|
|
08-29-2017, 12:07 PM
|
#1
|
Newbie
City: Callao, Va
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 2
|
What kind of rot is this?
Hello All-
I have a 42' 1956 Chris Craft Constellation. I have been noticing some kind of deterioration along the ribs in the engine room. Photo attached. What is causing this and how to prevent? The boat is kept in a covered slip in the water year round in Virginia. There is no fresh water penetration into the affected area. There is no other rot in the usual places, around windows or decks. The boat is generally in top condition.
I've owned wood boats in the past, so I am familiar with dry rot caused by fresh water. Usually, the entire wood piece is permeated with the rot, and an ice pick can be pushed all the way in. The rot in this case is different. It's only on the surface, and appears to be a kind of "shredding" or "fuzzing" of the outer surface of the wood. The layers below are solid. Therefore rot caused by water or condensation is not my first thought but I'm wondering if it might be caused by some kind of electrical condition - electrolysis, or stray DC current grounding out, or even neighboring boats putting out current into the water, etc. but I need an expert's advice. And it has occurred quickly - over the course of a winter. Any thoughts about this?
Many thanks
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 12:13 PM
|
#2
|
Guru
City: Mississippi
Vessel Name: ADAGIO
Vessel Model: CHB Present 42 Sundeck
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 919
|
Is that a marine/mahogany plywood hull? I once owned a 1965 28' CC that had the ply hull - CC used it between lapstrake and fiberglass eras. Could it be from the glue from the layers of ply?
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 12:45 PM
|
#3
|
Guru
City: Seaford Va on Poquoson River, VA
Vessel Name: Old Glory
Vessel Model: 1970 Egg Harbor 37 extended salon model
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 2,264
|
If the boat is in salt or brackish water, it is a weeping salt rot.
The water slowly weeps through that area, dries and leaves behind salt crystals which fray and cut the wood fibers.
If that is true, it is a very very slow leak. If you can keep the moisture from coming through the wood and drying, then the problem will cease.
I would scrape off the loose fibers, and seal it with epoxy or paint.
If you scrape it down, and it is damp, try drying first with a heat gun, before sealing it.
I don't see any thru hulls around that fuzzing wood, so I doubt it is electricity.
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 01:23 PM
|
#4
|
Senior Member
City: Cape Coral, Fl
Vessel Name: Panacea
Vessel Model: Novatec 42 Sundeck Trawler
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 163
|
Subscribed
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 02:58 PM
|
#5
|
Newbie
City: Callao, Va
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 2
|
Thanks for the replies. There's no plywood, so that's not a factor. But sdowney, your ideas are very interesting and could be the answer. The boat is in brackish water, off the Potomac. The damaged area is right at the waterline, actually a couple of inches above, but water can be seeping through and doing what you describe. If it was scraped down and sealed with epoxy on the inside, do you think that would stop the process, even if there was still some seepage? Or would it be necessary to find the infiltration point on the outside and seal that? The paint on the hull is 7 years old and due for renewal - doesn't look too bad, but I'm wondering if this could be a factor in allowing water to infiltrate. Thanks so much.
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 03:01 PM
|
#6
|
Guru
City: Philadelphia, PA
Vessel Name: Revel
Vessel Model: 1984 Fu Hwa 39
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,024
|
Post on the WoodenBoat Forum. Email Dr Jaegels at WoodenBoat.
Examine the rest of the hull for similar appearance.
How long has it been since you last looked there?
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 07:31 PM
|
#7
|
Guru
City: Seaford Va on Poquoson River, VA
Vessel Name: Old Glory
Vessel Model: 1970 Egg Harbor 37 extended salon model
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 2,264
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by jrusk
Thanks for the replies. There's no plywood, so that's not a factor. But sdowney, your ideas are very interesting and could be the answer. The boat is in brackish water, off the Potomac. The damaged area is right at the waterline, actually a couple of inches above, but water can be seeping through and doing what you describe. If it was scraped down and sealed with epoxy on the inside, do you think that would stop the process, even if there was still some seepage? Or would it be necessary to find the infiltration point on the outside and seal that? The paint on the hull is 7 years old and due for renewal - doesn't look too bad, but I'm wondering if this could be a factor in allowing water to infiltrate. Thanks so much.
|
Yes, it will stop it completely, if you seal the inside wood surface.
Preventing the weeping water intrusion and then it drying on the surface to form salt crystal which cut the wood, is the ultimate goal.
On a haulout, look at the exterior, you may need to recaulk. You may also have a cracked plank.
|
|
|
08-29-2017, 11:08 PM
|
#8
|
Guru
City: Concrete Washington State
Vessel Name: Willy
Vessel Model: Willard Nomad 30'
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 18,738
|
There's only one kind of rot. rot.
What you have is not rot but some kind of critter like ants.
__________________
Eric
North Western Washington State USA
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 02:15 AM
|
#9
|
Senior Member
City: Subic Bay
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 194
|
Critters like BORER?
