Posted by JimM on April 03, 2003 at 05:59:51:
In Reply to: Foam and Pontoons...NEED HELP PLEASE! posted by Scott on April 01, 2003 at 20:17:57:
First, it would take enough foam to fill the pontoon, because water would find its way in. Even then, water would be trapped between the foam and steel, resulting in more rusting.
Second, I'm certain a skilled welder could patch it for you. You'd have to determine how much area has been damaged and make the patch a little bigger. You might have to rent an ultrasonic probe to find out how much internal rust there is. A good welder can weld almost any thickness of steel. If it's very thin, he might have to weld spots, and come back to fill them in - to avoid over-heating.
Another approach: cover the bottom of the pontoon with several plies of fiberglass. You would have to sandblast to get good adhesion.
Any of these methods is going to be a stop-gap repair. It will be almost impossible to make a permanent repair, because it will rust wherever the steel has been cut. I wonder how much it would cost to replace the pontoon?