Boating and Sailing.pdf - Moja ladja

Anti-Fouling on Aluminum
Chapter 21: Keeping Your Boat Shipshape
Aluminum gets a different paint, usually one with copper thiocyonate, which does not
cause electrolysis as does the standard cuprous oxide used in most anti-fouling paints.
(Tin-based paints are also used for metal boats,
but must be applied by specialists because they
are considered hazardous materials.)
Look Out!
The surface is sandblasted (you can rent a sandblaster
and try this yourself, but beware, too much
pressure or too long in one spot, and you’ll need
to know how to repair holes in aluminum boats!),
then coated with metal primer, then epoxy primer,
sanded, more epoxy primer, and then two finish
coats of tin-based or other aluminum-type antifouling
paint. Whew! This definitely sounds like
one for the boatyard.
Teak Treatment
Teak is a lovely, durable wood that is a tradition in fine boat building. But teak is, to put it
mildly, a pain in the stern to care for. For that reason, a lot of modern builders have eliminated
it completely, replacing fittings such as rod holders and cup holders with composite
plastics. They don’t look nearly as good, but they never require care.
If you have teak aboard, however, you do have to take care of it to keep it from looking
like driftwood.
Teak cleaners are strong acids or corrosives designed to bleach away oils and dirt. They
have to be applied while wearing rubber gloves. You let them set on the wood for a few
minutes, brush them down, and then rinse with fresh water.
Once the teak dries after this treatment, it turns almost white. To restore the golden glow,
you add teak oil, available at all marine dealers. Just rub it on, let it dry, and then rub on a
second or third coat. The oil makes water bead up rather than penetrate, helping to keep
the wood clean.
Keeping Stuff Dry
There are dry boxes on most boats, distinguished by the fact that everything you put into
them gets soaking wet. They’re sort of like those water-resistant watches that work fine
until they get anywhere near water.
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Some types of antifouling
paint lose their effectiveness
if allowed to dry out while
the boat is out of the water. Keep
the boat in the water if you use
one of these types of paint or
you’ll have wasted your painting
effort.