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 02:26 AM
|
#10
|
Guru
City: Concrete Washington State
Vessel Name: Willy
Vessel Model: Willard Nomad 30'
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 18,738
|
Steve,
Yes maybe flying ants.
just a guess.
__________________
Eric
North Western Washington State USA
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 06:03 AM
|
#11
|
Guru
City: Biloxi, MS
Vessel Name: Cajun Rose
Vessel Model: Biloxi Lugger
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,384
|
I had a similar looking "rot", my hull is Cypress. It ended up being a slow leak from a keel cooler bolt that worked it's way out and broke. After the trip to the yard they replaced all the bolts and now the problem is fixed, I also had a few bad fiberglass repair jobs that were leaking very slow. All fixed and zero moisture invasion. We are finally putting another coat of paint on this week.
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 06:26 AM
|
#12
|
Guru
City: Beverly Hills
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 1,371
|
Looks like some type of wood fungus. You can remove the loose fibers and treat it with anti-freeze to kill the fungus. Let the ethyl glycol saturate the wood fibers then rebuild with epoxy.
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 06:53 AM
|
#13
|
Guru
City: Sydney
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 1,646
|
Agree its a fungal rot it can be stopped and repaired using "West Systems " epoxy buy drilling 100s of small holes and injection with epoxy in a syringe when mixed correctly it will have the consistency of water.
This will penetrate the timber and form a hard workable area .
|
|
|
08-30-2017, 12:53 PM
|
#14
|
Guru
City: Sitka
Vessel Model: Transpacific Marine Eagle 32
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 519
|
Not all antifreeze is ethylene glycol. In my experience the 50/50 mixture works as well as 100%.
|
|
|
10-20-2017, 02:23 PM
|
#16
|
Guru
City: Between Oregon and Alaska
Vessel Name: Charlie Harper
Vessel Model: Wheeler Shipyard 83'
Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 3,021
|
If you seal a leak passing thru wood on the inside, you are basically making a sponge that is always wet internally. You need to solve the leak. It's position could be a drip from the deck. Water can travel a long way downhill, thru seams, along framing, etc.
If it's from a fresh water leak you'll get dryrot.
I once chased a leak over a couple years in a wood boat. It started on the flying bridge, went down inside the wall of the wheel house and in a plank seam to drip in the forward, below deck area.
|
|
|
12-03-2017, 06:31 PM
|
#17
|
Guru
City: Aventura FL
Vessel Name: Kinja
Vessel Model: American Tug 34 #116 2008
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 10,595
|
May I suggest you contact your nearest Ag agent. Invite him to the boat to look at it. Free
2nd option, Invite a pest control company to come and look at it. Just might have a small charge.
Looks like caked dirt on the left of the pic. That would suggest termites.
Obviously, you must remove this wood. There is no structural support and it may have an active colony.
The next option is rot.
Considering the options, I would start with the nearest Ag Agent. FREE
Work from there.
__________________
Two days out the hospital after a week in the hospital because of a significant heart attack.
|
|
|
12-15-2017, 06:53 PM
|
#18
|
Senior Member
City: SOBX North Carolina
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 348
|
That's typical in wooden boats and the lack of air flow. You see that a lot in engine rooms on those older type boats. What type of venting do you have? Is there engine room vents over the area that's showing? You may need to add some additional vents, or check and see if any vent that allows air to flow into the engine room is fully clear. Sometimes when they put the old fashion copper screening, over time some corrosion will close up the screening too.
|
|
|
12-15-2017, 09:41 PM
|
#19
|
Guru
City: Between Oregon and Alaska
Vessel Name: Charlie Harper
Vessel Model: Wheeler Shipyard 83'
Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 3,021
|
Arsenic and copper solutions applied separately will kill all rot and any bugs. Online from chemical companies that sell small quantities. Untreated rot will continue to spread to any other touching wood and maybe by air to additional places.
After arsenic/copper application the wood is considered hazardous waste. Why we cut more trees rather than have wood preservatives that actually work. The US use to have a testing station in Panama. Wood treated with the above items was placed in a jungle area (many years ago) half in the ground along with wood with other treatments and no treatments. Untreated wood was totally gone in 3 years. The copper/arsenic treated wood was still in excellent condition 50 years later. I read the report in the mid 70s - about the time the EPA was making it illegal. Now borate, a salt, is the only approved marine wood preservative I know of. I use it in the bilges of my wood boat but only after applying something that works.
|
|
|
12-16-2017, 12:50 AM
|
#20
|
Guru
City: Richmond bc
Vessel Name: Invader no1
Vessel Model: Kishi Boat works
Join Date: Mar 2012
Posts: 638
|
Not much will survive after a brushing of acetone.
Then a diluted application of epoxy acetone over.
Its painted with oil based base paint from the pics.
Try a fire resistant paint over effected area . IMO
Make sure its well ventilated for any application of what ever and where a breathing apparatus ( cheap IMO )
|
|
|
|
|
Thread Tools |
Search this Thread |
|
|
Display Modes |
Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
|
» Trawler Discussions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|