Nordic Tug salon top deck leak

[boatseaker]

During a buyers survey we found water on the port side of the salon roof. Moisture dripped to the outside deck and a moisture meter showed wet. What is the process for drying the inside of the overhead. Obviously the fittings on the upper deck have been leaking and can be found with a pressure check. My issue is can the roof be dried enough for a good fix and what is the procedure.
Thanks for any ideas!
Boatseaker

 

[sunchaser]

If you are the buyer, walk - at least for now. If you are the seller talk to Nordic tug in Burlington. My guess is an after market add on is the culprit.

 

[Nick14]

I've personally seen a few Nordics (37s and 42s) with moisture penetration into the salon top deck core. I've been told that those boats can frequently develop cracks at the aft end of the pilothouse bulkhead, where it forms a 90 deg angle at the forward end of the salon top boat deck (just beneath the aft pilothouse windows, perhaps a stress point?).

Once there is a crack there, it unfortunately allows ready access for water, which then wicks along the balsa core in the salon deck - and can saturate a large area. I've seen boats where that crack is repaired and looks good, but the much more expensive problem of moisture in the deck core was not addressed.

A moisture meter can be your best friend here.

 

[DinghyDog]

Not an insurmountable issue, but I would not want to pay a yard to perform the work. There are 3 options based upon the severity and expanse of the moisture infiltration:

1. Remove the fixture that may be causing the leak (bolt/screw holes will expose the wet core to air). Using a heat gun, start at the perimeter of the wetted area and continuously/carefully move to intrusion point. This process takes patience and may need to be accomplished over a period of time. This only works if the moisture intrusion is fairly superficial.

2. Drill small holes at the highest and lowest point(s) in the area of moisture. Inject acetone (to aid drying) into the balsa core and repeat number 1. Fill, fair and paint the drilled holes.

3. Remove necessary sections of the fiberglass deck to expose the core and inspect the balsa or plywood core for rot. Either replace or stabilize the core (depending on rot severity). Replace the fiberglass deck and fair/paint.

Rebed all fixtures with high quality butyl tape.

Mike

 

[Nick14]

On the boats I saw, the water intrusion was not through a fixture, but a crack in the fiberglass at the base of the aft pilothouse windows (a broker who knows the boats pointed it out). On a couple of boats I saw, the moisture saturated almost the entire salon upper deck core, my moisture meter was pinned almost everywhere back to the aft railing, maybe a hundred square feet of area.