Headliner leaking in aft cabin

[Mgtgrafix]

Hey guys. Looking for a bit of advice here.

Wife and I purchased a 1976 CHB 34 a few weeks ago and as the wife was redecorating the aft cabin, I noticed some moisture on the starboard side wall of the aft cabin. When I removed the mattress, it was wet on the bottom.

I started looking a little closer and saw the headliner above the bed was bulging a little. When I pushed on it, water came out. I decided to pull it down as shown in the pics. When I did the plywood that was under the PVC headliner was soaking wet. I removed it all the way down to the fiberglass.

The PO had replaced the side aft cabin windows and it appeared when he replaced the headliner and plywood, he nailed the plywood into the fiberglass. The nails are still in place and I can see water dripping from a few of them.

I'm going to dig deeper to make sure there isnt any more water intrusion coming from somewhere else, but my questions are:

1. Should I remove the nails?
2. If I remove them, what should I use to seal the holes?
3. Any other advice.

Thanks a ton!!

Joe

 

[dhmeissner]

Hi Joe,

So sorry to read this. I’d remove the nails and imagine you can seal the holes with a epoxy mix. But I don’t see how a nail could hold in fiberglass, and to leak it would have to have penetrated to the outside?

Based on this event, go through the boat with a fine tooth comb to see what other boneheaded things the PO may have done. Good luck!

 

[Mgtgrafix]

I was trying to figure out that as well. The PO did remove the teak decks, glassed over and painted with anti skid. There are not any exterior holes where the nails are, so I'm a little stumped on that. It looks like this has been like this for a while and I'm surprised it was missed on the survey. The PO did mention chasing a leak in one of the aft windows, but thought it was taken care of.

What epoxy should I use?

Also, once I track down and repair this should I replace the plywood? It was something weird that I have never seen before, with a white perforated facing.

Hi Joe,

So sorry to read this. I’d remove the nails and imagine you can seal the holes with a epoxy mix. But I don’t see how a nail could hold in fiberglass, and to leak it would have to have penetrated to the outside?

Based on this event, go through the boat with a fine tooth comb to see what other boneheaded things the PO may have done. Good luck!

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. Mg. In spite of the PO "re-doing" the outside decks, I suspect you still have leaks IN the deck material. Given the PO's level of "craftsmanship" I would do an intensive search for any possible sources in the deck itself.
That being said, leaks are insidious and the source of your water could be as distant as the fly bridge which eventually finds it's way to the deck core material. Re-check the windows as well. Got the T-shirt...

 

[Mgtgrafix]

RTF,

My plan is to work my way aft to see if there is any intrusion there, then check the windows.

Any suggestions on epoxy for the nail holes??

Joe

Greetings,
Mr. Mg. In spite of the PO "re-doing" the outside decks, I suspect you still have leaks IN the deck material. Given the PO's level of "craftsmanship" I would do an intensive search for any possible sources in the deck itself.
That being said, leaks are insidious and the source of your water could be as distant as the fly bridge which eventually finds it's way to the deck core material. Re-check the windows as well. Got the T-shirt...

 

[JimW]

Joe, do you know if your flybridge had a teak deck at one time and was removed by the PO. You are on the right track. Now that you have the “headliner out (and hopefully removed the mattress, on a dry day take a water hose and move it around (slowly) on all high spot on the flybridge deck and have someone in the aft cabin watching for water, this will hopefully narrow down the area of intrusion. Also, if you have “bench seats “back to back” are you getting water in the storage area? I just went through this same exercise, better to address all leaks now and document (with photographs and receipts) your repairs for your knowledge and the next owners. Leaks from above are harder to track, but they originate higher than the area showing damage. Good luck, JimW

 

[Mgtgrafix]

Jim. The fly bridge and aft cabin still have the teak deck. The PO removed the side teak decks only. Currently the fly bridge is and has been covered since we purchased the boat.

 

[poczatek]

I'm working on a 1974 34 DC Marine Trader as well. Replacing the deck on the right side of the aft cabin. Mine is leaking through the mast mount base fixture area. By the looks of the dark wet teak in your pics it may be more than nail holes. I hope not, but you may want to investigate a little further and fix it all while your in there. As I uncovered more of my ceiling tiles, I found much more damage than I expected.

 

[Mgtgrafix]

I'm not going to get too deep into this right now. Rain and crappy weather here in the PNW. On top of that I would like to enjoy cruising a little before I disect her lol.

That being said, I still plan on taking out the aft portion behind this mess to see what's up. Just looking for advise on how to repair what I find.

 

[poczatek]

I should think any good two part epoxy or resin would work will to plug small nail holes. West Marine has a fairly new product, which is a two part epoxy in one caulking gun style tube which comes with a mixing nozzle that mixes it as it come out of the tube. I believe it is called: West Marine 6 Ten.

