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1. Use the full 4 digit year for everything you are asking your question about. Example: 1962, 1988, 2000, 2011 2. Include the correct name of your Whaler model. Example: Montauk 17, Montauk 170, Outrage 26, Outrage 260 3. Include the length when necessary. Example: 16, 17, 18, 20, 22 4. Do not post your email address anywhere on this site as it is already in your user profile.
Hi. I'm a new member posting for the first time. We've had a few Whalers, and we're looking for a vintage 18' Outrage for the kids. We've owned a few Whalers in the past, and would rather own a 20 year old Whaler than a new anything. Anyway, we've located an Outrage and I engaged a surveyor prior to making an offer. He told me his moisture gauge registered a 30% reading in the transom and a 25% reading in the aft port portion. Otherwise, he claims the 1989 boat is in great condition. What I'd like to know is whether such a moisture reading indicates a serious flaw in the boat. There are no "soft spots" and no delamination. I'm willing to wait for the right boat to come on the market, but I don't know if I'll find a better hull than this one.
Welcome, and I think you'll find a lot of agreement on affinity for older Whaler design. From someone who recently purchased a "wet" 22' Outrage, the easiest thing to do in my opinion is to put the boat in the water and see how it sits (in the stern especially). Take into account things like engine size, batteries, gas tank locations, etc, and compare it to photo's of similar, known "dry" Whalers sitting in the water. If it sits high, you should be all set! If it doesn't, further investigation is needed.
You can also have it weighed too and compare it to factory numbers once you've taken into account all the equipment, engine, etc. but estimating that weight accurately can be a challenge.
I drilled holes along my keel and didn't get a whole lot of water out, but I know it's in there, so that's not a accurate test unfortunately. Do you know how he used the moisture gauge?
Welcome, Nick! Lots of folks around here would rather have a 20 year old BW than a new anything! The advice above is good. If you want to explore the topic further, try searching (left sidebar "search") the site for "moisture" or something. Search WhalerCentral/Forums.
Click here for a recent thread (several pages long) on the subject.
Hope you've found your latest Whaler... that's a great model, and Oxford, MD is a great place to own a BW boat!
you did the right thing and got a marine surveyor, i run a family owned fiberglass business on the chesapeake, now i dont know what kind of meter he was using but i could make a very educated guess and say that 30 is saturated. i use 2 different types of meters when doing testing. On whalers sometimes you will not hear a soft spot becouse the glass is still still strong but behind that water has penetrated usually do to inproper bedding or in most whalers cases if the transom is wet becouse of a bad drain plug. most boats that have wet hulls are not to difficult to fix, we do not work on many whalers becouse that two part foam is a bitch, and really most whaler owners are comfortable knowing that the foam can get wet and the boat is still safe. just very heavy! if you have anymore questions you can pm me.
jjaywill wrote:
you did the right thing and got a marine surveyor, i run a family owned fiberglass business on the chesapeake, now i dont know what kind of meter he was using but i could make a very educated guess and say that 30 is saturated. i use 2 different types of meters when doing testing. On whalers sometimes you will not hear a soft spot becouse the glass is still still strong but behind that water has penetrated usually do to inproper bedding or in most whalers cases if the transom is wet becouse of a bad drain plug. most boats that have wet hulls are not to difficult to fix, we do not work on many whalers becouse that two part foam is a bitch, and really most whaler owners are comfortable knowing that the foam can get wet and the boat is still safe. just very heavy! if you have anymore questions you can pm me.
also please remember when i say wet hulls are not to difficult to fix thats what i do for a living, its very difficult to do a recore on boats weather its balsa, closed cell or any core really, but that 2 part foam i really have a problem with!
JJ
I have a coupla "soft" spots after 45 years, and have "privately"considered using that product "Great Stuff" (the minimal expanding foam) to refill the voids.
Any thoughts?
Danedg: it will stick, and will bear a fair amount of weight. Are you thinking of drilling a couple of holes in the deck and injecting it, then putting weights on for a "clamp"? I'd suggest that you tape off the general area, so that when it spews, you'll have an easier time cleaning up. Don't get any on your hands or it will take a week to wear off (with your skin) unless you use a belt sander!
