Shade assisted antifoul

[2copplane]

I'm quite anal about my bottom fouling. I lift every year to antifoul with micron extra. Last June we had some amazing grass like fouling that seemed to rooted right into the antifoul. Heavy scrubbing with a coarse deck brush had limited impact, grabbing it and pulling it out like hair was the most effective.
It only grows near the surface and was much worse at the stbd bow that had most sun.

It got me wondering if some form shading could be effective at preventing growth, perhaps just for those really active couple of months.

Maybe an 18" strip of heavy duty tarp, with a float stitched in the top edge and weights in the bottom- I'm sure someone must have tried it?

It would probably just be a highly effective incubator for beasties.

 

[Alpha22]

I moor alongside a landing stage so one side of my hull is in almost darkness. I am also on fresh water so far fewer nasties.
After a year, the dark side has almost no perceptible growth of anything other than some calcium build up. The other side is always green and slimy with a fair amount of hairy growth.

Perhaps if you only moor up at night??

 

[oldbilbo]

I'm quite anal about my bottom fouling.

TMI, methinks....

 

[simonfraser]

Use black AF

 

[TradewindSailor]

It's already out there and on several moorings and berths around the Sydney area ..... just one example:
http://www.boatbath.co/newtoboatbaths.html

I have no idea how effective it is though ....

 

[William_H]

The boat bag idea has much merit and especially good for a mobo. It is more difficult witha keel boat to get the bag pulled up under the stern. My theory is that it works in 2 ways. Fristly to exclude light so stopping growth but also to concentrate any a/f coming off the old a/f paint. Some people I believe put swimming pool chlorine into the water in the bag to really stop growth. I fine idea if you are willing to accept the difficulties of fitting the boa tin the bag or the bag around the boat. I have tried it with just an old tarpolin pulled up with ropes all around. But I am afraid I use my boat far too much to want torefit after each trip.
OP might like to try a strip of poly tarp hung from the gunwhale with weight on the bottom. But expect tthe tarp to get pretty grubby. good luck olewill

 

[TradewindSailor]

Shading does change the type of fouling that is prominent. I have a catamaran and the areas of the hulls shaded by the platform does tend to stop, or at least reduce, the growth of green weed; but I can't say that there is a noticeable effect on the amount of scraping and scrubbing I have to do.

 

[alan_d]

Shading does change the type of fouling that is prominent.

I think "change" rather than "prevent" is important. Various kinds of weed and algae that require light will be inhibited, but mussels, barnacles and other crustaceans will not.