Is white self amalgamating tape more prone to UV than black?

tudorsailor

tudorsailor

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I plan to wrap the foot of the mast with self amalgamating tape to try and make it waterproof (the mast is keel stepped, so goes through the roof).. The choice is between standard plumbers black self amalgamating tape and the white "marine" tape that I currently use around the rigging screws made by PSP

Does anyone have any thoughts as to which tape I should use? Is black more uv resistant? Is builders tape the same as the PSP but without the marine premium?

Thanks

TudorSailor
 
When I worked for BT years ago engineering instructions were that self amalgamating tape used outside had to be bound around with PVC tape
 
This item from Force 4 may be the answer...it'd cover the join which you're using tape to fill, so the tape wouldn't see any UV. Looks better than lots overlapping greying tape, too...

480057.jpg


About £20. Find it here: http://www.force4.co.uk/force-4-universal-mast-boot-44-5-to-78-7cm.html#.VdbkTbJViko
 
I have a mast boot applied by a rigger. In spite of this being properly applied and supposedly sealed, I still get a trickle of water down the mast into the saloon whenever there is heavy rain. So I plan to seal the mast boot. The tape would be covered by a white gaiter that is cosmetic

TS
 
Presumably the mast-boot has to be sealed with something like Sikaflex 291i, before it will be properly weatherproof? Sorry, I thought that went without saying.
 
I have had occasion to sail on a Beneteau 31.7 which used to belong to my club. Bailing out a bucketful of water was customary after a few hours of beating to windward in rainy weather. Even though there was a mast-boot, the problem was caused by the water coming down the mast slot. It was never fixed, as, being a sailing school boat it never got the kind of TLC that a privately owned one would. I think you might try injecting some sealant into the slot, just above where you intend to wrap it, and before it dries completely, fashion a small lip, or beak, to deflect outwards the water coming down the slot. A small amount applied into the slot just where the mast goes through the deck would also help. Some water will inevitably find its way inside the mast through various openings aloft and end up in your bilge. There is nothing you can do about this except sponge it out from time to time.
 
tudorsailor said:
I have a mast boot applied by a rigger. In spite of this being properly applied and supposedly sealed, I still get a trickle of water down the mast into the saloon whenever there is heavy rain. So I plan to seal the mast boot. The tape would be covered by a white gaiter that is cosmetic

TS
Click to expand...

I think heat rather than UV degradation would be the issue. White tape will presumably reflect heat and slow the aging process.
But as you plan to cover it with a boot then either would seem appropriate?
 
OP - are you sure the water is in fact coming down the outside of the mast, rather than down the inside? The latter can be very difficult to prevent. It gets in where halyards enter and leave the mast, and unless there's a very well fitting plug at a suitable point in the mast (above deck level) it will find its way into the bilge.

As for the original question, it's generally the case IME that white versions of materials have the best UV resistance. (for example, I was buying UPVC cladding for a building once, and found that manufacturers would only give a decent duration guarantee for white).
 
Alan ashore said:
OP - are you sure the water is in fact coming down the outside of the mast, rather than down the inside? The latter can be very difficult to prevent. It gets in where halyards enter and leave the mast, and unless there's a very well fitting plug at a suitable point in the mast (above deck level) it will find its way into the bilge.

As for the original question, it's generally the case IME that white versions of materials have the best UV resistance. (for example, I was buying UPVC cladding for a building once, and found that manufacturers would only give a decent duration guarantee for white).
Click to expand...

I am sure that the water is coming down the outside of the mast as I can see it trickling down the part of the mast that is in the saloon! There is sometimes a puddle on the saloon floor as a result.

The current rubber boot was fitted about 4 years ago by a professional rigger in Mallorca (A+ rigging) so sealed etc. However there must be a tiny gap somewhere!

Thanks for all the input

TudorSailor
 
I used white and black self amalgamating on my bottle screws on my previous boat fro 20 years. They both seemed to last a long time.
The black "non boaty" tape such as that from Lidl usually seems thinner and narrower in section so it tend to use that on thinner wires. The white boaty stuff seems heavier so I tend to use that outside or on thicker materials.
 
I gave up using PVC tape to cover split pins and the like because it only lasts about 1-2 yrs, and now use white self-amalgamating tape, which I replace every few years after inspection.
 
Most durable I've seen yet was a inner tube from a tractor tire, with a stainless clip top and bottom. Thick, sturdy rubber, cheap, and when the standing rigging was renewed after 15 years it was still so good we re-used the same one.

The fancy schmancy high-tech version is Spartite, which is a two-component rubber kit. You build a little dam from some supplied foam and clay, then mix the components and pour it in the gap. In an hour it cures to a perfectly fitted, waterproof rubber plug, that acts both as sealant and as mast wedge. Unlike the inner tube, it costs a fortune.
 
Yngmar said:
Most durable I've seen yet was a inner tube from a tractor tire, with a stainless clip top and bottom. Thick, sturdy rubber, cheap, and when the standing rigging was renewed after 15 years it was still so good we re-used the same one.
Click to expand...
The mast boot that I have now, that is not watertight, is a lorry tyre inner tube just as you describe.
TS
 
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