alexincornwall
Well-Known Member
Happy New Year all. There are many, many searchable threads here so please excuse my apparent laziness if this has been covered previously - optimistically I’m hoping for a one thread DIY guide!
As relatively new owners of a ’99 Dufour 32, this is the first year that the boat has been lifted from the water and it now sits in its cradle awaiting hours/days/weeks of TLC. I’d like to attend to all of the maintenance tasks myself but having never previously tackled anything like this, it all looks a bit daunting at this stage. I have various questions relating to all aspects of the hull exterior and would be grateful for some advice from experienced handy men/women who might be able to help me along.
Top sides - The boat’s topsides have taken on a rather dull and stained appearance and I’d really like to revive this to generate a bit of shine. I’d planned on applying some oxalic acid (thinking Starbrite hull cleaner), and then spending a bit of time with some kind of rubbing compound (akin to T-cutting a car), followed by a general GRP polish. I was also considering investing in an orbital machine polisher to get the job done faster. Does anybody have an opinion on my suggested methods, materials and tools here?
Boot topping - This is a bit of an issue. The boat is generally detailed in a uniform navy throughout, but currently sports an unpleasant looking pale blue boot topping. The last owner commented against a self adhesive vinyl boot line and appears to have favoured paint (I didn’t think to ask why). It looks to be a self eroding antifoul (I can rub it off with my finger). They have then applied a white paint to the small stripe between the boot topping and the line of the main antifoul (this appears to be a hard paint). Personally, I’d prefer a straight forward vinyl boot topping, but can anybody advise on this, or why the previous owner seemed dead against this? I’m a bit concerned about adhesion over the existing (suspected antifoul) paint. If I were to paint again, should I be looking for another antifoul (navy this time!)? If the vinyl seems a better option, can anybody recommend a tried and tested supplier and any application tips (I was considering the use of a hairdryer for more flexible application))?
Main antifoul - The boat sits on a pontoon at Mylor (Cornwall) and I was going to opt for 5 litres of Seajet Shogun 033. Will this be sufficient for two coats on a 32 footer? I’m hoping for two years of protection - unrealistic? I understand that the boat was sand blasted by the last owner before the previous application of one coat, so it looks to me that there won’t really be any scraping required, although there are some white patches showing so I was going to apply a primer to those areas; Hempel Underwater Primer. I’m fairly sure that the application won’t cause me too many issues but can anybody suggest from experience how long it will take to apply the two coats? Also, and I suspect this is a fairly witless question, but what do you guys generally do where the hull is obscured by the cradle pads and at the lower extremities of the keel? Finally, is there any prop treatment that you would suggest, or should that just be left as it is?
I appreciate I’m asking a lot of questions here so many thanks in advance for any guidance!
As relatively new owners of a ’99 Dufour 32, this is the first year that the boat has been lifted from the water and it now sits in its cradle awaiting hours/days/weeks of TLC. I’d like to attend to all of the maintenance tasks myself but having never previously tackled anything like this, it all looks a bit daunting at this stage. I have various questions relating to all aspects of the hull exterior and would be grateful for some advice from experienced handy men/women who might be able to help me along.
Top sides - The boat’s topsides have taken on a rather dull and stained appearance and I’d really like to revive this to generate a bit of shine. I’d planned on applying some oxalic acid (thinking Starbrite hull cleaner), and then spending a bit of time with some kind of rubbing compound (akin to T-cutting a car), followed by a general GRP polish. I was also considering investing in an orbital machine polisher to get the job done faster. Does anybody have an opinion on my suggested methods, materials and tools here?
Boot topping - This is a bit of an issue. The boat is generally detailed in a uniform navy throughout, but currently sports an unpleasant looking pale blue boot topping. The last owner commented against a self adhesive vinyl boot line and appears to have favoured paint (I didn’t think to ask why). It looks to be a self eroding antifoul (I can rub it off with my finger). They have then applied a white paint to the small stripe between the boot topping and the line of the main antifoul (this appears to be a hard paint). Personally, I’d prefer a straight forward vinyl boot topping, but can anybody advise on this, or why the previous owner seemed dead against this? I’m a bit concerned about adhesion over the existing (suspected antifoul) paint. If I were to paint again, should I be looking for another antifoul (navy this time!)? If the vinyl seems a better option, can anybody recommend a tried and tested supplier and any application tips (I was considering the use of a hairdryer for more flexible application))?
Main antifoul - The boat sits on a pontoon at Mylor (Cornwall) and I was going to opt for 5 litres of Seajet Shogun 033. Will this be sufficient for two coats on a 32 footer? I’m hoping for two years of protection - unrealistic? I understand that the boat was sand blasted by the last owner before the previous application of one coat, so it looks to me that there won’t really be any scraping required, although there are some white patches showing so I was going to apply a primer to those areas; Hempel Underwater Primer. I’m fairly sure that the application won’t cause me too many issues but can anybody suggest from experience how long it will take to apply the two coats? Also, and I suspect this is a fairly witless question, but what do you guys generally do where the hull is obscured by the cradle pads and at the lower extremities of the keel? Finally, is there any prop treatment that you would suggest, or should that just be left as it is?
I appreciate I’m asking a lot of questions here so many thanks in advance for any guidance!
