Hi Bob,

I’ve built in a heated garage. I don’t know what you have for a workspace in your garage, but it is do able. Two years ago I built two canoes in a friends heated Minnesota garage. We had a pretty nice setup, forced hot air heat only on when we were there, good lighting, good music and always a comfortable chair to sit back to admire our work.

I have another friend who builds in his garage year round and keeps it warm with a wood stove. He goes out to the garage 30 minutes prior, to light the stove and to start to warm up the garage. He has glassed about 4 boats during the winter using MAS with slow cure hardener; he has never had a problem.

The big thing to watch for is out gassing. Basically it is little air bubbles that from air (I assume) trying to escape from the wood. This happens if you bringing the hull temperature up after the epoxy is put on. To cure this, make sure the hull is up to temperature before you start to glass. Once your ready to start glassing turn your heat source off or lower its out put of heat.

I have heard of people putting a number of 100 watt light bulbs under the hull to raise the hull temperature and then turning them off and /or reducing the number bulbs and the distance the remaining bulbs are from the hull.

If your climate is any thing like Minnesota’s in the winter you’ll want some sort of heat, either gas, electric, or wood. Electric will be just fine (except on the pocket book). A word of warning stay away from a kerosene heater, as kerosene burns very dirty and will leave a residue on everything.

Good luck and always ask questions, I’m sure someone has already experienced it.

Jason Given

: I plan to build through the winter months. Do I need to wait until warmer
: weather for the glassing of the boat, or will the use of the MAS
: preparations allow me to glass in the winter months? I will likely use an
: electric heater when actually building. Do I need to worry about the
: effect of temperature changes on the boat structure itself after leaving
: the garage? I would appreciate all cold weather warnings. Many
: thanks....Bob