Hole in boat.. how screwed am i

[Johnny Mills]

I have recently bought a 10ft plastic boat. I got it for extremely cheap and when I got home I discovered duct tape on the front. The hole is very small and seems possible to fix but I have no experience in this topic. I attached a photo of the damage. What would be my best bet in fixing this if it’s possible. I have some marine hoop laying around and have also gotten advice to bondo it.. would either of these work or is there something else to try? Any help would be appreciated, thanks

[Teal]

I have used fiberglass and resin on fiberglass boats, but never fixed a plastic boats..I'm sure it's not the end of the world.  I'm gonna do a little research.  (That means im gonna call my dad, he should know what to do)  

It doesnt look awful, is it foam filled? Is it taking water? 

[tander]

Don't look too bad, I have used bondo on wood, don't see why it wouldn't work on plastic.

[garroyo130]

[MN Fisher]

The plastic boats now-days are made of Polyethylene (PE). There are specific welders that use PE rods like a glue gun. Using one of those, you can rebuild the damaged places.

You'll need a welder, raw plastic and (for most welders) a pressurized air source.

 

[Johnny Mills]

24 minutes ago, Teal said:

I have used fiberglass and resin on fiberglass boats, but never fixed a plastic boats..I'm sure it's not the end of the world.  I'm gonna do a little research.  (That means im gonna call my dad, he should know what to do)  

It doesnt look awful, is it foam filled? Is it taking water? 

I’m pretty sure that it is foam filled and I have not tested if it’s taking water. On the inside of the boat, you do not see the holes so the hole only goes through the outside layer

[MN Fisher]

21 minutes ago, Johnny Mills said:

I’m pretty sure that it is foam filled and I have not tested if it’s taking water. On the inside of the boat, you do not see the holes so the hole only goes through the outside layer

Even with Duct Tape, water could leak around the edges of that. If the foam took on water, might want to let it dry out a while before repairing the holes. "Pint's a pound the world around" - every gallon of water the foam soaked up adds 8 pounds to the weight and unless you let it all dry out - it'll start rotting the foam if it hasn't started already.

[K1500]

Look into a plastic welder. You can use some plastic from another (quasi expendable) part of the boat for full rod. You could also cover it with JB Weld Water Weld and some gorilla tape after you plastic weld it. 

[BigAngus752]

Dry it out as @MN Fisher said!  Very important!  Then use this:

 

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Marine-Adhesive-Sealant-5200/?N=5002385+3293241623&rt=rud

 

This stuff is incredible.  And most importantly, flexible.  

[WRB]

Search "SEMProducts" 

Tom

[Ogandrews]

54 minutes ago, garroyo130 said:

Was about to say throw some flex seal on it and let er buck. In all seriousness though if you want it done right I would look into the plastic welding that MN fisher was talking about. I will saw that I did mess up and put a 1” hole in my old kayak, filled the hole up with silicone from my work truck and I never had a drop of water come in.

[Johnny Mills]

55 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Even with Duct Tape, water could leak around the edges of that. If the foam took on water, might want to let it dry out a while before repairing the holes. "Pint's a pound the world around" - every gallon of water the foam soaked up adds 8 pounds to the weight and unless you let it all dry out - it'll start rotting the foam if it hasn't started already.

 

how could I assure that it dries out? Should I just leave it uncovered in the sun on a hot day? The boat is extremely light and 2 people lift it easily so I’m fairly confident that there’s not too much water in there.. I hope?

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, Johnny Mills said:

 

how could I assure that it dries out? Should I just leave it uncovered in the sun on a hot day? The boat is extremely light and 2 people lift it easily so I’m fairly confident that there’s not too much water in there.. I hope?

Check the manufacturers website for the normal weight - figure some way of putting the boat on a scale. Subtract base weight from current weight and divide by 8. That'll give you how many gallons of water the foam has absorbed.

 

Given the size of the holes - I'd give it a couple days of warm weather per gallon or part there-of to dry out.

[Teal]

My pops said same thing, let it dry a while and look into a plastic welder.  He has does similar jobs but just using a heat gun or propane torch as low as he could get it heat a price of plastic till it's very ply able and then start to fill the hole with it.  It can always be sanded down and repainted.    Should be videos on repairing kayaks that should help.

