Hardtop damage

[Bdsp1234]

So.... I found this today. Ugh.... I got shafted by my shrink wrap guy again. He kept promising and promising but never showed. Last week I finally ordered from Budge and got the cover today. Went outside and found this. I’m guessing it was cause don’t by ice intrusion. What’s the correct fix?. Boy I’m pissed at myself for not having it covers properly.

 

[DennisG01]

I wouldn't beat yourself up over this - or the shrink wrap guy for that matter. This is something that was just a matter of time - it's been building up for while, now. Either this is an air void in the original layup or possibly some previous addition (those three screws with finish washers?) allowed water penetration. Regardless, the first step is to see how far back the damage goes. After that, a plan can be figured out to grind back to solid then rebuild from there or completely rebuild the top.

 

[seasick]

I agree, the damage is from freezing but the root cause is wet coring of the top. Damage may be local but I doubt it since nearest penetrations are pretty far away. The less expensive option is to did out the rot, hope the core is somewhat solid and re-glass the damage including gel coat over the glass. I would suggest pulling a couple of the mounting screws that are shown on your photo to see what the hole looks like. At a minimum, those screw holes should be re sealed with 4200 which cures kind of hard and will add some crush protection to ant screw holes that have some local rot.
Regarding the repair to the damage, any skin that is loose has to be removed and you may fin that there is more damage to the skin than it may look. The problem is not new and has been going on for some time.

 

[Fishtales]

Water got under the skin causing the damage. Agree with seasick that water intrusion into the balsa core is the cause and likely was already there. A ticking time bomb. You can see how darn thin the top really is. A good glass guy can fix it but you will need to get it to a place where it can dry out. The risk is moisture retention. If it stays in the core, you risk the same thing happening again.
I would see if you can find someone with a heated shop that is willing to dry it out and do a local repair. Then you wait to see what happens. Sux....

 

[seasick]

I forgot to add; If it makes you feel better, the damage would probably have still occurred even if the boat been covered. The coring was wet already and given enough moisture and freeze cycles, something had to give.
Hard tops are often overlooked as far as maintenance goes and understandably since access is a pain.
You issue made me aware that I am also negligent in that yesterday I checked on one of my boats ( to readjust the cover) and as I was closing things up, I noticed a developing rust stain on the bottom edge of the hard top mounted electronics box. There is a mic bracket there and I said to myself, "I will have to clean and reseal that spot. Until today, It didn't occur to me that to stain, there has to me moisture and I probably have a leak that gets into the electronics box. Guess what the top of that box is; The hardtop with it's multitude of bolted through hardware. Guess I will add that to my spring list

 

[Fishtales]

Agreed. Water was already in, once the freeze came it was happening. I believe water intrusion is the #1 issue for boats and why manufacturers don't do more from a design and workmanship perspective to mitigate is a shame. They should know better.

 

[ItalianAngler]

my hard top is the crappiest looking thing on my boat. the edges are all flaking. It really needs removed and re-glassed. ugh, a massive job. my other thought has been to sand down the peeling spots and seal the whole thing up with something like a Line-X. It would make it less of a death trap when I'm up there and it would give me some more years before it goes to hell. I have the local line-x guy checking it out tomorrow. he says it bonds great to fiberglass and we can match the color, but he wants to remove the thing. i just feel like it'll be a nightmare.

 

[glacierbaze]

What about something like this, in white?

TACO Marine | Flex Trim TACO Marine

Manufactured from high-quality, marine-grade flexible PVC with internal aluminum clips and a gripping tongue, our Flex Trim molds to almost any contour and radius to provide a beautiful, durable finish.

tacomarine.com

 

[ItalianAngler]

What about something like this, in white?

TACO Marine | Flex Trim TACO Marine

Manufactured from high-quality, marine-grade flexible PVC with internal aluminum clips and a gripping tongue, our Flex Trim molds to almost any contour and radius to provide a beautiful, durable finish.

tacomarine.com

nice, thank you. that's my plan as well if this coating thing doesn't work out. why i love this site. great information.

 

[Fishtales]

Pics please when done..