I have a 5 year old Pelican tandem sit-in kayak with a skeg that recently started leaking. It’s leaking at the point where the line for the skeg runs through the bottome of the boat. Pelican does not have parts available for the skeg. Does anyone have any recommendations on how to fix this? I figure I will have to seal it up with a sealant (a guy at REI recommended a product called Aquaseal). I was planning to detach the skeg from the bottom of the kayak and fill the hole where the line goes into the bottom of the kayak with the sealant. However, the skeg line is enclosed in a clear flexible tubing. Should I assume that the sealant will seal around this tubing, or would it be better to remove the skeg altogether and just seal up the bottom of the boat so that I’m not risking a leak? Also, should you rough up/sand the surface of the kayak where the sealant is applied to get the sealant to stick, or will it stick okay on its own? Thanks!
Use Lexel
A tube of clear Lexel is $6 on amazon. It is probably enough to seal around the where the tube exits from inside of the stern hatch. Don’t bother taking the skeg out entirely. Try sealing around from the inside, give it a few days to cure, then see if it still leaks. If not, problem solved.
Thanks!
I’ll give that a try. Thanks!
Lexel
I’ve used Lexel on many repairs since learning about it here, and it’s amazing stuff. Clean and dry the area thoroughly and it should bond well. Wear disposable gloves and use some mineral spirits if you care to smooth things out nicely.
One piece of advice I learned the hard way. Once, for a big job, I bought the caulking-gun-tube size of Lexel because I thought it was more economical and would be easier to apply. Well, the gun didn’t fit through the hatch, and when I could get it in it was really awkward to work. The toothpaste-stye tubes are better for this kind of work.