Baked on Mud

[Russ the Diver]

Anybody got any good ideas how to remove baked on mud on the bottom of my catamaran.
I've used scrappers, hot soapy water. and an orbital sander with a scotch bright pad attached( which works okish but very heavy in the hands!)
Thanks
Russ

 

[smithy]

Are you sure its not staining in the gelcoat, if so use oxalic acid.

 

[dmmbruce]

If you can, tape some sacking so it hangs over the mud and soak it regularly. This softens the mud and it becomes easy to hose/scrape off.

Mike

 

[Kelpie]

We encountered a very hard layer of mud on our boat after she had spent four years in a mud berth. Found the most effective way to remove it was to get it absolutely dry. A heat gun did the trick, followed by scraper, although we resorted to a sander for the worst bits. Amazingly tough stuff, it was tempting to just paint new antifoul over the top of it as it adhered better than any paint I have ever seen!

 

[rob2]

Can't guarantee it will work but I'd be inclined to spend a morning hosing it every 20 mins or so to get it good and wet then pressure wash it. Whiulst you have the washer set up if it gets the bulk off you can change the lance for a rotating brush to scrub the rest off.

I guess then it's back to the scraper... ;-)

Rob.

 

[Russ the Diver]

[Are you sure its not staining in the gelcoat, if so use oxalic acid].




No, it's defiantly mud!

 

[Kelpie]

[Are you sure its not staining in the gelcoat, if so use oxalic acid].




No, it's defiantly mud!

Nice

 

[Ceirwan]

Anybody got any good ideas how to remove baked on mud on the bottom of my catamaran.
I've used scrappers, hot soapy water. and an orbital sander with a scotch bright pad attached( which works okish but very heavy in the hands!)
Thanks
Russ

My first boat a trailer sailer had been kept in a mudberth without any antifouling for years, then when I bought her she'd been sat out for more years. The mud was absolutely baked on, I tried any number of ways. The only one that worked for me (And I doubt you'll like this solution) was wet and dry (I imagine that a power sander would work better, but I couldn't afford one back then).

Literally around 12 hours of wet and dry sanding to get it all of. Literally the smoothest I have ever got the bottom on any yacht as well!