The uncured resins that are really the basis of blisters don't hold the
fiberglass together. They have to be heated to temperatures higher than the
boiling point of water to get rid of. This can be a problem with cored
hulls, where you might actually reach the glass transition temperature of
the coring material before you get rid of the uncured resins. It's a common
misconception that it's just water in the hull. It's really the acidic
non-cured resins (which are hydroscopic in nature). See:
http://www.hotvac.com/
http://www.daviscoltd.com/nams/Docum...er_Report.html
http://www.yachtsurvey.com/blisters.htm
http://www.marinesurvey.com/yacht/BlisterRepairFail.htm
http://www.osmosisinfo.com/

....to learn more about blistering, it's causes and repairs.


"Parallax" wrote in message
om...
(Ron Thornton) wrote in message
...
Pierre,

What chemicals are you talking about?

Regards, Ron

With the microwave idea, I would not apply enough power to turn the
water to steam, but enough to heat it to cause evaporation from the
strips where the gelcoat has been peeled. This would cause the water
from furhter from the strips to migrate (with the dissolved chemicals)
to the peeled strips. Perhaps after the hull had dried enough, you
might peel another inch on either side of the strips to get rid of
more of the chemicals. HOWEVER, I am doubtful of ANY process getting
rid of enouigh of these chemicals to matter since these chemicals are
part of the resin holding the fibreglas together. The best bet may be
to either not worry about blisters or to get rid of the water and then
encapsulate the hull in a membrane that will not allow water
penetration. Once again, has anyone heard of any real hull failures
from osmotic blisters?