View previous topic :: View next topic |
Author |
Message |
Thurston
Joined: 08 Jul 2013 Posts: 101
|
Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 9:29 am Post subject: Water in the Core... |
|
|
So I noticed 2 days ago that I lost the circular piece that had a tie off point in the nose of my old longboard had somehow popped out and gone missing.
This left a 2"-3" diameter hole in the nose of my board, exposing core foam. I don't know how long ago this happened, but I definitely have some water in the core foam, probably a lot of it. I tried to let it dry out over the past couple of night, but the foam is still wet to the touch.
What are my options here? I don't want to do anything expensive to fix it (it's a 20+ year old long board). I also unfortunately don't have time to get into an extensive project if that's what it takes. I do want to get back out on the water as soon as possible. Is there a simple way to get all the water out and repair the hole? Should I be looking into a new board? |
|
Back to top |
|
|
spennie
Joined: 13 Oct 1995 Posts: 975 Location: Thousand Oaks, CA
|
Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 9:56 am Post subject: |
|
|
Stand the board nose down against a wall, put a shop-vac hose over the hole and leave it on for 1/2 hour, then stuff it full of paper towels and put it out in the sun for a couple of days. Patch over the hole & you're done! Low tech, but should be good enough for the board you're describing. _________________ Spennie the Wind Junkie
www.WindJunkie.net |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Sailboarder
Joined: 10 Apr 2011 Posts: 656
|
Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 12:27 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I tried many things to dry my old long board with not much success. From my estimate of 15 pounds of water, there are still probably 10 in it.
My board soaked water for years outside, so the water migrated a long way in the board. You might be able to get better results since water may still be close to the opening.
Once you are done with drying, repair the hole as spennie said. No need to get rid of the board, unless it is now too heavy for you.
In my case, I was afraid that the board wouldn't pass freezing winter here in Canada due to expansion but it did well. And it spent several weeks in the water this summer without picking up more. We left it moored at the cottage. It easier for the kids to use it that way. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935
|
Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 12:33 pm Post subject: Re: Water in the Core... |
|
|
Thurston wrote: | Is there a simple way to get all the water out ? Should I be looking into a new board? |
No. Yes.
ANY moisture in a core triggers terminal cancer (disingtegration), and even months of active (pumps, etc.), professional drying will not remove enough moisture to cure it. The vapor expands and migrates to contaminate and destroy the entire core. I'd buy a fish tank pump, pump air into one hole and out another (drill one if necessary at the other end of the board), set the board in the sun, leave it there for months, then patch the holes as best as I could ...
Naaaah. Never mind; it's doomed. Just do what Spennie said, then plug/cover the leaks and sail it 'til it falls apart. It might last years if seldom used and kept indoors otherwise. In the meantime, find a dry replacement in somebody's garage for the price of a tank of gas.
Mike \m/ |
|
Back to top |
|
|
bred2shred
Joined: 02 May 2000 Posts: 989 Location: Jersey Shore
|
Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 3:05 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Drill a series of 1/4" diameter holes into the core in a grid pattern (2" or so apart). Keep drilling holes until you get to dry core. Let the board sit out in the sun for a few days so the core dries out. After the core is dry, fill the holes with expanding urethane foam to seal up. I wouldn't do this on a board I cared a lot about, but for a 20 year old board, it should get the core dried out quick and cheap and get you back on the water.
sm |
|
Back to top |
|
|
hilton08
Joined: 02 Apr 2000 Posts: 506
|
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 1:16 am Post subject: |
|
|
What kind of board is it, epoxy or plastic?
Many of the older plastic skinned boards had a closed cell foam core that won't absorb much water, they were just heavy to begin with.
If the board has an EPS core, the manufacturer probably would have sealed it with something more than just the towing eye plug. The hole you have may be where they injected a PU foam into the core of the board. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
keycocker
Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 3598
|
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 3:43 pm Post subject: |
|
|
We have had success drying boards out but not in two days.
When you lay it up in the sun for several months just like spennie said, with a trash bag or black cloth on it, you can get good results.
If it migrated through the core it can migrate out just as well ,but it will take a long time.
Take his advice and open it up to fix the water over the next storage period.
We fixed one by cutting 16 ins off the front before we dried it. We thought it would sail like a shorter board.
Wrong. It sailed exactly the same. That part of the board is not in the water very much so has been omitted on modern big boards. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
keycocker
Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 3598
|
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 3:46 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Good post Hilton If the OP. doesnt know already EPS is loose white bubbles.the other foams come in colors and are uniform in texture. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
dllee
Joined: 03 Jul 2009 Posts: 5329 Location: East Bay
|
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 3:52 pm Post subject: |
|
|
As above, what company what model.
PU boards don't soak much water, and can be drained stood on the nose in 2 days. NOT nights.
Styro boards suck in water, might take triple the time to drain 80% of the water out.
My car has a problem. I won't tell you what car I have. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
nw30
Joined: 21 Dec 2008 Posts: 6485 Location: The eye of the universe, Cen. Cal. coast
|
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 6:34 pm Post subject: |
|
|
spennie wrote: | Stand the board nose down against a wall, put a shop-vac hose over the hole and leave it on for 1/2 hour, then stuff it full of paper towels and put it out in the sun for a couple of days. Patch over the hole & you're done! Low tech, but should be good enough for the board you're describing. |
I'd go 4 or 5 days in the sun w/ the hole at the lowest point, but I wouldn't do the shop vac thing, that's a great way to burn out the motor, I've gone thru too many shop vacs already, not for that, but similar forms of abuse. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You can attach files in this forum You can download files in this forum
|
|
|