Aluminum Boat repair?

Hey guys! New to the forum and semi new to florida. A little background before I get into my boat repair question 🤣, grew up crappie fishing with my old man in upstate New York, haven’t fished in some years and moved down here with family last December, now that we’re settled in I have been doing research on crappie fishing in and around my area (Vero Beach) and been gearing up to be able to crappie fish all winter. I have a 21’ center console and wanted something smaller and not as nice to ram in to the weeds or hit the smaller lakes near me in fellsmere so I picked up a 1994 17’ tracker boat and took it out for the first time the other night on stick marsh and noticed she had some leaks. Did the ole garden hose test and found multiple pin size holes and pitting from corrosion underneath where it sits on the bunks. Needless to say it wasn’t the best boat to buy but we’re past that and I am now looking to see if anyone knows of any aluminum boat repair shops near Vero area to repair the leaks ,as I probably could do it myself but want it done as nice as possible , and to last as long as possible .Also looking for anyone wanting to get out this winter for some crappie fishing! A little long winded , sorry about that but sometimes it’s better to give some background info before asking questions. Looking forward to chatting with some of you guys in the surrounding areas! Thanks!
-Jake

I had a 16' John boat I used in saltwater that got ate up with electrolysis around the stern. I used brazing rods and a map gas torch to patch the holes and it did the job. There are a few YouTube videos on how to do it.

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I believe they make some bottom paint that will seal up those pin holes.

Thanks for the responses guys! I have done ample research on this and really wanted to find someone to do the repairs only due to the fact I’m limited on time and would have to strip the motor , console , batteries and fuel tank before I would be able to flip the boat over and clean all the leaky areas and prep it for brazing. Totally doable on my part just lack the time part of the equation. I have considered cleaning the areas up well from underneath and trying to JB weld some of the spots with some 5200 on top of that but I’m afraid that won’t hold up very long due to it being where the boat sits on the bunk so anytime unloading and loading it would be scraping that repaired area.

Many years ago Dad fixed some holes in the bench on an aluminum boat with JB Weld It stood the test of time.

Good to know, I May just take my time and prep the areas really well and clean up the corrosion as best as possible and jb weld it and seal it up just to get through the winter. Summer time I can tear the boat apart and fix it up if need be. The boat is strictly going to be used on stick marsh and Garcias and occasionally may take it to okeechobee.

Maybe one of these places.

Attachment 440021

Jb weld and marine tex gray have both done the job you describe. My thought is to leave the boat rigged and gain access to the bad areas. Prep with a wire wheel in a dril or something else suitable and spread the weld material in a small area around the hole and put a piece of packing tape over it to keep it from dripping or sagging. If you can remove the tape easy when done that would be great. I’ve sanded JB with a square vibrator sander to smooth it out and then go fishing.

My thoughts exactly on what I was planning to do! As thick as JB weld is , will it drip and sag down? I guess it’s easy enough to use the tape which seems like an easy way to ensure you get a good seal. Thanks for the ideas!

It will sag or run. Tape is a great idea to keep it in place.

I used my unpainted bottom Sylvan in salt for a few years of trips into salt where it sat in the water for a week or two at a time and also developed the pin holes. (lesson learned) Like you I did the garden hose leak check and circled the areas with a sharpie. After cleaning the areas up with a wire brush on the drill, I coated the bottom with Gluv-it two part marine epoxy while still on the trailer without any running, sagging or lumping. Attachment 440070 The finished product dried smooth although somewhat yellow, but being the bottom didn't really matter. The process only took a couple hours of my time. Being in Michigan used that boat in freezing to hot and humid weather and pounding waves without any further issues for many years before I upgraded to a larger boat. Just another option for you to consider. Good luck with your situation.

Awesome thanks, i wire wheeler the underside last night and there’s multiple spots of pitting and pin holes so my plan is to Marine JB weld the spots and then coat the entire bottom with something like that (gluv it ) . Appreciate all the help guys! Looking forward to getting this boat squared away and back in the water on the hunt for some crappies!!!

