Many people often discard their old bathtub and buy a new one at the first sign of a large crack, chip, or blemish. This is totally unnecessary and a waste of money!A fiberglass or porcelain bathtub that is chipped or cracked cannot only be an eyesore but can also be a hazard. The chipped tub can leave a sharp edge on it which can, in turn, cut an innocent bystander. Getting injured by your banged-up tub is one thing but a leaking bathtub can be a totally different story. A leaking tub can cause significant structural damage to a floor… This isn’t even taking into account what it could do to your beautiful home if it is located on the second floor! Leaking tubs can easily ruin walls as well when the leaking water is pulled up through the wall in capillary action.
Instead of staring at a defective tub or unnecessarily buying a new one then just follow some of these simple steps in order to fix your faulty bathtub.
Things you will need:
- Epoxy resin
- Wet/dry sandpaper
- Fine-grit sandpaper
- Gel coat enamel
- Applicator brush
- Hairdryer
- Paintbrush
- Rags
- Tungsten carbide cutter
- The first thing to do is make sure the tub you are repairing is thoroughly cleaned.
- Make sure the tub is also dry before actually starting your work. A good way to do this is by using a hairdryer to meticulously dry off the surface of the tub.
- Remember: Epoxy will NOT stick to a wet surface!
- Widen the crack in the tub and remove any rough spots using a tungsten carbide cutter.
- Make the chip/crack as smooth as possible. Remove all jagged edges to the blemish with fine-grit sandpaper.
- Now apply an epoxy filler. Fill it completely and use your applicator to remove any extra epoxy using your applicator tool.
- Let the epoxy dry and set it up for 12 hours.
- Sand the epoxy with your wet/dry applicator.
- Now wet the fine-grit sandpaper and sand the repair to a smooth finish.
- Now apply a smooth layer of gel coat enamel. (If the color of the enamel matches the color of your bathtub then the repair should remain fairly unnoticeable.)
