Rusty lifting keel

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sivota

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Hi. This is my first post from a would-be practical boat owner. We have a steel lifting keel underneath our long hulled shoal draft yacht which is pitted with rust and needs some attention... would appreciate advice on the best way to tackle the problem. Would a quick coat of the hammerite paint which binds with rust be a daft idea, or is there something special to use? Many thanks, any advice welcome
 
Welcome to the forum.

Re painting your steel lifting keel.It depends on how difficult?expensive it will be.If its fairly easy to do as part of annual maintenance then I would wire brush it and chip off any loose rust and use some red oxide metal primer or similar.

If on the other hand it is a major job with costly lifting involved you would be better to have the the keel grit blasted and painted with a 2 pack epoxy based paint. This would probably not need any attention then for several years.
 
First, welcome to the Forums!

Having messed around for several years trying all sorts of 'magic' remedies for dealing with the rust on a cast iron keel, I did the job properly last winter.

Three of us in our little boatyard agreed to get our jobs done at the same time and got a professional grit-blasting outfit in to do the work. Frankly this was one of the best things I've done. The keel was cleaned back to 'shiney' metal (slightly pitted) and then the first of two coats of epoxy applied within moments. The second was put on later the same day and all within the price. I added a couple more later on for additional protection.

A bit of fairng up, and the keel is as good as new. I know it's early days and one season 'does not a cure make' but we're very confident that this time we've nailed it! This is the way to go IMHO, especially if you can persuade others to have some work done to help share the costs.
 
that's great, thank you. the area isn't too big and I have tackled what I can see with a wire brush over the weekend, I like the sound of the second idea not needing attention for a few years as to get at the whole area of the keel we need to be hanging in the crane to winch it down (if that makes sense!)
thanks again
 
If you don't want to go to the full sandblast/epoxy, look at International Primocon. It needs about 4 coats and lasts pretty well though you'll still get the odd littke rust spot because of impurities in the metal.
 
I can agree with the others. The cheap way is the Hammerite method. But for a proper job, get rid of the rust, epoxy paint and fair in the rust pits.
 
In terms of the epoxy paint. Try Tar Epoxy. I had a cast iron lifting keel many years ago on a flat bottom boat, that was a real pain to get the keel out of when on the hard - so I didn't want to do it too often. The previous owner had used tar epoxy. After five years I inspected it, wire brushed the odd pit and replaced the tar epoxy. The leading edges and bottom where it had hit the odd obstruction were not damaged at all. I don't know if it is harder or what it is but it is tough stuff and certainly keeps the water out.
 
Just a brief warning that may not apply...
My centre plate is such a close fit that even a single coat of antifoul in a particular spot will make it stick.
Would hate you to do all that work only to find you can't raise or lower it.
Good luck.
 
I tried Hammerite on a lift-keel some years ago and it was a total disaster. I found it best to apply a vey thin coat of red oxide followed by two coats of epoxy. If it's very rusty get it shot or sand blasted.
 
thanks for all the good advice, I have a good idea where to start on at least one of the jobs on my list now! will no doubt be back with more questions over the next few weeks. thanks again
 
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