SURVEY PROBLEMS
On this page are some photos of common problems encountered when surveying timber & grp vessels. Click on any photo to enlarge the image. This page will be added to occasionally with new photos.
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This photo is of serious impact damage that has
fractured the laminate full thickness, note the gel coat hairline cracks extending from the crack, It should never be assumed that a hairline crack in gel coat is of no consequence, it may indicate substantial damage close by.
Here is a lot of gel coat cracking caused by thin laminate constantly flexing and thus causing 
hairline cracks extending beneath the waterline. This hull requires additional laminate thickness & included extra stringers. Note how the cracks become invisible below the waterline, but are still there.
He
re a hull has been incorrectly supported & too much weight on the prop, the hull is flexing & resulted in cracked gel coat.. This could be serious, although, unfortunately, quite common where some boatyards put in props incorrectly.
Quite extensive blistering, although in this case it is
insignificant structurally as it is only water entrapment under the topside paint finish, but cosmetically quite expensive to reinstate to a high standard.
Altogether different blistering, this is a large Westerly hull with significant "osmosis" blistering. This is emanating from beneath the gel coat & although perhaps not 
structurally too weakening, however certainly affects the value of the vessel. A difficult vessel to sell at a premium price.
Serious crew safety risk, this guardline broke when strained revealing just how serious the rust s
taining on the pvc covering was. This was merely non galvanised wire rope covered with PVC & mild staining noticable where the PVC was cracked was all that could be seen prior to straining the wire.
Where the rudder post exits from the rudder moulding the moulding can suffer considerable damage on
ce any relative movement occurs between the stock & moulding. This rudder had also started to split open along the leading edge at the top & bottom. Not unusual.
This demonstrates "Hard spot" cracking, the hard spot of the sidedeck acts as a hinge point over which the unsupported raised topside moulding flexes & cau
ses this cracking. Hardspot cracks can occur anywhere where there is a support that will not flex such as a vertical bulkhead on the hull side where vertical cracks are often seen to one or the other side of the bulkhead. Can be quite serious depending upon the location. On this photo, perhaps not too serious but difficult to cosmetically make good.
Note the hairline cracks on the exposed hull, the area has f
lexed noticeably & should be further investigated as the moulding here is weakened by lack of support because of the large rudder tube relative to the supporting laminate area as well as flexing at this point of the extended skeg (out of shot but quite long)
Waterlogged rudder, this need not be serious in many cases, but why is there rust staining seeping out,
this can suggest mild steel tangs instead of stainless steel, which definitely is a problem if it is the case.
See information on rudders PDF under HELP PAGES tab
A common problem that many owners overlook for too long, sometimes with catastrophic consequences to the boat. The gate valve is obviously seriously corroded, & in this case was completely seized in the open position, the owner made effo
rts to free it off but the thread on the operating shaft into the rise/fall gate was so corroded it failed & left the valve open & unable to close. The clip is rusted & the pipework has become totally rigid & brittle with age as is common for this type of pipe. Also note that there is no support pad internally.
Here is the reason that insurers get wary about stainless rigging after 10 or 12 years. The strands are fractu
ring because of work hardening at the exit point of the swage, the rigging flexes but the "hard" stop at the swage causes sudden change in ability to flex. This cannot be seen until the moment of fracture & there is no successful visual testing for this.
A look into timber constructional problems: Here a 9 Ton Hillyard stem area, the survey noted some decay in the planking here, when the plank ends were
broken away it revealed serious decay ion the main stem timber that was more extensive than at first thought, although it was always a possibility. Rot & decay is likened to an iceberg, so much remains hidden once you have seen what lies on the surface. This vessel was purchased in the knowledge that a considerable amount of renovation was required.
A different timber boat (Folkboat) where the chainplate
s have been removed, obvious decay here.