Hull Cleaning while afloat - Brizo

[bats]

Wonder if it is possible to find a group of 4 or 5 people in the Plymouth area who would like to share in the cost of buying a Brizo hull cleaner.

http://www.hullmate.com

I am happy to coordinate the purchase and arrange for storage of the cleaner in Plymouth.

I was able to see this gadget in action recently on a racing boat and the cleaning action was pretty impressive. Obviously it's not going to get in between twin keels but it would suit a lot of boats and may avoid a Summer haulout.

Hull cleaning is not something that is needed every week and this lends itself to the shared cost idea.

Does anyone have experience of the device?

What do you think?

Mike

 

[nigelmercier]

If you don't get any takers, consider buying it and hiring it out.

 

[slipknot]

Or 1ltr PET coke bottle gaffer taped to the head of a broom

 

[trapezeartist]

Or 1ltr PET coke bottle gaffer taped to the head of a broom

Sadly that never works for me. The gaffer tape doesn't stick under water and broom head is at the wrong angle. I'm working on a Mk 2 though.

 

[William_H]

There ain't nothing like getting in the water with a mask and snorkel then use a piece of rag a sponge or scotchbrite depending on what is needed. Good exercise and of course usefu;l practice if you need to deal with other problems like rope around the prop.
Brizo seems to me to be just a fancy sponge on a stick. good luck olewill

 

[wiggy]

I made my own, 5ltr container tied to a bit of wood covered in carpet all joined to an old winsurf boom. Fantastic, and at the end of the season I turn the carpet over to use the rough backing to remove as much AF as possible.

 

[tjbrace]

I bought a brizo 2 years ago. It gets me by but not great. On the Blackwater the water is very murky and you can't see the results of the scrubbing at all. Probably ok with crystal clear water though.

 

[MoodySabre]

I have one and thought it did a good job. No lift out last winter/ spring so already saved twice the cost. Boat seems to go as fast as usual. I in a marina so little weed and usually no barnacles just slime.

 

[tudorsailor]

When you use the Brizo on a hull that has been anti-fouled is there not a cloud of antifoul in the water that will upset the marina and the environmentalists?
In fact will you not quickly scrub off your anti-foul?

I guess useful for a racing hull that is polished

TudorSailor

 

[MoodySabre]

When you use the Brizo on a hull that has been anti-fouled is there not a cloud of antifoul in the water that will upset the marina and the environmentalists?
In fact will you not quickly scrub off your anti-foul?

I guess useful for a racing hull that is polished

TudorSailor

The Brizo comes with two types of sponge. A hard on for hard AF and a soft one for eroding AF. I use eroding. I could see the slime coming off but there was no AF in the water or on the soft sponge.

 

[Blueboatman]

What kills them is catching the sponge on say anode bolts or prop tips. So if you lend one out, factor this in perhaps..

Blinding bit of kit IME, price quickly forgotten ( like all good kit). when I hauled recently after two years I didn't need to wash off the hull at all

Cloudy water? just be methodical and 'know' or learn your profile..

 

[Blackfeather]

200 quid for a squeegee seems a bit steep.

 

[chinita]

200 quid for a squeegee seems a bit steep.

The quality remains long after the price has been forgotten.

Carry on, all the squeegie and broom handle coke bottle merchants. We all need a good laugh from time to time.

 

[johnphilip]

What kills them is catching the sponge on say anode bolts or prop tips. So if you lend one out, factor this in perhaps..

Blinding bit of kit IME, price quickly forgotten ( like all good kit). when I hauled recently after two years I didn't need to wash off the hull at all

Cloudy water? just be methodical and 'know' or learn your profile..

Share the Brizo with a few others but each owner has their own sponge head, Simples.
( I meant for the Brizo, not implying yotties are soft in the head )

 

[Blueboatman]

Perfect. Why didn't I think of that?

To the DIYers ( snd I am as good as any at that game)...because this overpriced floormop has a cranked end, has a three piece adjustable length strudy handle that stows, because the float chamber is floodable to adjust the buoyancy, because it is wide, because the sponge wraps right round the end.. there are a lot of useful, extremely obvious and simple but useful details in the bought item, none of which I would wish to forsake when building an improved mousetrap for n'umpence..

 

[PeterR]

I have had the precursor to the Brizo (the Hull Maid) for about 20 years. The handle is the same but the floatation chamber is different. I find that just using foam on the head does not really work adequately once there is any more than just a slight build up of slime. I have found it best to tape 3 large scouring pads to the floatation head over the area in contact with the hull. From mid June I weekly alternate which way I come into the berth so that I can reach one side to scrub. i.e the equivalent of a fortnightly scrub. This only takes a few minutes and keeps the hull clean throughout the season. The week before I lift out I give it a really thorough scrub with the result that there is only a minimal amount of antifouling left and no build up of old antifouling to cause problems.

I assume the Brizo is just as good if not even better - in which case I highly recommend it.