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Cleaning Hull in the water

16K views 66 replies 23 participants last post by  Fstbttms 
#1 ·
Advice humbly requested.

Salt water-ish (brackish estuary, but mostly salt). I have a 32' full keel fiber-glass boat. I am an accomplished diver (NITROX cert. as well). I can see some minor algea growth on the upper part of my rudder, so I am sure the entire hull (below water) is in similar shape, or not far off. Obviously the amount of sunlight reaching it is a factor as well.

I intend to clean it myself since I already own all the scuba gear. However, I have never done this before, and have VERY limited hull maintenance experience of any kind.

I went out and bought some of the course green (SOS type) of scrubbies. The type usually found in the sponge/dishwashing section of the grocery store.

Then, on the way home, I started thinking.... What if these are too course/hard.... and they do a great job eliminating the current growth... but then they cause countless tiny scratches that not only compromise the longevity of the hull coat... but also allow countless microscopic crevices for new marine life to get a foothold....thereby increasing my future problems 10 fold.

Perhaps, I'm over thinking this. I would really appreciate anyone's input that has first hand experience in doing this. Any advice on proper products to use...and which ones to stay away from.

Thank you !!

---Fair winds...

---tapske...
NIF
 
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#2 ·
I wrote a pretty detailed article on bottom cleaning for Cruising World back in 2006. Rather than try to repeat it all here, I'll just link to the manuscript for the article, which is on my blog (as far as I know, the article is no longer on the CW site):

DIY Bottom Cleaning

Hope that answers some of your questions . . . being a diver, you've got one skill that's helpful!
 
#5 ·
THANK YOU CAROLYN !!

In one swoop you provided more information than I hoped for in the coming week !

Great basic info... technical realistic approach.. and some good FYI hints....all sprinkled with the safety conscious angle. :)

*hugs* you probobly saved me a Texas size can of frustration. Or, at the very least, a fair amount of second guessing my actions.....(two feelings that are not mutually independent..)

Thanks again,
---tapske...
 
#3 · (Edited)
30' Boat in brackish water. Lottsa slime this summer. Scuba diver with own gear. This summer I tied lines under the boat from side to side. I used this to hold on to while scrubbing with the other hand and a plastic bristle brush. Slime came off very easy. Green scrubbie pads are indeed too course. About an hour to do the job. Quite the aerobic work out. I'm glad I never smoked. Visibility sucked BTW, so after a while your scrubbing by feel.
Oh I forgot I used a pony tank instead of full 80. Much lighter and less bulk in the water.
 
#4 ·
That is a great article, Carolyn. I wish I had known to clean out barnacle cuts right after getting out of the water the first time I scrubbed the bottom on my boat - I had one cut on my elbow that got infected and it took forever for it to heal. Now I wear gloves and a dive skin every time I go under the boat.
 
#6 ·
I do all of our hull cleaning and I use a long handled brush I made by copying one that my friend Ray (Erps here on SN) has. It's basically just a long section of 2" or maybe 2 1/2" PVC pipe with a 45 near the end and a "T" section at the working end. I started with coarse brushes on it but they were too aggressive on our ablative paint so I just wrapped some old carpet around the brushes and it does a good job. Ray dives and cleans his boat too and he told me that using the brush first saves about half the time diving, and it's a lot easier. He's right, you just need to dive to do the keel and skeg/rudder, and the prop and look for any spots you might have missed with the brush. Of course you need a dock to work from so it's not going to help much if you are on a mooring or anchored. I think I've seen the brushes advertised commercially but they're simple and cheap to make.
 
#7 ·
I've been happy with berber carpet cut in 6-inch squares. A professional hull cleaner suggested this to me. The loops give it just the right amount of abrasiveness and they shed slime nicely.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Advice humbly requested.
I went out and bought some of the course green (SOS type) of scrubbies. The type usually found in the sponge/dishwashing section of the grocery store.

Then, on the way home, I started thinking.... What if these are too course/hard.... and they do a great job eliminating the current growth... but then they cause countless tiny scratches that not only compromise the longevity of the hull coat... but also allow countless microscopic crevices for new marine life to get a foothold....thereby increasing my future problems 10 fold.
Rule Number One- Always clean your hull with the softest cleaning media possible.

What that turns out to be is completely dependant on the age and condition of your anti fouling paint and how foul you have allowed it to become. You will not hasten fouling by creating "countless microscopic crevices." Fouling organisms will begin attaching themselves to your hull rgardless of how smooth or not your anti fouling paint is. But what you do not want to do is remove more paint than necessary during in-water hull cleaning. By using cleaning media (be it a scrubber, brush, carpet or whatever) that is overly abrasive, you will not only shorten your paint's lifespan but will introduce more copper into the water column than you otherwise would.

Clean your hull relatively frequently and gently. This is the way to maximize your boat's performance both under power and sail and minimize your fuel consumption and carbon emissions.
 
#12 ·
Several times a summer I get out a little early for a race and offer two scrubbing pads to a couple of my young fit crew members. In about 15 minutes the hull and keel and rudder are spotless. I tie a couple of lines at the forward and aft cleats along each side to give them some thing to hang on to, which makes it easier for them.

I am in fresh water so use VC- 17 which is hard and does not come off easily and every year at haul out I have a nice clean bottom.

