Pepper Potted

[MarkJohnson]

I am looking at a boat which was epoxied about 13 years ago. My surveyor has found she now suffers from osmosis.

I have found out that the previous epoxy treatment was in the form of what is called pepper potting. As far as I understand, that means the process requires that holes are drilled into the hull to dry it out. I assume epoxy is then used to fill the holes and to then cover the hull.

Has anyone any experience of this system, and what is the long term effect on the hull?

May be I should walk away from the boat, but she is a terrific sail and looks so good (Gibsea 90)

TIA

MArk Johnson

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[wooslehunter]

Never heard of pepper potting but I understand that boats can take months to dry even if the gelcoat is totally stripped. It sound like a cheaper way of treating but perhaps not as effective.

Talk to a company that does osmosis treatment. If it needs a fix you'll have to get a quote anyway.

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[oldsaltoz]

G'day Mark and welcome to the WBW forums,

The good news is that osmosis can be worked on, not sure about the pepper pot system, it take a year to dry a hull or longer depending on conditions, this can speeded up with heat and environment conditioning.

The important thing to bear in mind when getting quotes to make sure they state what method they will use and what materials and resins, with this information you can select the best, not the most expensive or cheapest quote.

Look for complete removal of all gelcoat and 'other' protective coatings, most of the better treatments now apply some layers of new fibreglass prior to protective epoxy and further protective coats.

Last but by no means least, have a good look at their warranty, the warranty will effect the total cost, also check if they include antifouling.

I hope this helps, and good luck with her if you decide to buy, and please let us all know what you end up doing.

I have included some sites to provide you with a little more information below.


http://www.osmosisinfo.com/preview.htm

http://www.yachtpaint.com/intropage.htm