|
|
|
|
|||||
|
||||||
Subject: TWL: Re: DeFever & Blisters
From: Robin Roberts (rar@XXX.XXX)
Date: Mon Dec 02 2002 - 09:34:14 EST
I doubt that there's a definite "history" with blisters and that vintage
of DeFever boat - I think the issue is more closely related to
long-range cruising boats that stay in the water for many years with
little/no attention paid to the bottom coatings.
We *just* bought a 1988 DF 49 Pilothouse (and yes, she does have
blisters, which will be repaired very soon). We used an excellent
surveyor - he's independent, but does all of the intake surveys (boats
entering brokerage) for Oviatt Marine. Oviatt has built many/most of
the DeFevers in the '70s and '80s, and they handle quite a few DeFevers
for resale. We chose this surveyor because of his reputation (for
pickiness!) and because he has probably surveyed more DeFevers than
anyone.
His assessment of the blisters was this: he told us that he'd be
surprised if we didn't find any - just given the age of the boat. Not
related to DeFevers, just related to age on a full-displacement type of
boat that doesn't get hauled out of the water very often! So many of
these ocean-capable live-aboard cruisers spend years and years in the
water - with no chance for the hull to dry out. (I always heard that it
was a good idea to let a fiberglass boat spend a 2-3 months on the hard
every few years just to let the hull dry out.) The surveyor told us
that small blisters are "normal" - in other words, they are not a reason
to panic or to run from a purchase. They do need to be fixed - properly
- with a peel and re-coating. Big blisters, on the other hand (= the
size of your palm versus small blisters = size of your finger tip) can
be a real problem and might represent sufficient delamination of the
fiberglass that you may want to reconsider purchase.
In our case we found blisters, but they were all very small and many
were between the bottom paint and the epoxy; only a few were into the
glass, and none were big enough to present a concern.
So, we got a price concession from the seller to cover the bottom job
(which will be done soon) and which will be monitored by our surveyor.
That way, we'll be sure the hull is properly dried before the bottom
coats are applied.
Given that we've purchased an older boat and the fact that the blisters
were very small and no significant problems were found, I'm just as
happy to get the full bottom-job done now - less to worry about later
when we're cruising. A good peel and paint job will last for many many
years, especially with a little dry-out every few years.
-- Robin Roberts M/V Adventures DeFever 49 Pilothouse http://members.cox.net/rar _______________________________________________ http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/trawler-world-list
|