We have an old Crest pontoon type houseboat. The holding tank is inside an aluminum wedge between the pontoons that the outboard is mounted on. It leaked like a sieve-- the aluminum bottom had rotted through. I could not mount another tank anywhere where it would not interfere with pulling and launching the boat each season. I could not afford to have aluminum plates welded over it or replace the wedge.
So I decided on a radical temporary repair--- I bought two large tubes of JB Weld epoxy and coated the bottom and sides of the aluminum tank with a thin coat of the mixture.
After 3 years there are still no leaks. Truely amazing stuff!
Since then I have found several other Crest owners that had the same problem. Usually, they just dump into their holding tank and let it seep out into the lake.
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Mark 1979 Crest Brookville Lake, IN
There is a guy in White House, TN that makes poly tanks at his home. I had him make a couple for my Sumerset that allowed me to slip them in without tearing up floor. He welds seams (ultrasonic). They must be strong, as we ran a chrome shop that had tanks 7 foot deep, 5 foot wide and 16 feet long full of acid and no leaks. I don't remember his name but he's reasonable. Maybe Google?
PrimeTime
Junior Member
Posts: 18
Joined: 05/21/2007
Hey CaptMark - Haven't talked to you in some time. Our
Crest's holding tank had many 1/4" holes, mostly around the
waterline - probably from galvanic corrosion. Filled them
with the same JB weld epoxy and it is holding great. If I
find any more, I'll coat as you did.
Also reduced galvanic corrosion with installation of a Galvanic
Isolator and attaching magnesium anodes to each pontoon (need to
replace these annually)
PrimeTime (Larry H from IL)
Hey Larry!
I thought my holes were from galvanic corrosion. But I am told it is more likely corrossion from the inside out. Right at the bottom of that holding tank waste crud sits year round. Nothing is as corrosive as urine -- it will eventually eat through aluminum.
That JB Weld is some great stuff. I heard a racecar driver had a crack in the block of his racing engine and patched it with JB Weld. It lasted until the engine finally wore out.
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Mark 1979 Crest Brookville Lake, IN
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11/16/2009 10:13:46 AM
