Copper-Lead-or unprotected Bottom?

[trouville]

In the Med in certain places. i can name a few,there are wormes things that enjoy eating wood and live in the longditudanal capilleris. That is eats plank by plank UMMM.
Worms every where from Greece to Denmark. Should i protect my bottem?? Or just paint (protect) Leads quite easy dosent have any reaction with my Iron keel lasts for ever and must be antifouled

Copper and iron have some habitation problems,Im told they get to an understanding at some time?

What should i do? And should i use tar paper behind the lead as well???Or is that only for copper?

Why do we use tar paper? i really cant remember if ive heard the reason?

Iska the gaff cutter (30foot) left the UK for Argentina she copperd her bottem i think the skippers name was Mellville Franck????????? He use tar paper and copper

Whats best lead or copper and to tar and why??

Or of course buy a palstic boat??

 

[tcm]

Copper

To protect the hull wood, you can do as they used to do in days of olde and cover the boat in copper. Cept these days you can cover the underside of the hull in adhesive copper foil. Foil Specialists of sutton Coldfield can provide the gear. You get reels of adhesive copper, chop it up with an office guillotine so it's manageable and stick the stuff to the hull. I did this to the underside of a 76 foot powerboat. It was a sight to behold. You need a solid base to stick stuf to, and clinker no good really. It works excellently at displacement speeds, not so well at 30 knots where the edges start to lift hence i took it off. BUT the thickness is about 100microns so last for about 10 years on small sailing boats. Keep it just clear of metal parts uinder the boat, but don't worry about foaming anodes - copper is much further up the galvancis series than your anodes. I wd spray epoxy or some base layer and not worry about the copper itself sticking once you have a base layer - you can have a tugowar with the stuff it is so sticky. Overlap about 5mm to 10mm, work from the stern forwards to get as few leading edges as possible, set the waterline first, once all done wipe down with mild (eg oxalic) acid to get an oxide developing before relaunch. 76 footer took 5 days hard work with about 4000 pieces, a folkboat should take a lot less. No chance whatsover of anything penetraing the hull, and byproduct that there will zero barncles with copper oxides.

 

[trouville]

Re: Copper

I have a wooden hull. I also have a plastic IF which im presently sailing but that i took in part exchange when i sold my Hillyard to an Italian,I like the folkboat very much and wish the IF would have a better cockpit

But for a wooden boat you cannot just glue on copper foil!!! Just not on

 

[tcm]

Re: Copper

Sorry, it's perfectly possible. You mean you don't think you can. I can.

 

[trouville]

Re: Copper

Well i dont know!! im sure i could glue any foil on to the hull but given that the wood alway has far more humidity would it stick long term?
On a nice smooth plastic or cavel hull i sure it would be very simple to apply and very effective.
On a clinker hull perpaps a layer of tar paper and then the lead or copper plates tapped into shape and held on with nails would be more effective???

Where can you buy the coper foil?? i will most certainly try it as it sounds such a good idea

Could tell me where you got it and what it was called, i will try to find it nearer to the boat as imagin enough to cover ever a FB bottem would not be light transport wise Delivery prices vary widly as i found out last spring!!

Never seen anything like sticky backed copper whats it ment for?? As i say having thought about the possabilities it may well do the job even on a clinker boat providing i lay it very carfully glue wise!! Not to many tug a wars with it!!

 

[tcm]

Re: Copper

thin metals are sold as "foil" and small co called "foil specialists" (google for them) as above will sell the material.

You need a sprayed/painted base over the raw material whatever you use - so that in say 10 years you can rip the stuff off when it starts to oxidize through.

But meanwhile you'd have a proven (on small displacement boats) product with not a chance of worm penetration.

The stuff is self-adhesive with back sheet and you get one chance to applt and roll down. Stick a few shets end to end and as i said you can pull as hard as you like. It cures over 24 hours.

If you boat is clinker, though, i don't think this is a runner - the changes in profile are too small and fiddly - it can deal with general changes in surface, not small twidles and still bond well. But of course, if nails were an option (as on wood, not grp) then less problem - but i wouldn't - you want to end end with a waterproof surface and this would be hard with clinker, tho not impossible.

 

[trouville]

Re: Copper

Yes thats what i was thinking that smooting it over the lands will be very tricky as would stick where it touches.

I will try with strips of non sticky aluminium foil to see how it will go on and weather its better /possiable to put it on plank by plank and leave a lip to form on the land and top of the next plank??

The best part the stickyness is also the problem in being able to "form it"

I will certainly try great idea great product, What a pity i dont have a cavel hull boat now!!! But clinker is increadably strong !

 

[tcm]

Re: Copper

hm, aluminium is much further down the galvanic series so more likely to oxidise away.

You could try a bit of the copper and see? I'm sure they'll let you have a bit to try. Multiply LWL x beam x 1.25 and that how much area of copper you need. At foil specilists ask for Keith Thompson.

 

[trouville]

Re: Copper

Ok! What i ment was that i found "thick" thats heavy duty aluminium foil, which costs 1.50euros for 30 meters with that i would TRY just to see how the puting it on would go!! Befor trying the sticky copper

With the aluminium i can just see how it will be to handle it as it will have some resemberlence to the copper. After the practice then i will start with the copper

In any case what a wonderful thing you found!! even for those who dont want to copper their bottem, a strip of this thin sticky copper coud be used by wooden boat owners to protect the wood directly in front of the rudder as worm very often gets in there becouse of the difficulty to antifoul just there!! So once off with the rudder and long term protection!!

cant wait to get hold of some of this mirical produt for wooden boats!


I went to google and found copper foil from china! copper foil for staindglass windows! copper foil tape for gardeners anti slug device!!

What copper foil "tape" should i look for?

 

[tcm]

Re: Copper

i have used ally tape for other applications but wouldn't even bother here. It is likely much thinner and hence with much weaker adhesive (otherwise the metal wd snap when backing peeled off). There is a wide range of adhesive strengths manufacturers cd use to apply to a metal or plastic to make "sticky tape" . For this application the adehsive needs to be monster sticky - and they are. The copper sheets were so sticky that once applied it's a right pain to getem off and you have to trash that piece and start afresh. Not that the adhesive has to be uv and seawater resistant so again not sure normal ally tape will do the job or even as a test.