To antifoul or not?

[dickandjill]

Hi
I have just bought a fibreglass boat (an Arran16) which has previously been antifouled. I do not keep it in the water but launch it when we use it.
The antifouling is a bit tired and ideally needs redoing.But as the boat is not kept in the water and is used about twice a month should I redo it or should I remove it or should I just leave it as it is (a bit tatty looking)
I am unsure about removing it as it may have originally been rubbed down before antifouling.
I have a Teamac brochure and they state that an antifouled boat should not be out of the water for more than a few days before launch.Why is this?Also that the antifouling on a boat out of the water after launch will deteriorate quite quickly.I don't want to waste my money antifouling for no reason.
What should i do?
Thanks

 

[jonathankent]

If I was you, and this is purely what I would do, I wouldn't bother to antifoul... assuming you trail it and use it and take her straight back home i.e. not leave her on a mooring for some of the time.

You will find all antifouls give a maximum time from application to immersion... the one I use gives a maximum of 3 months, but it is brand dependant.

 

[alienzdive]

A minor consideration, would be the increased drag and minimal extra fuel consumption, but the minimal additional cost would be less than what would be saved by spending any money perfecting the bottom finish coat considering the ammount of use your boat gets.

 

[Spuddy]

Seems no point in antifoul the way you will use the boat. Best treat the bottom more like a vehicle - some sort of wax polish maybe so road spray wipes off easy.
Removing old antifouling ? Careful scraping on thicker bits followed by wet/dry used wet; use a mask to keep toxic particles out plus any other protection eg rubber gloves. People on here mention an antifoul stripper gel. Never tried it myself but quite pricey and several applications needed

 

[Talbot]

some antifoul has, as you observed, a very short out of water allowance, however, there are others that allow muvh longer periods, and some indefinitely. Suggest you get a different type and slap some on that allows indefinite stay.

 

[simonfraser]

if you take it out, there is no point in anti fouling the bottom

unless you are a keen racer, leave it alone, it will fall off eventually

 

[LadyInBed]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

Used as a trail / sail for short periods of time there is no point in A/F.
Dingies and most pure weekend racing boats don't A/F as they spend most of their time out of the water, as will yours.
Their hulls are highly polished, I don't suggest that you should spend hours polishing your hull, but I guess that when it has been trailed away to where ever, you will wash and rub down the hull. In time this will smooth down / rub away the old A/F.

 

[dickandjill]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

Thanks for all your advice.
I think I will just leave it as it is and wait for it to wear away.Would it be worth pressure washing it?

 

[tcm]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

well, yes if you must - tho be careful as some pressure washers at some settings can blast holes in the material itself. I wd just leave it be as seems to be the genral consensus.

 

[Searush]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

One more point; if you go on holiday with your boat & decide to leave in the water for more than a couple of weeks (fresh or salt) it will start to foul up. Won't be serious until after about 6-7 weeks or so (depends on local conditions & weather) but I found fresh water fouling to be the hardest to get off - deal with it immediately, before it dries out!

 

[Dave99]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

This is true, most antifouls have a maximum airtime, they don't keep working if the boat is out of the water. As mentioned there are 2 real options. Remove the antifoul and polish up, or remove the antifoul and put an alternative coating on the bottom such as sea-slide.

Scraping has been mentioned as a method of removing antifoul back to GRP, another option to consider would be using a chemical such as International's Interstrip or using sand blasting.

 

[vyv_cox]

Re: To anti-foul or not?

My first boat was 12 years old when I bought her. She was 29 ft long, fin keeled, but dried on every tide alongside a jetty in Fleetwood. She had never been antifouled. The previous owner took a yard brush to the hull about once per month, sufficient to keep the hull in A1 clean condition.