RE: Hull restoration

Are you sure you want to do this? I completed this job last year on my 1966
OMC Duel Deluxe. I spent a year trying to dry out the foam. And I did...
down a whole three-quarters of an inch into it. I didn't want to pull it all
out because I didn't know how to replace it and was were you are now. A
local marine mechanic steered me in the right direction.

Based on his advise, I ripped out the whole deck and dug 10 garbage bags of
heavy wet foam out of the hull. It actually came out easily. I built a new
deck with support struts based on what I found as I ripped out the old. The
bilge well was built into the floor and I fabricated a new one out of a PVC
drain pipe tee. When the deck was complete, I sealed the edges and seams
with fiberglass cloth and resin leaving 3 large cavities in my Tri-hull. I
drilled a large hole over each section and poured two part foam into each
cavity. Once you mix them together, you have 45 seconds to get it into the
hole. It will fill the void providing buoyancy and support for the deck. You
should have been there that day as the foam expanded and the deck creaked
under the force. It was so cool. I finished the deck with 3 additional coats
of resin. It looks good now but it was a long time doing the prep work
building the deck and bilge well. My boat is on the site where you can see
the deck is a mess. (That picture was from when I was overly optimistic
about a launch date) I have some pictures of the deck restoration that I can
send to you to give you a better idea of what you are in for. It has got to
be a labor of love cause nobody in their right mind would actually want to
do this. I'm happy with the way mine turned out, so to me, it was worth it.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ralph Erickson [mailto:ericksra@...]
Sent: Saturday, November 15, 2003 10:22 AM
To: omc-boats-digest@...
Subject: Hull restoration

Hello group,
I have a 1968 Evinrude Sportsman 155, and there are some cracks in the hull
and water is getting in below decks someplace. I bet this is a common
problem. It seems to me, when I take it out of the water for the season,
that the water drips out of the hull for a really long time. So, I am
hauling this water around with me the whole summer and adding a lot of
weight and slowing the boat down, and I think that the underdeck foam is
old and waterlogged. Has anyone ever gone below deck and dug out all the
old foam? What does this entail? Do you have to also replace timbers
under there? How big a job is this, anyway? Anybody who has had this done
or tried it yourself, I would appreciate the advice. Thanks.

Ralph Erickson
1968 Evinrude Sportsman 155
ericksra@...
Received on Monday, 17 November 2003