CATAMARAN DESIGN FLAW REVEALED - Cracked bulkhead repair series - Part 9 (Episode 114)
June 20, 2021 · 20 min · 213K views
What this video covers
Structural repairs to the bulkhead of a Lagoon 450 catamaran involve reinforcing the assembly with 18-millimeter marine-grade plywood and biaxial fiberglass.0:29 The repair addresses a recurring design flaw where large conduit holes in the bulkhead create weak points prone to cracking.14:11 The process requires gluing and screwing plywood layers to the existing bulkhead, followed by applying West Systems epoxy and multiple layers of biaxial glass.0:29 To ensure structural integrity, the crew uses fillets to create rounded transitions between the plywood, beams, and hull, allowing for continuous glass tabbing.5:03 An air roller removes excess resin and air bubbles to optimize the glass-to-resin ratio.7:04 Peel ply is applied over the final layers to achieve a smooth, textured finish that eliminates the need for grinding.7:57 The crew emphasizes that this over-engineered approach aims to prevent future structural failure, noting that the bulkhead cracking often triggers a chain reaction of damage to other frames and tabbing throughout the vessel.17:03
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