Pontoon loose from hull on older Zodiac

[Coug Fan]

The pontoon on my 1999 11.5 ft. Zodiac RIB has detached from the hull. Is there a thread with instructions to reattach it? I am new to rib.net. Thanks in advance.
Coug Fan

[captnjack]

Has the fabric ripped or did the glue just separate from the fiberglass?

[Coug Fan]

Pontoons themselves are just fine no rips, hold air fine. I had to reattach the rear pontoon "clip" when that side detached completely from the hull and now holds fine there, however, I am getting water intrusion along that side (starboard) when I am in any kind of water that isn't particularly flat. The tender has always leaked a little bit, but now water sloshes in between pontoon and hull. I don't know how the pontoon is attached along the whole side of the hull. Hope I explained this better Thanks for the reply.

[captnjack]

I suspect this is one of the models with a rope along the inside of the tube. The rope threads in a slot in the hull holding the tube to the hull. Hard to know for sure without the model number and/or pictures of the tube unbolted from the hull.

[Coug Fan]

Thanks CaptJack! I will post pics and numbers when I get back to the zodiac next week. Heading to Seattle then. Appreciate any/all the help you have and can provide.

[cgoing]

What model Zodiac do you have? Some are glued on and other slide into a track.

[jyasaki]

You have managed to poke one my pet peeves: A RIB tube is a tube or a collar; a pontoon is a solid tube or box used for the floating barge-like party boats common on lakes (among other things ; and it's a generalization, I know. Let it go.)

As said before, pics would be a big help in figuring a course of action.

jky

[Coug Fan]

Thanks for all the replies. I have gotten the dinghy home and am attaching a pic showing the detachment of the RIB from the strip that embeds in the hull to hold it all together. The dinghy is a 0607 97 YL 340 Deluxe 1877; length: 11.2; model year 1997. Any and all comments and help in fixing this and putting it all back together will be greatly appreciated.

[spartacus]

There will be others that can offer comprehensive gluing advice in this. First up, get in there and thoroughly clean the tubes and GRP hull lip. Preparation is everything, so tubes needs to be clean, degreased and dry.

[Coug Fan]

Thanks, I know I need to do the cleaning, any suggestions there as well? I don't know the term: VAT.

[spartacus]

Originally Posted by Coug Fan

Thanks, I know I need to do the cleaning, any suggestions there as well? I don't know the term: VAT.

I'd use a green scourer or 3M scotchbrite pads with some TFR (traffic film remover). Rinse thoroughly, then degrease with MEK or acetone. Not sure if it's Hypalon or PVC tubes, assuming it's PVC. More details here: Gluing onto Tubes | Polymarine Paints, Adhesives, Parts & Accessories

Oh and the VAT thing... it's a bit like Canada's tax like GST and PST. In the UK our guys just turn you upside down to empty your pockets!

[jyasaki]

VAT: Value Added Tax ( I think.) Essentially an excise tax; levied on people who are involved in an activity too small to fight back.

jky

[paintman]

Value Added Tax. Levied at 20% on most things you buy new (or used if the seller is VAT registered).
Fuel prices is a bit of a shocker. The govt get 2 bites at the cherry. The actual production price is around 50p per litre. Then you add Fuel Excise Duty of around 58p per litre. Then VAT at 20% which is around 20 to 25 p per litre. Plus the retailers profit of around 5p per litre. Total you pay is around 130p per litre!
If you look at UK sites, many prices are given as inclusive of VAT but you will see the amount on your receipt. If you bought a new outboard for say £5000 incl VAT the VAT part of the bill which the seller has to pay to the govt at 20% is £833.

[Coug Fan]

Oh, my - did I get an education. I knew a bit about that VAT, but thought perhaps there was a use for that acronym in the boating/RIB world. We pay roughly a 8.7% sales tax here in our part of the state of Washington.

Still looking for any and all info regarding getting my dinghy back in seaworthy shape, please. Especially, any tips on removing and reattaching the RIBS. Thanks.

[jyasaki]

Can you get a pic of the strip along the hull (the part that came loose from the tube)?

I suspect, since it appears to be a single strip, that you have the channel-and-bead type of tube mount, but it's not obvious from the pic above (or on the previous page, whatever.)

jky

[Dave Cowell]

Unbolt the tubes at the bow and slide them off forwards. You will probably find that the flange completely detaches from the tube when you are doing this
Clean the tubes and separated flange throughly and reglue.
Slide the tubes back on and rebolt at the front.
We usually fit larger circular patches over the original Zodiac ones at the ends of the flanges when we carry out this repair

[Coug Fan]

Hopefully, these pics will do - thanks for all the help from everyone! As far as Dave's post that speaks of the bolts that should be undone - I don't seem to find any bolts at the front...where might they be? There is a loop that is zip-tied from the front of the tubes down to the front eye on the hull.

Originally Posted by jyasaki

Can you get a pic of the strip along the hull (the part that came loose from the tube)?

I suspect, since it appears to be a single strip, that you have the channel-and-bead type of tube mount, but it's not obvious from the pic above (or on the previous page, whatever.)

jky

[Coug Fan]

Wondering if there are any fixes out there?

[jyasaki]

It's been said earlier in the thread: You need to pull the tubes and reglue the flange. I think yours may be lacking the bolts that Dave referenced, instead using just a strap at the front (sounds like you might actually be missing that as well, having gone from a metal buckle to a zip tie.)

Can you slide the tubes forward off the hull at all?

jky

[Coug Fan]

There was (I cut it off) a heavy duty zip tie. No, the tubes won't slide forward at all.