How To Fix A Ding On Your Standup Paddle Board

Getting a ding on your paddle board is a bummer but it’s not the end of the world. Unless something catastrophic happens dings on your board should be relatively simple to fix. Here, BIC SUPs Jimmy Blakeney shows you how to repair fiberglass and plastic stand up paddle boards and surfboards.

The first thing you want to do after each session is to check your board to make sure you have no dings or dents in the board. If the dings or dents puncture the core of the board and are not fixed, water will slowly leak into the board and damage it. The good news is that most dings are easy to repair.

Materials needed

For small dings you’re only going to need:

• 5 minute epoxy
• Utility knife
• Popsicle stick
• Clear packing tape
• Sand paper

1. Make sure the board is dry

Before starting to fix the ding you want to make sure the board is completely dry. To do this, you want to keep your board out of the water and store it in a cool, dry place, ideally with low humidity. Store the board until it completely dries. You do not want to repair your board if there is still water in it.

Note: A trick you can use to see if your board is dry on the inside is to take a dry paper towel and insert it into the damaged area. If this paper towel soaks any water from the core of the board then you will know whether or not there is still water inside and it is not yet ready for repair.

2. Clean away the damaged area

Once your board is dry the next step is to clean the damaged area and to remove any damaged materials. You can do this using a utility knife and cut away any areas that are cracked and damaged.

3. Sanding

Next, you’ll take some medium grit sand paper and sand around the ding. What this does is allow the epoxy to hold once it cures.

4. Remove Foam

After sanding is complete you will want to remove a small amount of foam from underneath the edge of the ding. What this does is it gives the epoxy something to hold onto underneath the skin of the board so that when it cures, it’s locked in there.

5. Mix epoxy

Once you’ve prepared the damaged area, now it’s time to mix the epoxy. Once you’ve mixed the epoxy take the popsicle stick and use it to completely cover up the damaged area with epoxy. Then you will cover the ding with the clear packing tape which will give the epoxy a smooth finish and will reduce the amount of sanding needed once the epoxy is cured.

6. Wait

Once the epoxy and tape has been applied to the damaged area you’re going to want to wait at least an hour, even if you’re using 5 minute epoxy. Some epoxys take longer, it just all depends on the weather and humidity conditions on where you’re fixing the ding. The best thing to do is to wait a full day if you can.

7. Sanding

Once the epoxy is cured you may remove the packing tape and sand down any additional excess epoxy that may still be on the board. If you want to go one step further, you can paint the damaged area to match the color of the board.

Once sanding is complete you are ready to get back on the water! Watch the video tutorial below. To see more How-To videos from Jimmy, click HERE.

To see more standup paddle board tips click HERE.