Fiberglassing a livewell??

[Boweevil]

If I built a livewell in my boat out of okoume, coated it good inside and out with epoxy, then lined it with fiberglass, and coated and lined any penetrations with epoxy and fiberglass, would it hold up for very long with regular use? Or would it leak and eventually rot out?

I'd like to get away from using a cooler for a livewell, and have a built-in one with a battery powered aerator. BTW this would be in my Jon boat, not a pirogue or canoe.

Thanks,
Tim

 

[Kayak Jack]

It should last indefinitely, barring physical damage or leaving it out in the sun for UV rays to destroy. Build two; one can be used to cool beverages, say, coke.

 

[seedtick]

put a drain in it and leave the top off when not in use so it'll dry out between uses

take care of it and it'll last as long as the rest of the boat

 

[Kayak Jack]

take care of it and it'll last as long as the rest of the boat

Store bottled beer in it to prevent raccoons from creeping in under cover of darkness.

 

[Boweevil]

Thanks guys! I knew I could count on y'all for good advice and also to point out the necessary engineering details, such as the need for a similar compartment, of adequate size of course, for bottled beverages and other vital necessities.

Tim

 

[Kayak Jack]

Yeah, one tank is for a live well, and the other is for living well. :wink:

Try to not get them confused. It's probably about equally distasteful to try baiting a hook with a beer bottle, as it is to take a swig from a ball of angle worms.

 

[Kayak Jack]

BTW, you may want to consider having these "tanks" not built into the boat, but removable. Would be easier to stock them, to clean them, and to move for trimming the boat (we will NOT re-enter a trimming discussion here). You could make them similar to a wanigan. Chuck can provide sample piccies. That way, sammiches could be legally included within your beverage tank.

 

[oldsparkey]

The wanigan I made for the one canoe sat behind the seat and was designed as a drop in or removable. It is a handy place to keep day snacks and anything else you might want in a hurry.

I don't have any pictures of the construction process but it was easy to do. The canoe has 10 panels in it so I used some cardboard and cut each piece to match the contours of the inside of the canoe along with the angle of the sides. Then I used them as patterns to cut the wood and match it together.

Fiber-glassed the outside and only epoxy saturated the inside since it was for dry storage.

Next was to make a cooler out of some left over plywood...... Basically I made a box inside a box with Styrofoam sandwiched between the two of them.
Both were epoxy saturated and glassed inside and outside since it wold be a wet storage. The top's of the two boxes were capped off with a piece of plywood ( Glassed) leaving the outside one with a lip about a half an inch higher so a top would fit over it. The lid was fitted with some Styrofoam and epoxy saturated to toughen it and when placed on the box it makes a water tight seal.

Both items were made about 8 years ago and are still in new condition , I keep them in my shop when they are not being used.

 

[Boweevil]

Wow! Way cool! Now I've got even MORE to ponder..... I think I need to buy an extra couple sheets of Okoume..... And definitely some more glass and epoxy.

 

[Kayak Jack]

<SNIP>.... I think I need to buy an extra couple sheets of Okoume..... And definitely some more glass and epoxy.

Don't forget to buy some beer, just so you can properly calculate proper inside dimensions for the box.