Core Replacement Guide?

[Seafarer228_G]

Update:

Replaced all the old wood, refiberglassed the panels and feels solid as a rock. Was definitely a two person job and could’ve used another hand putting it back together. I cut all fiberglass to size and layed everything out before and then worked as quickly as possible to get everything together before the epoxy set even with the slow cure west system. Entire process took about 2 hours. Placed wax paper on the fiberglass with weights to weight them down. Wax paper came off perfectly and trimmed/sanded extra fiberglass to fit.







Only hiccup was when I went to put the panel back into the boat I relaized the fuel sender seal is pretty shot. Bought a new KUS 15" unit but left the tank full over the winter and need to siphon some fuel out before replacing the sender and this panel. Should be done this weekend but panel felt great when I walked on it.

 

[SkunkBoat]

You didn’t put the cross braces in?

 

[Seafarer228_G]

You didn’t put the cross braces in?

I'm glad you asked!

Correct, I didn't think I need them. Do you think I do? Definitely open to suggestions and still have time to add them in. In Hookup1's post he had some braces but his hatch is twice the width of mine:
https://www.greatgrady.com/threads/repairing-fuel-tank-deck-hatch-coring.30913/

The other tank repairs I saw didn't have them so I figured I'd be ok without. In the original panel there was a wood core, then fiberglass, then the braces, then an outside layer of fiberglass. I figured I can always add them back in if needed and the way it was done it felt like an afterthought but maybe that's just from 30 years of use and rotting over the last few. Once I put the panel down and walked on it, it felt rock solid.

 

[SkunkBoat]

I think they add strength near the pie hole. I would put them in

 

[Seafarer228_G]

I think they add strength near the pie hole. I would put them in

Thanks for the input. Certainly can't hurt...I'll add them in!

 

[Ekea]

why use 6" tiles of the core material instead of just using as few pieces as large as possible? i would think that would be less work and stronger

 

[SkunkBoat]

why use 6" tiles of the core material instead of just using as few pieces as large as possible? i would think that would be less work and stronger

That was covered earlier in the post.

 

[Ekea]

That was covered earlier in the post.

thanks, i had missed it.

 

[Seafarer228_G]

Replaced the sender and caulked two panels in using 3M Marine Adhesive Sealant 4000 UV and painters tape to make the caulking lines nice. Made the mistake of tightening down the hatch with a screw gun and some epoxy had seeped into the countersunk holes so the screws didn't go all the way down. Had to re-countersink the holes but this meant I damaged part of the hatch when the screw didn't go all the way down. Lesson learned...tighten by hand. Will need to patch with silicone. Otherwise came out solid. Was a little worried the 4000 would be too white and thought about almond GE but happy with this.

 

[SkunkBoat]

No ground on tank?

 

[Seafarer228_G]

No ground on tank?

I Noticed that nub on the tank that is often used for grounding and saw in some pictures that others had used it for ground but when I opened it up it wasn't connected, only the sender was...so I didn't connect it. Obviously leaving things are they are isn't the right way to do things, hope I didn't screw this up and need to tear the panel up. Maybe the sender is grounded to the tank through the mounting screws...checking with Kus, or maybe the tank is grounded somewhere else? Here's what is looked like when I opened it up. Assumed it came from the factory like this but there was a previous owner so who knows:



When did Grady start grounding their tanks (or have they always) and is the tank often grounded in other ways besides the nub on the tank? Did notice some debris in the bottom of the tank but didn’t have a way to get it out.

 

[SkunkBoat]

Technically yes the sender “grounds “ the tank. At least , the older senders did.

But it should have a green wire from the nub directly to the negative battery terminal

 

[Seafarer228_G]

Interesting

Technically yes the sender “grounds “ the tank. At least , the older senders did.

But it should have a green wire from the nub directly to the negative battery terminal.

Interesting. Emailed Kus, feel a bit better about it. They said:

"no need to ground the tank with our new model.

Make sure the screws are isolated with rubber washer when installing the sender."

It's a bit confusing because all their notes say "connect pink wire to ground" which is opposite of the wire color convention. My sender only had white and back wires. I connected the black kus sender wire to the red boat wire and the white sender wire to my black boat wire. Checked the gauge to confirm it was reading correctly.

 

[SkunkBoat]

That is misleading. They are saying the tank doesn’t need ground for the sender to work. That doesn’t mean you don’t need to ground the aluminum tank for the sake of grounding the tank. And yes their black and white wires confuse every American

 

[Seafarer228_G]

That is misleading. They are saying the tank doesn’t need ground for the sender to work. That doesn’t mean you don’t need to ground the aluminum tank for the sake of grounding the tank. And yes their black and white wires confuse every American

I agree. Definitely would have grounded the tank if I knew when the hatch was unsealed. Really don't want to open it up again but I might. I replied to the email from Kus saying "isn't there a federal law that required tanks be grounded, or is it just that the sender grounds the tank" but haven't heard back..something tells me I might not. SInce the screws are isolated from the tank with rubber gaskets, I now wouldn't think that the sender grounds the tank.

I also tried calling the tank company in florida to see if they normally ground the tank another way but wasn't able to get through.

 

[SkunkBoat]

you can reach it thru the port. maybe fish a wire thru the same route as the sender wire. You just have to get a wire to the battery.

or wait til next year....

you don't have a forward tank?

 

[Seafarer228_G]

you can reach it thru the port. maybe fish a wire thru the same route as the sender wire. You just have to get a wire to the battery.

or wait til next year....

you don't have a forward tank?

Super smart idea to use the hatch to access the tank for the ground wire, didn't think of that. I will definitely add that this week before putting the boat it, no reason not to have it.

Correct, no forward tank. Wish I had it! Lots of storage room there I'm missing out of, wish the access panel was larger there so I could at least store lifejackets or gear. Dream would be to have a big insolated cooler there where I could put a tuna on ice. Would consider adding a hatch or aux tank in the future but aux tanks are not cheap from what I've seen. I assume for an aux tank there is a switch and you select which tank you want to draw from.




I was going to do a post on this and still might but installing my #2 battery is a huge pain point every year and I dred doing it, wondering if there's a better way. I can't remove the oil tank through the hatch, it's too big no mattery the orientation to fit through the hole (guessing they put it in when the livewell was out). I have to stand the oil resivoir on end against the port side, tie ropes onto the battery so the knot comes off one side of the battery, and lower the battery in vertically working the terminals through at an angle first until I can get it in. Removing the battery is the same but more challanging. The oil tank is held on a metal rack and held down with a bungee (not shown):

 

[Seafarer228_G]

@SkunkBoat your interpretation was correct, Kus was only talking about the sender ground, tank still needs to be grounded:

"You are referring to the tanks requirements which is separate.
Our senders ground goes connected to the vessels common ground and not the tank.

You may consult with the vessel’s or tank manufacturer for wiring instructions."