Hullmate/Brizo hull cleaning system review...

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mattnj

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I bought a hullmate/brizo at the weekend and for anyone wanting to know what they are like, i think it is great....

Cleaned the hull in about 40mins (can do it in 25 next time), and not really any effort, just waving a pole around from the pontoon, a really quality bit of kit, well made, works well, very impressed, a clean hull all year round may well be possible now!

No connection just a happy customer.
 
I just looked it up as I'd never heard of it before.

Pleased to hear it works well, and although it does look quite good it appears to be just a fancy sponge held in a buoyant holder on a pole? For which £235 seems rather a lot to pay?

Or am I missing something?:confused:

(Pardon my cynical approach)
 
it is kind of that, but there is way more to it, it is large in real life and the pole is VERY long and solid....you need to see one in the flesh and use one....£210 is a bit on the pricey side, but it makes an impossible job a piece of p!ss... I bought it and have a clean hull 30mins later, and i can have a clean one whenever i fancy it next....

I guess its a bit like saying, my spinaker is "just" a bit of cloth and was a rip off at £1000 :-) oh and the boat is "just" a bit of fiberglass :-)
 
Three of us boatowners in the same marina got together and bought a Brizzo.I have traditional antifoul and use the soft head and the others have Coppercoat and use the harder sponge.It does actually work.You do have to be careful not to get the head between the shaft and the hull.I got it stuck.The others have saildrives .We looked at it at LIBS.I agree it is more than a sponge on a handle.It is well engineered.
 
I bought one at the London Boat show, I was very sceptical but reckoned two lifts would pay for it. My boat was anti fouled last September and started fouling badly with weed growing on the boat around Feb this year, and was not lifted over winter. I used the Brizo 4 times before lifting last month, picture shows boat on lift, I was seriously impressed at how evenly I had managed to clean it, only fouling was hanging off the bottom of the keel.

Pictures are before pressure wash, hull had slime on it but no weed, last time I used the Brizzo, before lifting was about 3 weeks earlier and hull had weed on the waterline. A/F was blakes titan but changed to Micron Extra this time in the hope it lasts longer. Lines on keel are where the mullet have been grazing.

Used the soft foam on Brizzo and did not notice it removing any a/f as when washing the foam out no black came off it.

Prop not too bad but had used propshield on it which I suspected helped a little, had some left so put that back on after cleanup.
 
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Is there anything special about the sponge itself? I gather you get two sponges with it, soft and hard, they look quite like closed cell foam rubber to me, is that right?

Reading the Hullmate website they say a sponge lasts a season. How much are replacement sponges?
 
Trundlebug said:
Is there anything special about the sponge itself? I gather you get two sponges with it, soft and hard, they look quite like closed cell foam rubber to me, is that right?

Reading the Hullmate website they say a sponge lasts a season. How much are replacement sponges?
Click to expand...

£19
 
Its great!

I bought one of these too, bought it off their website. It really does work! Much bigger than I was expecting.
I reckon I've made my money back on the purchase already. You can see the increase in speed, immediately after cleaning.
Would recommend it to anyone.:)
 
I bought one second hand ( used once only etc)

Yup it is very good, though as ever, I have ideas on 'improving it' lol

Better by far than a sponge on a diver( me) or last years brush on a long stick.

The only bore is having to turn the boat round, haven't tried it from the dinghy yet.

Watch out for the anode bolts or, say, the rope cutter on your prop

I also 'tested' their customer support, v quick to reply.
 
Blueboatman said:
I bought one second hand ( used once only etc)

Yup it is very good, though as ever, I have ideas on 'improving it' lol

Better by far than a sponge on a diver( me) or last years brush on a long stick.

The only bore is having to turn the boat round, haven't tried it from the dinghy yet.

Watch out for the anode bolts or, say, the rope cutter on your prop

I also 'tested' their customer support, v quick to reply.
Click to expand...

the original designer comes form Ipswich.
the new producers came on here @ hamfistedly tried to promote the Brizo (stooped name ) they were banned
 
Oh thats good to know. They seem very good. I ordered my unit at 10pm one Sunday night and had it on my doorstep Tuesday morning. Very impressive.

I've been doing mine when filling up with water or fuel. Used the tender too but that was easier with two people, good work out though, lol!

You should send them your suggestions, they might be interested in them.
 
I use one of those extending handle window cleaning things ... wiper blade type rubber one side and soft stuff the other side ... obviously not as efficient as a Brizo but it does work .... and cost 12 quid.
 
mattnj said:
You need to see one and use one, that's like saying what does a mainsail do that a bedsheet wouldn't.
Click to expand...

I can at least outline some differences between a bedsheet and a mainsail - cut to a three-dimensional shape, stable cloth that holds that shape, does not shrink, stretch, or rot, fittings to fasten it to mast and boom, fittings for halyards and reefing lines, etc etc etc.

I would be curious to hear what concrete features the Brizo has over any other brush or mop with a long handle and a bit of buoyancy.

Pete
 
Well, all I can say is that it's extremely well built. The stainless Steel pole is extendable and at full extend, there is no give in it whatsoever. It's way better than the starbrite poles I've had, they used to break halfway through a season. This thing gives no bend at all.

As for the head, it does what it says. One swipe down the hull and it's clean. I've done it one handed.

But I guess you pay your money and take your choice. I prefer to pay a small
Premium for something that will last. If I think about the cost of my boat against the cost of the brizo, it's not worth worrying about. The guy I saw using one loved it and that's why I got it.

As someone who has trouble wiring a plug, this is no hassle, out of the box and in use within 2 minutes.
 
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