Keel Maintenance Questions

Discussions related to the tiller and/or keel.
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markb
Anchored
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Nov 19, 2007 5:07 pm

Keel Maintenance Questions

Post by markb » Mon Jan 26, 2009 5:02 pm

I've owned Giulia for 2+ years now in which time she has not been out of the water. She lives on the Broads so its fresh-water and fairly well-protected and keeping her in has been great in that it's enabled me to use her all year round.

However, I'm planning on taking her to the coast and a drying mooring this Summer. She last had her keel serviced nearly 3 years ago. How often would you recommend it should be done? One boat yard said yearly; another said every 5 years...

The cost for them to service would be about £100 - is this something that can be easily done by someone that's not very practical? Does she need to be on her trailer?

Lastly, once she's out of the water, how long would you allow the hull to dry-out before applying a coat of anti-foul?

Thanks, Mark.

mikeprojectboat
Cruising
Posts: 103
Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2006 12:54 pm
Location: NORFOLK

keel/ tiller/antifouling

Post by mikeprojectboat » Mon Jan 26, 2009 5:35 pm

Hi, Not a problem to do it yourself,save you money to!! boat needs to be out,(ON TRAILER) to service and repair,and to anti foul. you would sevice it and anti foul,at the end of the season(WINTER LAYUP) but if allways mored and not trailered home,sugest every two years?....KEEL/ WINDING GEAR,ETC. you will need to raise the boat to enable you to get to the keel winding unit,to remove any gunge,growth,and the good old zebra mussle that now inhabit the norfolk waters.also check on the swing of the keel, as this can be stiff. The boat has to be high up to enable you to do this, clean off and apply good quality waterproof grease to pivot points/threads.
Make sure there is a good stop at the end of the thread (winding gear), you should also have an inspection hatch inside the cockpit to the side of the winding slot, if this is difficult to get at from underneath the boat....
ANTI-FOULING..boat needs to be out of the water, scrub down/power wash? Depending on the state of the hull, apply one or two coats of anti-fouling. Apply in dry weather!
Can I suggest you check out previous messages, pictures (some quite old) for more information, reccomendations and tips on all of the previous items listed.

Regards Mike Project boat (In damp gloomy Norfolk)

jjspicer
Under way
Posts: 22
Joined: Sun Nov 26, 2006 5:21 am
Location: Bahrain

Keel Maintenance Questions

Post by jjspicer » Mon Jan 26, 2009 5:42 pm

Mark
The question of how often the anti fouling needs to be redone is not an easy one to answer. There are two big factors to consider.
1) What was used the last time the boat was treated, some products last longer than others and are for specific water types.
2) Local water conditions are a huge influence, some water conditions are more conducive to growth than others.
You may need to rely on the locals for what is normally done in the area.
I realize this probably raises more questions than answers but there is no short answer.
John


On Mon, Jan 26, 2009 at 8:02 PM, markb <forum-tillerkeel@swift18.org (forum-tillerkeel@swift18.org)> wrote:
I've owned Giulia for 2+ years now in which time she has not been out of the water. She lives on the Broads so its fresh-water and fairly well-protected and keeping her in has been great in that it's enabled me to use her all year round.

However, I'm planning on taking her to the coast and a drying mooring this Summer. She last had her keel serviced nearly 3 years ago. How often would you recommend it should be done? One boat yard said yearly; another said every 5 years...

The cost for them to service would be about ?100 - is this something that can be easily done by someone that's not very practical? Does she need to be on her trailer?

Lastly, once she's out of the water, how long would you allow the hull to dry-out before applying a coat of anti-foul?

Thanks, Mark.




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