 

[Mgtgrafix]

Poczatek, thank you I will check it out

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. Mg. As Mr. p suggested, pretty well any 2 part epoxy will work to fill the holes BUT before you do, (and this is the part you may not like...) you must find the source of the water in the deck "sandwich". Plugging nail hole leaks, at this point in time, will simply exacerbate the problem IMO.
I would temporarily put a good sticky plastic tape over the holes so you can use your sleeping area and at such time as you're mentally prepared to tackle the repair, open up a larger area around the nail holes so you can assess the condition of the core material. Maybe a 2" or 3" hole saw with the center, guide drill bit set shallow so you don't run the risk of going through the upper (outside) layer of deck.

 

[Xsbank]

RT nailed it - this problem is endemic to certain Taiwanese trawlers and the only real solution is to remove all of the wet “structural” wood inside the walls and ceiling and redo it all. Your surveyor dropped the ball on this as its a KNOWN flaw on Taiwanese boats. All of that black stuff is mould and mildew and you really don’t want to sleep with it.

 

[Mgtgrafix]

I have no intention of just sealing the holes. Just wanted to know how to do it when it was time to do so. My plan will be to tackle the major repairs later but for now want to see how deep the rabbit hole goes.

This is all new to me and I appreciate any advice that is given here.

As far as the mold, what would be the best way to clean it?

 

[alormaria]

TSP kills mold. Bleach just annoys it.

Any epoxy will do. There are a few that will seal under water. Find one of those as waiting for the wood to completely dry out will take forever.

If the PO took off the teak decks, I bet the leaks are coming from the windows.

 

[Mgtgrafix]

The PO replaced the side windows but I'm going to check to make sure he did it right. I'm going to dig a little deeper and check the back window since that wasn't replaced.

Is there a particular underwater type epoxy that is recommended. Also I will grab some TSP.

 

[Greatlaker221]

Here is a link to the dissection project I did a few years ago. Your pic looks familiar.

Saving Tortuga: Walls and Windows OMG!

 

[Mgtgrafix]

Greatlaker...I've seen your thread. OMG is right. Man that looks like A lot of work and I'm truly hoping mine isn't that bad..

 

[Mgtgrafix]

So a bit of an update. As suspected I have a deck leak and I know I have to deal with that. So my leak is from a leaky deck core which I will deal with this next spring. But for now spash zone epoxy saves the day. All is good now with no leaking. Again I KNOW this is just a band aid and I'm ok with that for now. Btw I love this CHB 34

 

[Donna]

I have just fixed a similar problem in a different area. You must remove the rotted wood and replace it with a good marine ply. I also killed the mold with a wipe down with bleach and followed it up with wood petrified. Let it dry then reframe and cover with the marine ply. I plan on using a waterproof self stick paper over it because I plan on lightening it up. Mine was not on The headliner, however, that should also be removed to check for mold and replaced. I am a stickler for doing a job once and right. It is important to use the wood petrified to stop any rot creep that you may overlook.

Personally I would address the leak first. It will not get better only worse causing more damage. This type of project is a can of worms and needs attention as soon as possible. Flex seal may give you a temp fix. I have had success with that. I will be re gel coating in the near future. I’m taking no chances. It’s a lot of work but great satisfaction when complete.

 

[AusCan]

Epoxying the holes where the water is coming out is a bandaid at best. You need to find where the water is coming IN. That is never quite as obvious.

It could be a window, a stanchion post, the teak decks or all of the above. Find all your internal wet spots. Get a rubber mallet and start tapping. The soft rotten areas will sound hollow. The spot where the water is leaking in may be some distance from where you found it leaking out. It may all be rotten in between.

 

[Mgtgrafix]

It's very obvious where it's coming in. It's the deck. There is dealamination on the aft deck from water intrusion. I'm just chosing not to deal with it immediately. Please understand I know what needs to be done and I WILL take care if it, just not right now
It's snowing and raining on and regulator basis here in the pnw. On top of that I want to enjoy the boat, since I just bought it. And it's impossible to find covered moorage in the Tacoma area. My plan is to ride it out this season and deal with it in the fall

I appreciate the suggestion on the underwater epoxy. I chose splash zone and it is amazing!!!

 

[poczatek]

Joe,
I found my leak in the aft cabin came from around the mast base support. The water leaked in around it and ran down the center stringer, into some of the plywood. Luky for me, the boat has been on the hard and slightly listing to the starboard side and leaked only into that side.

 

[aboatman]

Regardless of what product you use to seal the hole, it's important to seal the from the top, not the bottom. Water leaking into your boat will go somewhere and may show up far away from where the leaks actually are. Also, water trapped in a core or wood will remain for a long time and continue to damage the boat.

You could be in for major work if this has saturated the core.