Fiberglass repair using stuff from Lowes

[Axkiker]

Anyone ever used the fiberglass resin and matt they sell at lowes to do a small repair??? I will have a place I need to fix. roughly 3 x 6" and thought about using whatever brand it is.

 

[KyleB]

never used it myself but I've done glass repair. Depends on what they are selling and what the area is that you are trying to repair. If it is structural then beef up the area as much as you can. If it's pretty cosmetic then I bet the stuff from Lowes will work just fine. Keep in mind that you may have a heck of a time matching the color. :cheers:

Just make sure you do the repair outside and put a fan at your back. Also, only mix up enough resin for the repair that you plan on doing for the next few minutes. Once that stuff starts setting up there is no going back. My suggestion is to build it up in small amounts. Sand...build...sand....build....until you get what you want.

 

[Axkiker]

never used it myself but I've done glass repair. Depends on what they are selling and what the area is that you are trying to repair. If it is structural then beef up the area as much as you can. If it's pretty cosmetic then I bet the stuff from Lowes will work just fine. Keep in mind that you may have a heck of a time matching the color. :cheers:

Its a place right smack in the middle of the bottom. Looks like it hit something at one time. Im not real worried about matching the color as you cant see it unless you are actually under the boat

 

[KyleB]

If the place is a deep gouge rather than a crumpled up piece of glass I would use marine epoxy instead of fiber glass. Just fill it in and sand it down once it dries. It's much easier to work with and you don't have anywhere near the mess. :cheers:

 

[Axkiker]

If the place is a deep gouge rather than a crumpled up piece of glass I would use marine epoxy instead of fiber glass. Just fill it in and sand it down once it dries. It's much easier to work with and you don't have anywhere near the mess. :cheers:

Well here is the kicker... you can just slightly see where its busted through to the inside. Could grinding it out and applying something like duraglass be okay... Or does it need to be cut out and new glass applied ?

thanks

 

[KyleB]

ok heres what you do. Grind it out both inside and out until you get a clean workable surface. Then lay some glass on the inside as a backer. After that sets up then you can work it from the outside until you get what you need. If you can take a picture and post it I may be able to give you better advice. Always make sure to lay a fiberglass patch much bigger than you need on the inside. Your not gonna see that one anyway so it really doesn't matter how neat it is as long as you have plenty of resin and glass so it will be strong. Obviously you don't want to goop it up but making a patch 2X the size of the hole is perfectly fine. :cheers:

 

[Axkiker]

ok heres what you do. Grind it out both inside and out until you get a clean workable surface. Then lay some glass on the inside as a backer. After that sets up then you can work it from the outside until you get what you need. If you can take a picture and post it I may be able to give you better advice. Always make sure to lay a fiberglass patch much bigger than you need on the inside. Your not gonna see that one anyway so it really doesn't matter how neat it is as long as you have plenty of resin and glass so it will be strong. Obviously you don't want to goop it up but making a patch 2X the size of the hole is perfectly fine. :cheers:

Okay that is kinda what I had in mind.... For the outside repair area would you recommend using more glass matt, or possibly duragrass filler. I was thinking since the inside has an additional patch maybe it would be strong enough.

Thanks

 

[JoelKatz]

If you haven't read the section of the SeaDoo shop manual on "Compound Fractures", you should do so. The shop manual is available for free and it's pretty much the same in all of them since they're all gelcoat over fiberglas.

Here's one link: http://******************/manuals/2000-seadoo-shop-manual-2.php

 

[Axkiker]

If you haven't read the section of the SeaDoo shop manual on "Compound Fractures", you should do so. The shop manual is available for free and it's pretty much the same in all of them since they're all gelcoat over fiberglas.

Here's one link: http://******************/manuals/2000-seadoo-shop-manual-2.php

Linkey no workey.... I would love to read it if you can provide a working link

 

[kenmitch]

You could look at the manual for your ski here and see how much info it has on hull repair.

Won't let me post a link but it's seadoomanuals DOT net

 

[adamsbj123]

I repaired a large hole under the engine on a older ski. After removing the engine. I sprayed brake cleaner to clean out any oil first. Then layed down 3 layers of cloth and resin on the inside. After it cured I used Bondo short strand fiberglass repair on the underside. I sanded the bondo and spray painted the area with Fusion gloss white. Good as new.

 

[pethia]

I repaired a large hole under the engine on a older ski. After removing the engine. I sprayed brake cleaner to clean out any oil first. Then layed down 3 layers of cloth and resin on the inside. After it cured I used Bondo short strand fiberglass repair on the underside. I sanded the bondo and spray painted the area with Fusion gloss white. Good as new.

I work on boats frequently. If I were doing the fiberglass repair, I would recommend West System Epoxy. Nothing beats it for structural integrity. It costs more, but worth every penny. Grind away the fiberglass around the repair and then lay in mat and West epoxy resin. The idea of the the Krylon Fusion paint is a good tip.

 

[KyleB]

I work on boats frequently. If I were doing the fiberglass repair, I would recommend West System Epoxy. Nothing beats it for structural integrity. It costs more, but worth every penny. Grind away the fiberglass around the repair and then lay in mat and West epoxy resin. The idea of the the Krylon Fusion paint is a good tip.

:agree: West System is good stuff and you can't go wrong with it. :cheers: