kombat air vent leak - need help - roger...? - Page 2

dominic72 · 27th January 2009, 05:52 AM

Hi again guys

sorry for bothering again with my questions on how to treat my board after some water leaked in ... I've orderer a thread repair for the surface the vent plug sits on, while leaving my board permanently at rest in a very dry and warm environment with the vent fully opened. Now I have a doubt: some water might have entered anytime in the past few months and I began the treatment only recently, leaving the vent only slightly unscrewed and not fully opened. Is there any risk it started a delamination process or other damages?

I 'sucked' some air from the vent hole and noticed a slight flavour of epoxy in my mouth. Is this normal, or is it a sign my relatively new board (from 2008) might have started delaminating?

from the outside it has no such signs and looks perfect and has no soft spots or any bubbles, but the doubt remains... cheers and thanks again for your precious help

Roger · 27th January 2009, 08:16 AM

Hi Dom,
I think your board is probably very dry on the inside.
You didn't have that bad a leak, and you worked the vent plug
each time you sailed, so if the pressure ever tried to build up, it
was released after the session.
As far as the epoxy smell/taste, that's probably quite normal, but
I do wish to know how you know what epoxy tastes like.... ? Just
kidding here.
I think you will find that after you get the surface of the vent plug
O-ring seat smoothed out, you will have no further issues.
Once you are pretty sure the O-ring is sealing well, you can leave it
tightened up all the time unless you change temperature or altitude
drastically.
Hope this helps,

dominic72 · 27th January 2009, 10:11 PM

Definitely helps, as any of your golden tips! thanks again ROger!

I should just get on the water and enjoy a nice ride shouldn't I? btw that epoxy stink, did some epoxy repair on a larger boat ... buon vento, dom

Roger · 28th January 2009, 09:57 AM

Hi Dom,
I couldn't resist the crack about the "taste of epoxy".
Yes, when doing board repair or boat repair, the true craftsman normally
experiences the taste, smell, and feel of whatever resin they are using
(epoxy/polyester/other). It's just part of doing the job.
And you soon get so you can tell the difference between cured resin and
uncured resin.

dominic72 · 17th February 2009, 06:01 AM

Hi again Roger, how are you? followed your instructions with the air vent and it seems to work now. I sailed it once and it appears dry. I also have applied a slightly larger o-ring, I think 2.5 mm instead of 2. the new o-ring fits very well inside with no strains when I screw the plug.

ANyways, I have one more question that's related: the wood deck in my 2008 Kombat shows some discoloration located in the nose of the board near the SB sticker, and around the mast box along two lines left and right of the track. just parts of the deck that look pale compared with the rest of the deck.

is this common? or does it mean the moist that had accumulated into the board might have leaked from some invisible cracks/loss of epoxy in the wood deck? or perhaps the marks might be the result of water leaking from the vent and pushing its way towards the wood... ? thanks thanks thanks again... good winds, dom

Roger · 18th February 2009, 05:04 AM

Hi Dom,
Sometimes, the wood of the deck does not get fully saturated when they are finishing the board.
So, the wood layer on the outside is sometimes a little prone to "soaking" up a bit of water which can cause some discoloration.
The fix?
Get some 2 part polyurethane floor varnish.
Lightly sand the areas you think are absorbing some water, and then let them dry out
(preferably in the sunlight...to restore the original golden patina).
Then coat the exposed areas with the polyurethane floor varnish.
Only better product would be a penetrating epoxy, which is very hard to obtain.
After the poly o epoxy cures, the deck should remain the same color virtually forever....
except for UV yellowing of the original finish.
Hope this helps,

dominic72 · 18th February 2009, 05:29 AM

thanks ROger. My only worry was that this soaking of the wood layer could cause water leaking inside the board. From your words I understand this only affects the outside layer), SO I am quite happy with the board as it looks, as long as this soaking is not letting any water penetrating the inside... am I right?

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27th January 2009, 05:52 AM	#11
dominic72 Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 44	Hi again guys sorry for bothering again with my questions on how to treat my board after some water leaked in ... I've orderer a thread repair for the surface the vent plug sits on, while leaving my board permanently at rest in a very dry and warm environment with the vent fully opened. Now I have a doubt: some water might have entered anytime in the past few months and I began the treatment only recently, leaving the vent only slightly unscrewed and not fully opened. Is there any risk it started a delamination process or other damages? I 'sucked' some air from the vent hole and noticed a slight flavour of epoxy in my mouth. Is this normal, or is it a sign my relatively new board (from 2008) might have started delaminating? from the outside it has no such signs and looks perfect and has no soft spots or any bubbles, but the doubt remains... cheers and thanks again for your precious help

27th January 2009, 08:16 AM	#12
Roger Dream Team - School Guru Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,065	Hi Dom, I think your board is probably very dry on the inside. You didn't have that bad a leak, and you worked the vent plug each time you sailed, so if the pressure ever tried to build up, it was released after the session. As far as the epoxy smell/taste, that's probably quite normal, but I do wish to know how you know what epoxy tastes like.... ? Just kidding here. I think you will find that after you get the surface of the vent plug O-ring seat smoothed out, you will have no further issues. Once you are pretty sure the O-ring is sealing well, you can leave it tightened up all the time unless you change temperature or altitude drastically. Hope this helps,

27th January 2009, 10:11 PM	#13
dominic72 Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 44	Definitely helps, as any of your golden tips! thanks again ROger! I should just get on the water and enjoy a nice ride shouldn't I? btw that epoxy stink, did some epoxy repair on a larger boat ... buon vento, dom

28th January 2009, 09:57 AM	#14
Roger Dream Team - School Guru Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,065	Hi Dom, I couldn't resist the crack about the "taste of epoxy". Yes, when doing board repair or boat repair, the true craftsman normally experiences the taste, smell, and feel of whatever resin they are using (epoxy/polyester/other). It's just part of doing the job. And you soon get so you can tell the difference between cured resin and uncured resin.

17th February 2009, 06:01 AM	#15
dominic72 Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 44	Hi again Roger, how are you? followed your instructions with the air vent and it seems to work now. I sailed it once and it appears dry. I also have applied a slightly larger o-ring, I think 2.5 mm instead of 2. the new o-ring fits very well inside with no strains when I screw the plug. ANyways, I have one more question that's related: the wood deck in my 2008 Kombat shows some discoloration located in the nose of the board near the SB sticker, and around the mast box along two lines left and right of the track. just parts of the deck that look pale compared with the rest of the deck. is this common? or does it mean the moist that had accumulated into the board might have leaked from some invisible cracks/loss of epoxy in the wood deck? or perhaps the marks might be the result of water leaking from the vent and pushing its way towards the wood... ? thanks thanks thanks again... good winds, dom

18th February 2009, 05:04 AM	#16
Roger Dream Team - School Guru Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,065	Hi Dom, Sometimes, the wood of the deck does not get fully saturated when they are finishing the board. So, the wood layer on the outside is sometimes a little prone to "soaking" up a bit of water which can cause some discoloration. The fix? Get some 2 part polyurethane floor varnish. Lightly sand the areas you think are absorbing some water, and then let them dry out (preferably in the sunlight...to restore the original golden patina). Then coat the exposed areas with the polyurethane floor varnish. Only better product would be a penetrating epoxy, which is very hard to obtain. After the poly o epoxy cures, the deck should remain the same color virtually forever.... except for UV yellowing of the original finish. Hope this helps,

18th February 2009, 05:29 AM	#17
dominic72 Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 44	thanks ROger. My only worry was that this soaking of the wood layer could cause water leaking inside the board. From your words I understand this only affects the outside layer), SO I am quite happy with the board as it looks, as long as this soaking is not letting any water penetrating the inside... am I right?