Antifoul - every mistake in the book

But isn't it true that the "active" ingredients in the antifoul will have leached out during the year, leaving behind an inert layer of cake? Otherwise why do we need to keep on adding more new antifoul each year?
So the blue dust is just that, not a toxic killer.
Anyone know the truth??
 
Resolution said:
But isn't it true that the "active" ingredients in the antifoul will have leached out during the year, leaving behind an inert layer of cake?
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No, otherwise I wouldn't have spent a week coughing my guts up and feeling ill after breathing in a relatively small area of it that I tried scraping off Kindred Spirit when we'd first bought her and I didn't know any better.

Pete
 
So is last year's antifoul not toxic enough to kill barnacles, but still toxic enough to kill humans? That's inconvenient!
 
Don't know if there is a substantial difference between eroding and hard antifouling in the toxicity of what is left on the hull.

However, when I scraped down my rudder of eroding antifouling in the garden, on the lawn, the grass took 3 years before it started growing again.

Looks like it is still pretty toxic still after a year in the water (may even have been 2).
 
I had mine slurry blasted about 7 years ago, so since then I have always wet sanded her bottom using one of these long handled ceiling sanders with gauze abrasive. It has stopped the thickness from building up. It's the sort of job which can be done any time in the winter, often a little at a time, and often in the rain.
 
Pye_End said:
However, when I scraped down my rudder of eroding antifouling in the garden, on the lawn, the grass took 3 years before it started growing again.

Looks like it is still pretty toxic still after a year in the water (may even have been 2).
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Ah good, you could paint a stripe down either side of the garden path to keep weeds at bay.

Shame they haven't got a version that does the same on the bottom of a boat.
 
Niffler said:
For whom? The other boats covered in blue dust, including sails and ropes? The other yard users down wind? The OP celebrating how he kept himself upwind whilst clouds of dust flew downwind - nice guy to share a yard space with.
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Where did he say his boat was in a yard?
 
Niffler said:
For whom? The other boats covered in blue dust, including sails and ropes? The other yard users down wind? The OP celebrating how he kept himself upwind whilst clouds of dust flew downwind - nice guy to share a yard space with.
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Niffler
A word of advice in your shell-like: before pronouncing on the OP's character, you might like to consider how well known he or she is on these forums. This OP has been active on the forum since the time of the ark, and has in particular organised forum expeditions a number of times. He is consequently pretty well-known to many regulars here, who will have made their judgement on him based on a lot more data than just this one thread. Suggest you soften some of your comments or run the risk of stirring up the renowned furies of the forums.

All of which is not meant as condoning anti-social behaviour in boatyards, if that is what happened here.
 
Resolution.,

Thanks for your kind words and support.

Initially when I read the criticism I did not respond and though how perfect so many new members with few posts are. Isn't it great that we have so many new members that don't make mistakes.

However I have found the greatest thing about this Forum is when people offer advice based on their own experience - often experience based on mistakes! I was offering my recent experience clearly admitting that I had made every mistake in the book.

I would point out though that if Niffler had bothered to read my post properly before he climbed on his high horse and said "or too mean to get it properly blasted" he would have noted that I said in my original post "However if I realised how bad anti foul condition was I would have arranged to strip it using soda blasting".

I would like to think I am usually polite in my posts even when I disagree and would point out that I am not just an armchair warrior that hides behind a keyboard and anyone who wants to take me to task can easily do so by joining us on the Autumn Scuttlebutt Cherbourg Cruise but I respectfully suggest we complete our discussions before the lunchtime wine tasting and definitely before the afternoon pontoon party as I suspect one or both of us might end up tasting Cherbourg Marina Seawater!

EDIT - realistically if its after the afternoon pontoon party I would refuse to be provoked as I love the world when I have had a drink.
 
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prv said:
Dry sanding antifoul is still a bad idea though :p :D

Pete
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Agreed but often you find yourself in a situation that if you were starting again you would not be where you now are!

Hopefully my mistakes will help others to make better decisions.

One point that has come out of this though is if I have areas of thick sound antifoul that I am not removing. If as others state its active and effective all the way to the bottom why overcoat it with new antifoul? Am I correct in believing that Micron Extra while being a hard antifoul its still classed as self eroding?

I have always done one coat of Micron over bottom with two coats at waterline and front edge of fin and rudder every year.

If its active all the way to the bottom perhaps it would be a good idea to use a different colour each year as it would be then visual that it hasn't eroded away and then don't bother with a new coat that results in the high buildup.
 
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Resolution said:
Niffler
A word of advice in your shell-like: before pronouncing on the OP's character, you might like to consider how well known he or she is on these forums. This OP has been active on the forum since the time of the ark, and has in particular organised forum expeditions a number of times. He is consequently pretty well-known to many regulars here, who will have made their judgement on him based on a lot more data than just this one thread. Suggest you soften some of your comments or run the risk of stirring up the renowned furies of the forums.

All of which is not meant as condoning anti-social behaviour in boatyards, if that is what happened here.
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He didn't intentionally damage other people's property by covering it in clouds of paint dust, or endanger people's health by creating clouds of toxic dust. He just did it by accident, like he said it was a mistake and he won't do it again.
 
NormanS said:
I had mine slurry blasted about 7 years ago, so since then I have always wet sanded her bottom using one of these long handled ceiling sanders with gauze abrasive. It has stopped the thickness from building up. It's the sort of job which can be done any time in the winter, often a little at a time, and often in the rain.
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Definitely the best solution, we used those pole mounted doo hickies with great success for our last 5 years or so in the UK. Wish I'd discovered them sooner having dry scraped several times prior to that.
 
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