[Nelson Delaney]

My first boat had a hole In it that I’d stick a grub into before I launched 

[WRB]

Here is another suggestion West Systems 655-K plastic boat repair kit. You don't need to heat weld, just sand paper, cleaner, expozy and reinforcement tape. 

The holes look round and man made, the seller owes you a explanation.

Tom

[Teal]

11 minutes ago, WRB said:

Here is another suggestion West Systems 655-K plastic boat repair kit. You don't need to heat weld, just sand paper, cleaner, expozy and reinforcement tape. 

The holes look round and man made, the seller owes you a explanation.

Tom

Now that out my.glasses on and zoom in, looks like some sorta bracket or something may have been mounted there.... Looks fishy?

[boostr]

If that's at the bow, it's the holes for the bow eye. Just get one and install it.

[camman]

14 hours ago, Johnny Mills said:

 

how could I assure that it dries out? Should I just leave it uncovered in the sun on a hot day? The boat is extremely light and 2 people lift it easily so I’m fairly confident that there’s not too much water in there.. I hope?

Can you poke through the foam in that area with your finger and see if it feels wet?  

 

How big are the holes? 1/2" or less?  A plastic weld would be the best long-term solution, though you can use Marine Goop or the 3M marine sealant and it will hold fine, just clean the area first.

 

 

[ohboyitsrobby]

I had a hole in a plastic canoe a couple years ago. I took a heat gun and strips from a Folgers can. It worked out way better than I would've thought. I did put some gorilla tape over the top of that. I floated many a river since and never once leaked a drop. 

[NJBasstard]

For something that small I'd just get one of the small plastic welding kits from Harbor Freight. It should come with mesh and welding sticks for like $15. Just lightly sand and clean with alcohol beforehand. Worked on my old Coleman Crawdad for the 4 years I had it and never leaked.

[Johnny Mills]

On 5/29/2020 at 12:39 PM, boostr said:

If that's at the bow, it's the holes for the bow eye. Just get one and install it.

Yes it is the bow. I’m pretty much a beginner with this type of stuff and have no idea what a bow eye is but I’ll research it.. 

[WRB]

It appears a handle od some type was ripped out, you can see the imprint of the foot.

Repair the holes and enjoy your boat.

Tom

[LonnieP]

Plastic welding kit from Harbor freight. 16.99. I repaired a foot long crack where the battery sits in my Pond Prowler the other day and it worked great.

[Bankc]

I've repaired lots of plastic by welding.  Most plastic boats these days are made of HDPE (high density polyethylene).  The photo looks like HDPE, but it's hard to tell from a photo.  I would see if you can verify from the manufacturer the type of plastic used, just to double check.  If it is HDPE, you can find scrap plastic pretty easily.  Just look for the recyclable number "2" marked on the plastic.  Usually, milk jugs, water bottles, and some mild household cleaners are sold in HDPE bottles.  However, if the boat isn't made of HDPE, then you'll want to find out what kind of plastic it is, and match that.  

 

The trick to plastic welding is to use the same type of plastic as what you're trying to fix.  Mixing plastic types can cause issues.  I use a 30 watt soldering iron to weld plastic.  Be sure to apply too much to begin with.  Then use the back side of a large spoon to smooth it over, and sand paper to sand it down.  It's really easy to do, assuming your welder doesn't get too hot and burn the plastic, or not hot enough to melt it.  But it's really hard to do in a way that doesn't look like it was welded.  In other words, it'll be functional, but probably not pretty.  

 

Another trick you could try is to solvent weld it.  That's where you take a glass jar with a lid, like an old pickle jar, and fill it with acetone.  Then put some ground up shavings (or small pieces) of HDPE plastic into the jar, and let it sit for a while (it could take a few days).  Check it periodically to see when the plastic is liquidized into a soft paste. Don't let it dissolve into a runny liquid, as that will be too hard to control.  Then, apply the HDPE paste to the area you wish to patch.  In your case, you'll probably want to back the hole with something to keep the HDPE paste in place until it dries.  Also, you way want to do several thin layers, giving each layer time to dry completely before beginning the next layer.  If you do too thick of a layer, it'll skim over and the insides won't dry out and harden.  It's also good to wet the edges of the holes with acetone several times a few hours before you begin the patch, to help soften the old plastic so it'll melt a bit and bond with the new plastic.  

 

For something as thick as what you have, I'd recommend the heat welding method, as it'll be easier and quicker for you.  But the solvent method has it's advantages, and they can both do what you need.