UK Sailors Uncover Widespread Mold Problem During Contest 38 Refit

When Ben and Ellie of Sailing Rum Punch started pulling apart their Contest 38, they weren't expecting mold to be the first major obstacle. But that's exactly what they found, and they documented the whole grim discovery in a short video posted March 7, 2026.

The UK-based couple runs Sailing Rum Punch as a refit-focused YouTube channel, tracking the restoration of their Contest 38 from the early teardown stages through to what will presumably be a seaworthy finish. The mold video, titled "Mould everywhere," captures the kind of moment that anyone who has bought a used cruiser dreads: you start opening up hidden spaces and what you find is not wood or fiberglass or even rot in a manageable form, but widespread mold that has made itself at home through what looks like the entire boat.

The Contest 38 is a Dutch-built performance cruiser with a solid reputation, which makes a finding like this sting a little more. These boats were built to last, and owners who seek them out are usually paying for that pedigree. Discovering mold at the outset of a refit means the work ahead is not just mechanical and cosmetic, it's remediation first, everything else second.

For anyone following along with a similar project, this is the phase that separates the realistic refit plans from the wishful ones. Mold behind liners, under berths, or inside lockers is not a quick clean-and-seal job. It requires identifying the source, whether that's a leaking deck fitting, inadequate ventilation, or years of condensation trapped inside a closed-up boat, before any cosmetic work makes sense.

Ben and Ellie are only in the early phase of the refit, which means they caught this before laying out money on new upholstery or refinished joinery. That's the silver lining in a video that's otherwise a straightforward account of one of sailing's less glamorous realities.