Temporary fix for a leaking hull?

Hi,
Was out sailing yesterday and discovered (the hard way!) that one of my hulls had a major leak. Was going solo and when, 3/4 miles from the beach, I tacked, and the stern went under water. I had to hang off the front of the tramp to level the boat out. I eventually got her going again and made a beeline to the beach, opened the plug and out came a several gallons of water. After getting a look at the keel, there are a few holes where the epoxy/glass chipped away. The largest is about 1/4 inches in diameter. Apparently I must have damaged the hull while moving the boat off the beach for the hurricane that wasn't (Earl).
My question, is there a temporary fix that I can use to stop the leak? There are only 3 or 4 sailing weekends left here in NJ and I don't want to lose couple of days reglassing the bottoms. I plan to do that in the off season. Any advice on a temporary fix would be appreciated as I am getting desparate to sail and thinking of using duct tape.
Thanks, Jack

The glass at the bottom is fairly thick, I had lots of small "holes" in mine and it never leaked, can you take a thin wire and check to see if the hole goes all the way into the hull? The way you describe it ""where the epoxy/glass chipped away"" doesn't sound serious. You could put a VERY small amount of air pressure in though the drain plug then take some dishwasher soap and with a rag or a sponge go over the area you talked about and see if you have bubbles appearing. I would check the pylons where they go into the hull or maybe the rubber gasket on the drains. You could fix the leak temporarily with some marine silicone till you get the proper fix done in the off season.

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06 getaway -- always remember, man with both feet in mouth have no leg to stand on.

First, diagnose the leak. If it is the bottom, then you need to glass it. Easiest to take off the mast and flip the boat upside down. Sand it rough, , tape it off, lay on as many layers of glass as you need, let it go off and go sailing. You can do the sanding/shaping and re-gelcoat latter. This should only take half a day (morning if it's warm)

Duct tape will not work and may put you at risk along with those trying to help you out.

If the leak is else where, then the fixes are easier.

Guys,
Thanks for the response. Immediately after beaching the boat, I put it up on beach wheels to help it drain. While up on the wheels, water was draining from the bottom on the hull. So that is definitely the source of the leak.
I was thinking about a quick reglassing on the beach but thought the resin takes at least 24 or more hours to cure. The marine silcone sounds like a good option. I'll do the pylons for good measure.
Thanks again for the advice and I hope to be sailing again this weekend. And I was kidding about the duct tape!

Jack

You could try a quick and dirty polyester resin fix. Mix up some resin with some 404 west system high density filler, chop up (1-2") some pieces of fiberglass cloth add some hardener and mix it all up until thick enough to hold it's shape. Maybe rough sand a bit, mask and clean off the area with some acetone and spackle that stuff in. Let it cure overnight and sand it flat. Go sail for the rest of the season and have fun! Then when you have time, grind out this chunky repair and do it the right way ( plenty of repair articles here and on other cat sites) Good luck!

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Blair T

I love these calm moments before the storm, it reminds me of Beethoven...


'02 Hobie Tiger USA 1152

I'm with Tallguy, except I'd forget the glass and use Formula 27 or Bondo for a quick temporary repair. It will cure sufficient for your purposes in like 30 minutes.

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Jerome Vaughan
Hobie 16

The only thing I don't like with quick repairs with alternate products is that depending on what is used, might have to remove it all in order to do the permanent fix.

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Marc...
1978 Hobie 16 Keoke, sail# 36 84

Thats what grinders and jigsaws are for!! It'll get uglier before it gets fixed!

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Blair T

I love these calm moments before the storm, it reminds me of Beethoven...


'02 Hobie Tiger USA 1152