Winnipesaukee Forum - View Single Post - Spider Cracks

Dave R · 10-23-2006, 06:10 PM

I am no expert, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express.

The cracks occur because the area has been flexed too much. This is an indication that it was poorly designed, poorly made, or over stressed, usually a combination of all three. Gelcoat is amazingly brittle and it shows. You can repair the gelcoat surface fairly easily but unless you address the three causes, the cracks will come back.

If you have access to the back of the part with cracks, you may be able to add some layers of resin and cloth to add ridgidity. You may be able to glass in some marine plywood or aluminum plate too. Any way you can thicken the area will increse the ridgidity with the square of thickness (double the thickness and it's 4 times stiffer), I think...

Google "gelcoat repair" when you are ready to repair the cracks.

10-23-2006, 06:10 PM	#2
Dave R Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 2,974 Thanks: 246 Thanked 736 Times in 438 Posts	I am no expert, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express. The cracks occur because the area has been flexed too much. This is an indication that it was poorly designed, poorly made, or over stressed, usually a combination of all three. Gelcoat is amazingly brittle and it shows. You can repair the gelcoat surface fairly easily but unless you address the three causes, the cracks will come back. If you have access to the back of the part with cracks, you may be able to add some layers of resin and cloth to add ridgidity. You may be able to glass in some marine plywood or aluminum plate too. Any way you can thicken the area will increse the ridgidity with the square of thickness (double the thickness and it's 4 times stiffer), I think... Google "gelcoat repair" when you are ready to repair the cracks.