Gel Coat repair

[butch]

So I have taken the boat in for winterization and my dealer says that my gel coat is bubbling and needs to be sanded down and re-coated. Looks like about a 2000$ repair. He says its common on the tige and that they don't cover it under any part of the warranty. I don't think i have much choice as to whether to go through with the repair but I would like to know what other peoples experiences have been with their tige gel coat.

[dingleberry]

Do you leave your boat floating for weeks at a time? If so, most brands of fiberglass boats (not just Tige) can begin to blister. That seems to typically be the case when folks have blistering issues. If you leave your boat in the water, you really should either get a boat lift or use a protective coating (such as anti-fouling paint), since gel is slightly porous.

If you do not leave your boat in the water, then it is not a common problem (at least to my knowledge).

[embo]

I am bringing in my boat this next week for winterization and will let you know what they say, if anything, about my gel coat. The people before me had it in the lake for 4 summers. They had it out over the winter but sat in the lake for 4 summers. I haven't noticed anything myself and don't know if they applied anything special like mentioned in previous post. But let you know if they say I need gel coat work as well.

[Jackson Hole]

I had a 1999 2100 v and had the blistering problem. I never did anything and never had a problem. I did leave my boat in all summer. I bought a new Z1 this past season and my dealer recomended I get the Barrier coat on it to prevent the blistering. I did order it that way but it has only been one season and no blisters. The boat was in the water all summer.

[NICKYPOO]

Does the issue have something to do with the water perhaps? My buddy's '06 has had zero issues with this and his boat is in the water for at least 6 months a year. It's Tahoe though. Super clean and cold.

[IDBoating]

Do you leave your boat floating for weeks at a time? If so, most brands of fiberglass boats (not just Tige) can begin to blister. That seems to typically be the case when folks have blistering issues. If you leave your boat in the water, you really should either get a boat lift or use a protective coating (such as anti-fouling paint), since gel is slightly porous.

This is exactly why, when we got our lake place, we bought a boat lift (an AirDock, to be precise). I wanted fast access to the boat but didn't want it sitting in the water all the time. I didn't want marine growth on the hull, didn't want the gelcoat issues, didn't like the idea and maintenance of antifouling paint, didn't want the mechanical components exposed to water 24/7, etc. A boat lift solves these problems.

Think about it. Say you actually use the boat eight hours of every day (that would be over 1000 hours in a summer). That's still 16 hours a day that the boat and all of its components are exposed to the water for no good reason. A boat lift would reduce water exposure by two-thirds with no reduction in your ability to use the boat when you wish. And if, like most people, you DON'T use the boat eight hours every day, you're helping prolong the life and appearance of your boat even more.

IMHO, a boat lift is a far higher priority than many of the accessories most people automatically put in/on their boats. Pretty cheap insurance, too - in our case less than 5% of the cost of our 24Ve.

Just my $0.02.

[Iwndr]

Or a trailer

[IDBoating]

Or a trailer

But having to pull the boat from the water every day SERIOUSLY impacts the convenience of using the boat. And the less convenient something is, the less you'll do it.

"Oh, we only have an hour or two... by the time we launch, park the trailer, and get set up - it will already be time to start getting the trailer back and pulling the boat out." And another boating opportunity is lost.

With a boat lift, we go from decision to engine running in five minutes. Lifting it back out takes another five. No truck, no trailer, no parking, just GO. That makes it convenient, which means you'll do it more.

Again, YMMV.

[Iwndr]

I would love to have a house and dock with a lift on the lake.
I was Just Kidding you

[IDBoating]

I would love to have a house and dock with a lift on the lake. I was Just Kidding you

OK, no problem. I actually have met some people who think boat lifts aren't worth it. If you have waterfront property, I think they are almost a requirement. WAY better than violating your beautiful gelcoat with antifouling paint, anyway.

[butch]

The boat is usually in the water from June until September. We have a cottage with a dock and pulling it out onto a trailer every week isn't doable. Everyone else on their lake leaves their boat floating too. Maybe worth looking into a lift this winter but I'm still surprised this had happened, particularly for a 3 year old boat.

[Ewok]

If you are the original owner you should look into the tige lifetime hull warranty and have a second opinion from a marine surveyor to determine the cause of the blisters. I got scared on my last boat by blisters and did a lot of research, most blisters are caused by errors in the manufacturing process. Of course you need water to infiltrate the gelcoat and react with the resin, and less exposure to the water will lessen that risk, but good quality gel coat without manufacturing defects should not get blisters.

[Ewok]

I just found out that gelcoat is not covered under warranty. It's a bummer. There are plenty of books and articles on the web to educate yourself on blisters, get smart so you don't get taken on repairs, it's a tricky thing to fix blisters.

[butch]

yah the tige dealer told me that tige doesn't warranty the gel coat. Apparently very few boats warranty the gel coat although one of my friends got a 5 year warranty on everything on his nautique. Kinda sucks but hopefully this repair will keep me floating for longer than the original tige gelcoat.

[embo]

Well I am getting back on this subject...got the boat winterized and nothing was wrong with the gelcoat. This is a boat that sat in a lake from 05 til this summer (only during the summer months though). It's not not going to be sitting in there because we own it now. Maybe we got lucky or maybe it's still to come. But wanted to get back and let you know since I said I would. Sorry to hear about your blisters.