I haven't hyped this book in a few months, but "This Old Boat" by Don Casey
talks a lot about blisters, their causes, and repairs. He cites (repeatedly)
some study that says the >surest< way of getting blisters is to allow
standing water in the bilge. Like you noticed, many go away when dried out.
There are a variety ways to prevent and fix. It could be that the measures
you have already taken have done the trick. While potters have their
problems, blisters are certainly not terribly common. So its ok to relax a
bit :)
> What amazed me is that I can't recall ANYONE else with a POTTER
> who admitted to having ANY BLISTERS! I don't place any blame on
> the Potter manufacturer of 1990, stuff happens, and I think for
> the money the Potter has always been a good buy based on what I
> see written here.
My 1988 had one dimple I think might have been a blister. I sanded it off
and put bottom paint over it and haven't thought about it since.
> There do seem to be some leaking problems, and some can be
> solved by resealing. Some apparently can't. I have resealed
> the side chainplates twice and they are leaking again. I get a
> lot of water in the side shelves when it rains. I am going to
> install a small rubber "umbrella" (or something) to deflect the
> water away and see if that works. I'll report at end of 2000
> season. Any ideas appreciated!
How are you sealing the chainplates?
> I now use a solar powered fan in the cowl hole on the forepeak
> in the summer and will install inside fan when I put her in the
> barn or under a tarp. The MOISTURE level is GREATLY reduced to
> negligible now. I think condensation can be as big a problem as
> leakage.
agreed 100%.
> Regarding preventing blisters by using bottom paint:
>
> MY UNDERSTANDING (and I don't know much), is that bottom paint
> (if you mean anti-fouling) won't keep it from blistering. There
> are epoxy paints that might help. However, I haven't done that
> because at this point I think my problem was either that hole,
> or the inside leaks (or condensation) or all of the above. I
> had less pimples this spring then last fall. Boat was in the
> water for a month in spring and 2 months this fall, and
> yesterday when I pulled her and washed her off there are LESS
> then there were this spring. My son who was with me the day we
> discovered the pimples was with me yesterday and he was amazed
> at the lack of pimples. This reinforces my feeling that the
> problem was internal.
I think you're on to something there.
Seriously, get that Don Casey book. Libraries have it or its like $24.95 at
amazon and worth every penny.
-Eric Johnson 1988 P19 #461 "Victoria", Bothell, WA