Vacuum Pump to Dry Core ?

[abl1111]

Has anyone used a vacuum pump to dry out, via evaporation, a small area of core to prep for epoxy ?

I have a small area in the bow/deck of my 23' Tsunami, where one of the SS rail, deck-base screws leaked into the core a bit ( the one area I did not pot with epoxy !!! ) I'd rather not cut the non-skid and doing from the bottom is nearly impossible due to access.

I've read that this is an effective way to dry out core via vacuum and evaporation.

Anyone been there done that ? Recommendations on the pump and process ?

Thx.