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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

General Sailing Forum

cleaning bottom in the water

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Champipple
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
6855 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 07:21:27

Infrequently when we owned the C-25 we would give it a wipoff.

On the racing boat, (weekly weather and waves permitting) we lower the twing lines on the spinnaker, lock the spinsheets in place, don masks and snorkels and send 4 or 5 crew in with 800 or 1200 grit wet sand sponges. They (we) will wipe down the entire hull from the waterline to the bottom of the keel.

Before big races We also will quite frequently get the bottom pressure washed if time permits. Around here it is also not uncommon for the bowman to dive in pre-race to remove seaweed from the propshaft, keel and rudder that might not come off after backing down.

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SEAN
Admiral

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USA
772 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 08:47:37

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">The secret is to keep it moving - I'm w/ Frank!<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
it would be nice if you could sail it off

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Stardog
Captain

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USA
319 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 10:04:55

For years I had teflon paint on the bottom and it was really easy to deal with as almost nothing could attach to it. Regular anti-fouling paint should theoretically slough off as you sail and keep the bottom clean, but it really only works if you sail a lot. I'm back to regular anti-fouling paint now and since I've been spending more time rebuilding and fixing I haven't had enough time to sail, so I'm going to have to clean the bottom soon and that means getting blue. I've always used a brush and snorkle, sounds like a dry diver would be a nice way to go.

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dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 12:25:48

Some guys at our marina use a device similar to stampeder above, but their "T" end has short arms extending out between which a boat fender is suspended. Scrubby material is wrapped around the fender and the buoyancy keeps it against the hull.

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Nautiduck
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3704 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 14:07:59

Dog, be careful. That blue is poison. I'd try real hard not to be swimming around with that stuff.

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smoken
1st Mate

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USA
67 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 18:04:15

I don't have any pictures, I copied one of the boats in the marina. It sounds like Stampeder has the same idea minus the noodles. I thought they were important to keep pressure on the bottom since they are trying to float to the surface. The angles vary a little by boat. With the right lengths and proper angle you would be able to wipe down all but the bottom of a wing.

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GaryB
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4304 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 22:46:59

I was down at the boat this evening putting it back together after yesterdays tropical storm. While trying to clean up some of the tape residue I looked in the lazarette for some soft scrub and while digging around I found an almost new Dri-Diver. I've rarely even opened this locker so I wasn't sure what was left in there from the PO. I'll try to test it this weekend.

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stampeder
Master Marine Consultant

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1608 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2008 : 23:09:23

my boat is currently at Ghost Lake. I have my trailer at home in my front yard where it is undergoing a major overhaul.
My daughter has been posted full-time in Esquimalt so I expect to haul it out to the Island for the winter.
I'll keep you posted.

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Leon Sisson
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1893 Posts

Response Posted - 09/04/2008 : 22:08:26

I keep my C-25 swing keel in warm salt water year round. I scrub the bottom every now and then to help extend the time between haulouts for bottom paint. I use many coats of ablative paint. When scrubbing, I always find a thin even coat of dark slime and a few dozen barnacles.

I scrub the boat in two or three stages. First, I gently run aground on a clear sandy bottom. There, I wade around the boat reaching as far under as I can without putting my face under water. This goes pretty fast, as I have good leverage and free breathing. Next, I anchor in deeper water, drape a long dock line along each side for a hand hold, and swim under to scrub what I couldn't reach by wading. After a break, I then dive back in to scrub the keel. When done, I pour about a gallon of fresh water over my head to rinse off.

-- Leon S.

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