Delamination-Git Rot Clarification

I am an inexperienced sailor but I have recently purchaced a Hobie 16 and have fallen in love with sailing this boat. I have only been able to sail the boat for one season and have been cautious of putting her back on the water because of two "soft spots" on the starbord hull. I have been researching the best way to fix this situation and it seems that injecting a thickened epoxy is the best solution. I would like to thank Matt Miller and many others that have posted their advice on this particular problem. I have found this website to be very informative. It is truely priceless for a novice such as myself.
I am planning on using the method suggested by Matt Miller for injecting Git Rot epoxy into the two delam areas on the hull. One is approx. 14-16 inches in front of the foward pylon. The second is approx 8 inches in between the foward and rear pylons. Does this seem like the right solution to this type of delam? And, how much of the 2-part expoxy will I need? (It appears that I could purchase 4,16,and 32 oz. of the solution.) Could someone give me an approximation? It would be much appreciated. Again, thanks to all for all the wonderful advice found on this forum.
James

I would get a couple of 4 oz. One for each area.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

Thanks alot Matt. I would have thought it would have taken more. You've saved a poor college student a few bucks.
James

I ended up using a lot more, but I had a larger area than first thought. I did read the lable and chilled the stuff before you mix it. It was rather warm the day I used it, and it would have set in the bottle if I hadn't chilled it first. Good Luck and be patient with this stuff.

Thanks for the advice berryboats. I was planning on getting a little bit extra as the delam area is likely to be larger than I thought as well. I gues I won't really know untill I try. There are some cool days coming up here in NC and I figured I would do the repair soon. Unfortunately, I think I may have missed the best sailing weather this year but hopefully I can get her fixed up and back on the water.
Once I do this repair, assuming I do it correctly, can I consider the hull to be "structurally sound"? Is there anything else that I will need to do to make the boat safer? It hasn't seen any ocean use with me but I was hoping to get her out in the open water next year. I've mostly been practicing manuvers on a small shallow lake.
Thanks again,
James[/i]

The repair done properly should be solid, but I would caution you about open ocean sailing. Especially till you use it a lot in safer areas first.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

I would get extra bottles of the Git Rot so if you need them you don't have to risk the epoxy that is already injected curing whil you run to the store. You can always return the unused bottles. Better safe than sorry.

_________________
Nick

Current Boat
In the market
Previous boats owned
'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
St. Louis, MO

Why use Git Rot for this kind of repair? Why not some other epoxy
like, say, West Systems? What is special about Git Rot?

I've used West for repairs on my laser. It is very versatile.

FYI for West if you want it to harden more slowly, they have a slow
hardener. No need to chill it. Chilling could be a problem making
your repair on the beach.

The main advantage I see is Git Rot is already combined with the correct filler, is quick and easy to mix, and (most importantly) has the proper amount of flex when cured to work with the hulls while they are experiencing the loads caused by sailing. Other epoxys can work, but Git Rot has been proven to work and work well.

_________________
Nick

Current Boat
In the market
Previous boats owned
'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
St. Louis, MO

Thanks again for all of the advice. I plan on doing the repair this weekend. I purchaced one 16 oz Git Rot and on 4oz. just in case. I'm hoping the delam isn't bad enough to take all of that. If so, I may be in trouble.

In response to the question about the West Marine Product. I had originally found instructions of this kind of repair that said to use this soulution. I found that it was rather hard to locate and also a bit confusing in determining the amount of product that I would need. Again, I am a novice sailor and have only had my boat for two years with no prior experience. The local Boater's World didn't even carry it and the website for the product didn't give me much help either. I tried many of the local boat repair businesses in my area, mostly Fayettville and Greenville, NC, and they only carried it in commercial volumes. The West Marine is a three-part compound while the Git Rot is only a two-part. From what I can tell, it seems like the better and easier solution for this problem.

Should I do this repair with the hull still attached to the corner castings? If I suspect that it is taking more product than necsessary, possibly because of a cracked bottom glass layer, which I really hope isn't the case, or some other unforseen variable, should I turn the hull upside down and tape off the breather holes? Is there any additional advice that anyone would like to add before I go through with this? I really can't afford to mess up a hull. I hoping that I might be able to get the boat out after a week or so for at least one day before it gets too cold here. Again, ya'll have been more than helpful.

Git Rot is a penetrating resin. It flows into tight spaces.

Pump it in very slowly. More material is used when the glass and foam layers are forced apart by excess resin. As the two surfaces flex back to their original shapes, it forces excess resin back out out and that is waste material.

If the inside layer is cracked or you drill through, I guess you could stop and allow it to set up. Then do more. I believe you can do multiple areas. It does not have to be in one shot.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

Thanks for such a quick reply Matt.

I found the vent holes to be of little use. I know I'm a blasphmer! I had such a large area that I had multiple (about 6 I think) 1/4" holes about 6" apart right down the center of the hull deck. And I did mine in batches over several days. By chilling in 90 deg heat I hoped the git rot would penetrate better. It did. I also tapped with a light plastic hammer around the voids. Near the end of the process I was putting a couple drops in each hole until that batch was gone. 4 ozs at a time. Very boreing but it worked really well. Solid everywhere, and ready for spring!

If you're repairing the deck I'd lay the hull on its side. Add the resin from the top and let it flow to the bottom and fill the void. If you drill vent holes tape them off as the resin starts to flow out of them.

_________________

Beeryboats,
Thank you for all of your replies. How much of the Git Rot did you use for your repair? Do you think that I will need more that 20 oz. of Git Rot? I am planning on doing this all at once as a friend has allowed me to do the repair in a large garage. I'm expecting optimal temperatures for the Git Rot, 60-70, and want to do it in the garage because of the brutal NC humidity. It's still a bit humid even at this time of year and I want to make sure it cures properly. I noticed that I never mentioned but the delam area is on the deck, which I believe is typical for my early 80's 16. How did you have your hull positioned when you did the repair? It seems as though the most logical way would be to have the hulls as they would be on the beach, so to speak, so that the resin fills in from the bottom up. Is this correct?
Again, I really can't thank all of you enough for advising me in this matter. You guys are truely awesome. I wish calm seas and stiff breezes for all of you.
James