Rust Spots - New Dock Neighbor

[montenido]

Hi all, I just have to vent about something. Last week I got a new dock neighbor in the slip adjacent to mine. Seems like a nice guy, with a new to him Hunter 32. Anyway, we met and he told me he had just bought it and was having a mechanic do some work for him. I met the mechanic a day or two later.

Well I went to my boat yesterday to find that my neighbor had installed a huge wooden set of dock steps between our boats. I can squeeze past this even though it it very much in the way. What I am worked up about is a pattern of rust flakes on my starboard deck immediately adjacent to this huge set of steps. It appears that some metal grinding took place on the steps with the metal particles landing on my boat. I checked his boat but found no sign of rust.

I will try to speak to my neighbor about this, but in the mean time, the rust stains are setting in. How do you remove fine metal dust from gelcoat and non-skid surfaces? My boat needs enough TLC without someone adding to the work!

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks for letting me rant.

[jrd22]

I bought some spray rust stain remover from West M.? You just spray it on and wait a couple of minutes and them wash it off. Works good, probably doesn't do any thing good for wax in the area. Sorry I don't have the brand name right now. Maybe the new neighbor should pay for it?

[tommays]

How does the marina allow steps that make dock traffic dangerous

[artbyjody]

A little bit of Barkeeper's Friend (available at most grocery stores) will most likely do the trick at least amount of cost. It's like Comet but doesn't take nearly as much to use and gets rid of rust stains in a breeze.

[JHJensen]

Talk to the marina management about he problem if it creates danger to you and others using the dock. Most marina lease agreements have pretty strict rules about what you can and can't do as far what you leave on the dock.

On the rust issue. MaryKate On and Off hull cleaner will take care of the that. Start with a diluted amount first and then go full strengh if needed. Wear gloves and have a hose ready to rinse with plenty of fresh water and don't let it sit for long timewithout flushing on aluminum toe rails and surrounding paint etc. use a stiff small bristle brush if it is in the nonskid.

Hope that helps,

J

[Maine Sail]

Originally Posted by artbyjody

A little bit of Barkeeper's Friend (available at most grocery stores) will most likely do the trick at least amount of cost. It's like Comet but doesn't take nearly as much to use and gets rid of rust stains in a breeze.

Please be careful using Barkeepers Friend. While it does contain Oxalic acid it also contains mild grit abrasives. These abrasives can leave micro scratches in the surface of gelcoat or paint which will then give more surface area for stains to attach to. While probably not as abrasive as Commet or Ajax it is abrasive and after use the area should then be buffed or polished to remove these micro abrasions to the gelcoats surface. A glass smooth gelcoat leaves less surface area for stains or UV rays to begin attacking..

A straight Oxalic acid, or any of the Gel based acid cleaners, contain no abrasives as they are not needed to remove rust or tannin staining..

My favorite for removing rust stains is MaryKate On & Off Gel. Simply apply it with a cheap chip brush and watch the rust disappear. DO NOT get any acid based cleaners on aluminum or anodized aluminum!!

Again, you DO NOT need or want a product with abrasives to remove rust stains. the acid based cleaner will simply dissolve the rust with no rubbing or scratching of the surface.

[sailingdog]

Another good cleaner for this purpose is CLR, which is probably a lot cheaper and available at most big grocery and hardware stores. It is designed to remove Calcium, Lime and Rust stains from bathroom fixtures, many of which are made of fiberglass nowadays...

[SteveInMD]

Can you post a picture of the steps?

[Giulietta]

Main sail,

thanks for yor post..you sound very much like a friend we have here called Halekai...he writes like you..

can you please tell me if this is good?? It's what I use. I use on gel coat and paint.

SEE HERE please


do they sell the one you recommend at west amrine?

Thank you.

[sailingdog]

BTW, should talk to your dock neighbor about the damage his step install caused to your boat, and that his vendors should clean up after themselves better and have a bit more consideration for others.