I recently did this with my 16' Lund but used a product by Goop! called Coat It. Very happy with the outcome and ease of application. I did flip the boat over and sand, etch and then roll it on but it came out great and it seems to be very durable.

I also replaced my carpeted bunks with Gatorbak bunk covers to prevent further issues.

I like the idea with the bunks! So far I had all the holes and deep pitting cleaned up and marine jb welded. I also got some of the gluv it and I will apply that as well and then I plan to scuff the bottom and use some bottom paint made for aluminum boats to add just a layer of slight protection to all the patch work. Again this is a temporary fix to get through this winters fishing season and then I’ll figure out a permanent plan after spring. The plan was to have the boat ready for the water Friday morning but the weather incoming has other plans ��. But cold front this weekend and praying the storm doesn’t create to much flooding or wind damage so I can test the boat and try and catch some crappies!!!!!

I’m praying that the weather doesn’t beat us up that much more. I too have been waiting for ramps to open and me to be able to fish again. I’m hoping your repair does the job. With all the prep and good materials you’ll use, it might last longer than you think.

Yeah so far this wind has been relentless in vero beach, I work on beachside and the beach was gone as of this morning! I was hoping for a nice 3 day weekend of some crappie fishing / then maybe some Indian river saltwater action but not looking to good for that at all! Luckily we’re not getting a whole lot of rain out of this system so maybe I’ll be able to hit stickmarsh by Saturday night / Sunday!

Finally got around to finishing the jb weld and the gluv it. Took the boat out Friday night on stick marsh for a test. Still gets a little bit water but after 2 hours of trolling around it wasn’t enough to even use the bilge pump so much improvement from before. Tested the boat in stock marsh and it was very stirred up and high from the hurricane plus it was windy to boot. Only second time on the lake and managed to pick up one solid crappie. Tried again this morning hoping for a better outcome but nada! Still trying to learn the lake as well as crappy conditions on top of that. Just trying to get a nice crappie hole closer to home instead of making the hour drive to Lake O.

Sounds like you got it all fixed up

I would try Garcia.
Stay to the left as you leave the ramp till you get to the west end of the lake.
Then you will see the south canal on your left which goes past rt 60.
Single pole the weed edges very slowly with a 1/16 pink jig and a monkey milk Bobby Garland grub
Keep a second rod in a holder on the opposite side. other colors work also.
If you want minnows you will need to buy them in Fellsmere.
You can also follow the west end to the north till you get to the north canal which is much longer and ends up at Stickmarsh.
You will do better on crappies in the canals than you will in the lake because there is deeper water.
You can also slow troll if you prefer.
Its about the same distance and driving time to Kissimmee as Okeechobee, and much less as for people.

Thanks for the info!!! I plan to fish Kissimmee as well just need to get out there and learn that lake as well. I plan to be fishing all winter and anyone is welcome to join in my now sea worthy boat! �� I been itching to catch some crappie so took the drive to okeechobee and fishing a spillway for 2 hours and caught 5 , only 3 were keepers but hey I’ll take ‘em!!

You dont need to drive as far as Okeechobee or Kissimmee to catch crappies.
But in the spring Kissimmee would be worth the trip for both crappies and red ears.
If you go to Blue Cypress dont waste your time fishing the lake itself.
Around the edges there are some good places, and on the north end there is a long canal that again leads to Stickmarsh. That canal is the beginning of the St. johns river.
About a half mile in there is another canal to the right which borders Farm 13 and can be worth the time to fish.

Appreciate the info!! , saves me a lot of time motoring all over and trying to fish every where’s I can! I deff plan to fish closer to home as I live in vero beach area not to far from fellsmere. And if anyone needs a fishing partner anytime let me know so far I have been dragging the wife everywhere’s fishing and my son is only 8 and gets very bored since we haven’t had much luck yet trying to figure out these lakes. Still nice to get out on the water though! Thanks again for all the info from all of you guys as everyone seems very helpful and full of experience and knowledge.