Gary
 
#16 ·
FST BTTMS,
Thank you so much for taking the time to make and post those videos. ven though I have never done this job before, I am now completely confident, thanks to you and other posts, that I will have no problem tackling this little piece of maintenance from here on out.
Thanks again, fair winds,

---tapske...
NIF
 
#18 ·
If your boat is small enough, or tender enough, you can do a pretty good job with a regular deck brush with a long handle.

Take a halyard to the next finger over from yours, tie a truckers hitch several feet up - this takes some experimentation - loop the free end through the dock cleat - this is the one place those miserable dock rings actually work better - loop back up through the hitch and heave the boat over.

Cleat or tie it off and go and scrub the exposed side of the boat.

Undo the hitch, take the line to a finger on the other side and repeat.

I could get all but the bottom 1/2 of the fin on my 26' quarter tonner using this technique. A longer handle would have fixed even that.
 
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#26 ·
Yup, it get the contaminated air issues. I was a dive instructor many years ago, from air to mixed gas to re-breathers.

I would love to know from FastB where one finds the parts. I'm sure I could source the hoses and regulators, but the compressor is the key. For very shallow depth, it would not need to be very powerful. You can suck through a plain hose for a few feet below the surface.

I'm starting to envision building one in a large plastic tool box that I would secure to the side deck and just drop a hose over the side.
 
#30 ·
I find credit cards work well for virtually all the work on my boat. :D
 
#32 · (Edited)
AIR-LINE 12 Volt Hookah Compressor Package
Portable 12 V 1/3HP DC Compressor (call about other models)
Long 60' swiveled air hose with harness clip
Industrial 5' Compressor hose
Harness with ditchable weight pockets
Adjustable regulator W/ comfo swivel
An excellent, Safe choice for Boaters
ONLY $1095.00, Ask about our special!

Hookah direct drive scuba diving equipment sales. Hose diving hookah

Good notes on that website too.
 
#63 ·
I bought a 12 volt unit from jsi. It works great and you can be down for a couple of hours without running your batteries down. I did buy a full face mask which makes it all much easier. IST makes a pretty good silicone full face for about a hundred bucks. It would have been cheaper to hire the bottom cleaning done, but now I do it far more often.
DD
 
#37 ·
I have cleaned my hull by dragging a cheap tarp under it ,letting the poly tarp float up against my hull, then pouring a gallon of bleach in it and leaving it overnight. Next day all growth fell off. Works for weeds but not barnacles.
At sea, one can pull a rope under your forefoot and saw it back and forth across the hull working your way back to the keel, then doing the same from the keel to the skeg. Doesn't get everything, but removes a lot, if the growth is thick and heavy.
 
#39 ·
Millions of gallons of bleach get poured down drains by land lubbers all the time, with far less justification. Chlorine evaporates quickly.
By the time I have that heavy a growth, the antifouling is dead anyway.
 
#41 ·
Originally Posted by Brent Swain
Millions of gallons of bleach get poured down drains by land lubbers all the time, with far less justification
.

You could sustitute the word holding tank sewerage here....I am hoping you dont do that with the same rationale...... doesnt make it right to do
 
#43 ·
Yes, and it didn't take long to find a source saying that chlorine beach is very bad when introduced into the environment:

"Unfortunately, chlorine also poses a significant risk to the environment, and was even used as a chemical weapon during World War I. Many countries have banned chlorine bleach or restricted its use in an effort to protect the environment and human health.
Water Pollution
Manufacturers who use chlorine bleach often release it into local water bodies along with other liquid industrial waste. Once it reaches the water, chlorine reacts with other minerals and elements to form a host of dangerous toxins. These toxins, including dioxins, furams and PCDDs are often referred to as "persistent organic pollutants" because they linger in the water or soil and take many years to disappear. Greenpeace calls dioxin one of the most dangerous chemicals known to science, and warns that it can contribute to cancer, endocrine disorders and other serious health effects. The West Virginia University Extension also links chlorine-based compounds, like dioxins, with low sperm count, testicular cancer and breast cancer due to their ability to mimic human hormones."


The Effects Of Chlorine Bleach On The Environment | LIVESTRONG.COM
 
#45 ·
Bleach. It's hard to know who to believe anymore, as most decide first, then look for evidence.

I have to admit, the Livestrong article seems low on scientific reference and quickly jumps to dioxins. While pointing out that bald eagles were nearly decimated by dioxins, being an article on bleach are we to believe that bleach killed the bald eagles? It also refers to bleach being a chemical weapon, but it did need to be combined with other chemicals, which was left out. Charcoal becomes gunpowder if you mix it with other chemicals. I'm still happy to have charcoal around.

If I were to guess, because its all we are usually left to do with environ issues anymore, bleach toxicity to the environment is most likely a function of concentration. Personally, I would never pour it straight into the water, but I can't say I know why.
 
#52 ·
The dioxin that was killing the eagles was the effluent of pulp mills - 10's of thousands of gallons being dumped regularly. Howe Sound, where I live is a long, deep fjord and was virtually devoid of life a number of years ago for this very reason. Once the dumping stopped the sea life returned in abundance in a short time.

Using a little bleach on a boat ain't quite the same thing - it DOES evaporate and break down in sunlight very quickly.

This is just another case of environmental absolutism IMHO.
 
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