My boat is blistering all over. All of the blisters are below the water line, but they are everywhere. I recently power washed the bottom (1,200 PSI) and some of the blisters started to pop/ open up. Some people have told me to ignore them and bottom paint over them, and others have said if the blisters are not dealt with, it will eventually lead to structural issues.

I was planning on bottom painting the boat next season, which doesn’t intimidate me, but dealing with the blisters, if they need to be dealt with, seams beyond my abilities. Any advice on weather this needs to be dealt with would be appreciated.

Not sure if it’s relevant, but the boat spent its life in fresh water (Lake Sebago, ME) and has moved to the L.I. Sound this summer. Hence needing to paint the bottom in the spring.

(I cant seem to upload any picts?)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/128445...2/15542549010/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/128445...2/15542549010/

https://www.flickr.com//photos/128445997@N02/show/

I certainly would not ignore an issue like that . And definitely do not just paint over them , anyone that says that doesn't have a clue.
Fortunately it is something that you can take care of yourself with some basic tools and some patience along with the right materials .
The main thing is , once you get them opened up and ground / washed clean it takes a while for them to dry sufficiently before you can epoxy fill them all . The earlier you can start , the better . Once that's all done barrier coat the bottom and use the anti-foul of your choice .

those dont appear to me to be gelcoat blisters. The gray looks like primer, as if its been painted with an automotive finish and left in the water. first thing would be to determine exactly what they are as handling them requires different processes.

Now that I can see pictures I agree with Dave in that those don't look like blistering . It's almost like there's a defect in the gelcoat or something.
Best to determine exactly what's going on before taking action .

Thanks for the reply Madbouys, and Glassdave.

I am not sure how to tell what the issue is. Naturally, the marina I’m keep it at for the winter says its definitively “osmotic blistering”. Obviously, they want to do the work too. They have a glass guy, but I don’t think the marina specializes in glass work (not sure if that matters or not).

How do I determine if its blistering, paint defect, or gelcote issue. I can send you more high res pictures, if that helps determine anything. If so, you can PM me your email and I will send pictures, or you can just email me directly at suss1173 at AOL.com.

Thanks!

Everyone has a glass guy supposedly!!! Yes it matters as most will give it the illusion of being correct and then you are assed out later. Get tired of marinas and guys who fix a nick or fiberglass one stringer in and now they are gods creation of fiberglass guys. I stitched a cut up once with some fishing line once and so now I guess I'm a emergency room doctor!! Get a second opinion. Most people care about the check not you or boat!!

And yes those are little blisters. Triton bass boats are terrible at this. Go pick a triton boat out and look underneath. It looks great .... Now jack the boat off trailer and everywhere it sits on the bunks these will be there. Perfectly shaped like a bunk so you will have a 4 inch by 12 foot wide area of them on all bunks. I don't know if moisture gets trapped and freezes or what but I've done a ton of them. Ranger,nitro,etc etc don't do it but the tritons do. I have argued with triton for customers numerous times that last year we where on a first name basis with these little zits everywhere . They are usually no bigger then a dime.

blisters yeah, but the gray is leading me to think primer which is leading me to think its a painted surface. either way looks like theres a million of 'em


Shane whats your thoughts on the gray showing through? It looks like paint to me and would require a very different approach to correct (probably easier then gel but still a pain in the azz lol)

I'm not used to seeing the smaller ones . It looks like they come in a large variety of 'flavors'

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...66.eOuuuECKbbk

Because it's so time consuming to fix it can be very expensive. You could easily do it yourself though .