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Barnacle Blues
This one, a not uncommon problem here in the warm waters of the gulf. A boat left in the water without anti-fouling paint, soon takes on a life of it's own.
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I left my boat in the water for three weeks and the barnacles are all
over it. I now have it high and dry, but I need to know what is the
best thing to do to get rid of the barnacles and their deposits. Soap
and water didn't even touch it and the hull cleaner I've used before
didn't work any better. My boat is a 2001, 27' Cobia and I hate all of
the little yellow stains all over that beautiful, expensive, gelcoat.
Is there any hope, BoatCat?
Thank You
Stuart
Tampa, FL
BoatCat Answers:
We get this problem quite often and the solution is relatively simple
and inexpensive.
The barnacles, oysters, etc. and the little yellow circular stains they
leave behind are pretty easy to remove if taken care of immediately after
removing the boat from the water. In other words before they have a chance
to dry out. Since I get the idea that we may have missed that opportunity
I'll give you the "after drying out" version.
First wet down the hull as best you can using a garden hose and hot water
if available. If all you have is cold water then that's what you'll have
to use, no problem. Take your time with this as the water will soften the
glue making it easier to remove. 30 minutes spent doing this will save you
a lot of work when you go to removing them.
If there are still crustaceans attached to the hull remove them using a
plastic or hard rubber scraper being careful not to damage the gelcoat
surface. Doc prefers a nylon squeegee like he uses for fiberglass repair.
He said you could get one at any body shop or fiberglass shop for under
a dollar. Again take your time, and don't worry about the little round
yellowish rings left behind, we'll get to them shortly.
For the glue stains you'll need a couple of items before you begin.
You will need a pair of rubber gloves, the long (gauntlet) type, a bucket
of soapy water and soft boat brush, the garden hose we mentioned earlier,
a sponge, and a small plastic bucket to dispense the cleaner in. Also have
a couple of pounds of soda ash or sodium bicarbonate to neutralize the acidic
rinse water.
There are a number of retail products designed for cleaning boat hulls and
in our experience the best ones all use muriatic acid as their active
ingredient. We eliminate the middle man and buy the acid at the hardware
store for 3 dollars per gallon instead of paying 10 dollars per quart for a
diluted version. Your choice.
Doc said to be sure to mention the location and he suggested a reasonably
level driveway as a good one. If you play it right you can clean the driveway
and the boat at the same time. Main thing is that you don't want the acid
going into the drain water or anywhere else without being diluted way down
and neutralized.
As an overview of the whole thing the key is to use lots of water. If you
use it sparingly you should need less than a quart of acid to clean the hull.
If you use 2 or even 3 hundred gallons of water to dilute the acid while
rinsing it will be so dilute as to be unnoticeable and not harmful. Be sure
to wet the entire area around the boat first, including the trailer,(muriatic
acid will etch aluminum)and keep everything wet all the way through.
Either way, follow the directions as to wearing rubber gloves and keeping the
stuff off of and out of you while applying, especially your eyes. Keep a
garden hose handy and keep the hull wet throughout the process. Using a
sponge or disposable paint brush apply the acid to a small section of the
boat at a time. Doc figures on what he can easily reach and clean in 1 minute.
Allow the acid to work for about a minute and scrub lightly with the sponge
to loosen up the stubborn spots. Next take your boat brush with soapy water
and scrub the just treated surface to remove any loose remnant and neutralize
the acid and then thoroughly rinse the area just cleaned.
From there on it's just repeating the procedure from one area to the next
until the boat is done.
After drying apply a good coat of paste wax to the hull. It will make it
a lot easier to clean the next time.
Hope this helps and please email or call if you run into any problems.
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