THE EVOLUTION OF BOAT CONSTRUCTION
For centuries, artisans shaped, fitted and assembled
timber into wooden boats. Builders developed sophisticated wood
construction methods, but never overcame wood's susceptibility to rot
and
significant maintenance requirements. The development of fiber
reinforced plastics (FRP) offered
apparent solutions in new materials and techniques. The explosive
growth of fiberglass-polyester
boats over the last thirty years was built on the perception of low
maintenance and easy fabrication.
However, as with wood, polyester resins have been plagued by the
effects of moisture penetration.
The problems of rot and softening were replaced by hydrolysis, blisters
and delamination. The
solution to these problems lies in epoxy composite construction.
WHAT IS EPOXY COMPOSITE
CONSTRUCTION?
Epoxy composite construction consists of bonding all of the materials
and parts of the craft together with epoxy resin. The resulting
structure has physical characteristics superior to the components
by themselves.
Composite construction includes a variety of building
methods that use epoxy to protect the materials from moisture as
well as hold the materials together. Epoxy resins, the key ingredient,
are among the most versatile of thermoset plastics. They bond
exceptionally well to a wide range of materials and are highly
moisture resistant. Compared to polyester resins typically used in
fiberglass boat construction, epoxies have greater strength, less
shrinkage, better moisture resistance and better fatigue
resistance.
A NEW INTEGRATED MATERIALS
TECHNOLOGY
Combining the best of wood technology with the advances in FRP
materials and processes, leading builders have turned to composite
construction to produce durable, distinctive boats. Builders use the
moisture resistant qualities of epoxy to take advantage of wood's
strength, stiffness, light weight, resistance to fatigue, insulating
ability, availability, cost, and beauty. Epoxy's excellent adhesion
to
balsa and plastic foam cores, glass, aramid and carbon fabrics, allows
the builder the advantage of
selectively integrating these materials into the boat's structure.
Designers, builders and owners have
more choices available. Through epoxy composite construction, the
builder can offer boats in a wide range of designs, materials and
construction methods.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF EPOXY
COMPOSITE CONSTRUCTION?
Versatility
The builder using composite technology can build crafts
with a range of materials, designs, and
construction methods that are perfectly suited to the craft's use and
the customer's needs. Everything from strip canoes to work boats,
high performance multihulls to offshore racing powerboats and
Hovercraft's have been built using epoxy composite construction.
Composites can be uncomplicated structures of wood and wood
veneer or complex vacuum laminated hybrids incorporating glass
fabrics, aramid, or carbon fibers.
Lower Maintenance
All of the components in a composite craft are protected
by an epoxy moisture barrier. Since the
moisture content is stabilized, the maintenance problems associated
with wooden boats - rot, joint
cracks, structural members swelling or shrinking, and surface checking
- are eliminated. Epoxy
provides a stable base for paints and varnishes, reducing the frequency
of refinishing. In glass
laminated boats, epoxy's superiority to polyester resins as a stable
moisture resistant adhesive
reduces the possibility of delamination and gel coat blistering caused
by moisture penetration.
A History of Success
Epoxy composite construction techniques for boat
building were first developed over thirty years
ago. Over the years, thousands of composite recreational and working
boats have been built and the earliest are still going strong.
Composite construction has proved itself at the top levels of
competition in sail and powerboat racing, in the harshest environments
and under the toughest
working conditions. Epoxy composite boats have set a standard for
performance, reliability and
beauty. If you have still some questions to this topic - post it at our
Messageboard!
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Wherever is a lot of
sun , is some kind of shadow!
There are certain rules in the use of epoxy resins which
you are not allowed to break :
Temperature - is one
of the major ones .... choose the correct resin and hardener for the
temperature of your workplace ! Not only during the application ...
till the resin has set totally which is under normal conditions 24
hours but could be up to 7 days !
Mixing ratio - epoxy resins
are not like polyester resins - just a bit more and it will only cure
quicker ... try to stay within the 5% +/- range ... which
will bring you finally into 10% which is just fine ... besides mixing
pumps ( which make a good job as long as the container is not nearly
empty ) mixing cups ( which are really only on the first mix accurate )
the best is still in your wife's kitchen ... get the weigh scale and
double check !
The beauty of a clean workplace
- if you can't work clean ... just don't work at all and give the
job to somebody who can ... you safe under the line more money and it
is your health at risk , these resins are still chemicals with a
certain degree of danger to your health !
Humidity - to your work
piece and in the composite materials - once water is trapped behind a
epoxy barrier it is there for ever and can make major trouble ... ( my
son made a tiny hole in the fiberglass resin coat at our crossbeam -
since the wood fibers run lengthwise after 4 month a 15' crossbeam was
ready to replace - rot)
Screw and nail holes - if
you work composite - work composite ... screw and nail holes are a
major nightmare in a composite construction - just try to avoid them
since they don't give you any extra strength just for moisture the
possibility to travel from one sealed work piece to another one
... as long as there is a hole , it is like a subway tunnel for
water !
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