Omega said is there corresponding cracks on the outside, leaks etc? Is it worth your while to chip off the flow / gel coat to inspect and redo? If the exterior is fine and no leaks I'd be tempted to leave well enough alone. Otherwise for peace of mind get a surveyor or repair specialist to have a closer look.

 

[jcwads]

Thanks for your replies. The compartment is bone dry, so no sign of ingress. Also nothing corresponding on the outside at all, so I hope that i's purely cosmetic.

 

[omega2]

Thanks for your replies. The compartment is bone dry, so no sign of ingress. Also nothing corresponding on the outside at all, so I hope that i's purely cosmetic.

Fill it and repaint! if it offends you, if you employ an expert they will no doubt condemn the whole boat, and also advise that osmosis is present. LOL

 

[Greg2]

Drom what I can see on the photos it doesn't look like anything I would be worried about.

 

[[2068]]

It just looks like shrinkage of the "blob" of gelcoat/mat that was wedged into that internal corner.
I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

 

[Harryi123]

Only way to tell is to grind back gelcoat and find any crack into the glass but only look like cosmetic crack from the photos

 

[stelican]

It just looks like shrinkage of the "blob" of gelcoat/mat that was wedged into that internal corner.
I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

Quite agree . Seen this before on a larger scale and after investigation found that someone had emptied the surplus contents of the resin pot into the bilge and owing to lack of reinforcing had allowed the resin to fracture . You dont have a problem there.

 

[Bandit]

Not knowing the boat type its difficult to say.

I would say nowt to worry about a bit of movement but structure sound.

 

[sarabande]

The crack edges look smooth. If there is any movement in the substrate, then 'active' edges tend to be sharp.

 

[jcwads]

Thanks everyone for your responses! This forum is a godsend for newbies like me.

 

[Bouba]

Thanks everyone for your responses! This forum is a godsend for newbies like me.

Because it's the only place where people in big boats talk to people in small boats