Crack - need advice

[misnMT]

I have the boat (2010 SX240) for 4 years now. I am not sure how long this crack has been there. I noticed it when putting in new impellers and wear ring housing. It’s about the size of a quarter and side does move a little when pushed on relative to the other side of the crack. I think you can even see in the pic that there is some overlap where the two pieces meet. You'll have to zoom in to the pic to see it.
As an aside, I don’t recall an impact and is an inside corner like that a stress point?
I’ve done some research and based on the size, it doesn’t look like I need to fiberglass it. I’m leaning toward Dremeling out the crack, fill with epoxy, and then gelcoat.
Thoughts?
Thanks, Brian in SE Texas

 

[Murf'n'surf]

If you are going to mess with it, I would tap it with a screwdriver and hammer....lightly. This will expose if its blistered below and then you can get all of the loose gel out and re-gelcoat the spot. If you dont want to get that deep, just smear some sealant in the crack and recheck it once a year.

 

[misnMT]

Thanks for the advice. I'm guessing 3M 5200 is the sealant you had in mind?

 

[Dixemon]

5200 will work, but pricey for just a little dab. The tube will dry at the mouth after it is open and be a pain if you need to use it again. in that area you could use pure silicone from a caulk tube, whatever is cheap and waterproof. You only need a dab to keep water from getting behind the gelcoat.

 

[HangOutdoors]

I would tap the crack and then perform the proper gelcoat repair. Fairly easy to work with.

 

[zipper]

5200 will work, but pricey for just a little dab. The tube will dry at the mouth after it is open and be a pain if you need to use it again. in that area you could use pure silicone from a caulk tube, whatever is cheap and waterproof. You only need a dab to keep water from getting behind the gelcoat.

Store your opened 4200, 5200 etc. tubes in the freezer, next to the blueberries. They will stay fresh and not dry up. It’s something about the blueberries lol.



As far as the crack, it is most likely in a thicker application of the gelcoat.

Repairing Gelcoat Stress Cracks - Epoxyworks

By Terry Monville - GBI Technical Advisor Knowing how or why your boat’s gelcoat cracks occurred in the first place is the key to a successful repair. For example, if hitting a seawall or dropping a champagne bottle on deck is what caused the cracks, after fixing them you will know how to...

www.epoxyworks.com

 

[Murf'n'surf]

You can use 5200 or a RTV sealant.