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H14 Soft Decks
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Author:  G.J.F. [ Fri Dec 28, 2018 8:40 pm ]
Post subject:  H14 Soft Decks
Recently purchased a H14 Turbo & have no experience with sail boats.
The serial number stamped into the rear port pylon is 5071.
Reading various posts on this forum soft hulls seems to be a problem on the older boats.
The hulls aren't soft on this boat, but the deck on each hull can be depressed in front of the forward pylons.
Is this what is usually referred to as soft hulls?
Or something entirely different?
Can the decks be removed from the hulls?
Can they be strengthened in situ?
Or are they junk?
Author:  MBounds [ Sat Dec 29, 2018 8:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: H14 Soft Decks
G.J.F. wrote:
The hulls aren't soft on this boat, but the deck on each hull can be depressed in front of the forward pylons.
Is this what is usually referred to as soft hulls?
Yes.
G.J.F. wrote:
Or something entirely different?
No.
G.J.F. wrote:
Can the decks be removed from the hulls?
Not without destroying the boat.
G.J.F. wrote:
Can they be strengthened in situ?
Perhaps. Search the forums on epoxy injection / soft decks.
G.J.F. wrote:
Or are they junk?
Perhaps. Depends on the extent of the soft spots.

Sorry to give you so many "perhaps," but without knowing the extent of the problem, it's hard to predict the outcome. Soft hulls / decks are like cancer. Caught early, it's very treatable and the patient has a good prognosis. Large areas of delamination (soft spots) are likely to result in broken hulls.
Author:  G.J.F. [ Sun Dec 30, 2018 12:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: H14 Soft Decks
Would it be feasible to cut an access hole in each deck, with a view to installing deck hatches & repair/strengthen the decks from inside the hulls?
Author:  mmiller [ Thu Jan 03, 2019 2:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: H14 Soft Decks
The issue is the foam core. It has to be laminated again using the injection method or removed and replaced. I have heard of the deck being cut off at the width of the foam and layered up again with cloth or new foam... then the tope panel laminated back on.

Injection is by far the easiest.
Author:  G.J.F. [ Tue Jan 08, 2019 5:55 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: H14 Soft Decks
Thanks for the explanation Matt, I'm guessing the deck has been damaged from previous owners stepping in these areas & the foam has given way due to the increase in loading.
Author:  mmiller [ Wed Feb 13, 2019 11:26 am ]
Post subject:  Re: H14 Soft Decks
Labor and materials. Maybe a few hours labor. Fifty bucks max in materials I would guess.

mmiller wrote:
Hulls - Soft or Delaminated hulls on older boats

Soft hulls are caused by the foam and fiberglass layers becoming separated or delaminated. This can be caused by heat, repeated compression (walking on) or other factors related to materials and age. This is normally correctable. A soft area is a structural breakdown and should be corrected before sailing the boat. Soft areas in decks near or ahead of the forward cross bar can cause complete failure of the bow and must be repaired before sailing the boat.

If your Hobie has soft or "delaminated" hulls or deck areas, take a look at the following link:

Image

I did a search on Google to find information on the material that is excellent for this kind of repair "Git Rot" Flexible penetrating epoxy:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=Git+Rot
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