Any ways to prevent salt water from damaging an real nice fresh water Nacra. Would some oil or coating sprayed on parts do the trick? Places like the beam to hull crevice are the most obvious water traps. Petroleum might not be so good for the Sound.
Rust always wins. :ficktmich: But you can delay the victory.
I clear coated my mast and a few other metal parts. The rest I protected w marine polish and auto sealants. Once a year should do it.
Other than that, it’s the usual routine;
Wash down w/ a boat soap and lots of fresh water under pressure. A long handle car brush and one of these work great.
Don’t forget the cattrax and cradles, flush inside any tubes and all the lines.
If you really want to be anal, give it a final rinse with $alt-away. When it dries, spray moving parts w silicone, (and again before you launch). Cover w/ a good, full tarp.
Rinse and repeat, and take extra steps if you capsize. 😎
When I get home from a vaca at the beach, I wash the boat, trailer, and car completely to remove the salt spray residue. Even if the boat just sits in a parking lot at the beach, it will be covered with a sticky salty residue and will need to be washed off.
You may want to check out a new 303 "Touchless" spray-on sealant product that should help protect any non porous part of your boat. You spray on onto wet parts and the liquified glass passes through the water and bonds itself to the surface, and thereafter repels water for 6 months. Replaces waxing. Instant, easy and amazing.
https://www.goldeagle.com/product/303-touchless-sealant/
Fresh water rinse.
Buddy of mine (much nicer boat than mine) has a 30 gallon tank in the bed of their truck, a water pump that plugs into trailer hitch and uses one of those collapsible hoses and sprayer. Works like a charm at the beach.
Once home, it gets a soapy bath.
most relies have been about rinsing /washing - all good data
but if you really want to protect critical areas you need a maintenance cycle for deep clean and inspections and rust delay
I would recommend anyone who sails in salt take the beams off every few years at the least to inspect, clean and protect the ss bolts. you don't want to go years between turning your bolts
i have suffered 2 broken tangs, front and rear beam cracks, cracks in the dolphin striker and seized beam bolts that broke out the lower plate that was bedded under the hulls- all found during deep inspections and most could have been "boat ending" if not found before just one more use
when i had a bow tang fail i removed the deck lids - i found a few bulkheads that had deep cracks (as if they were glass hit by a hammer)
I also highly recommend tef-gel on bolts. it is a pretty amazing product and will extend the life of, and reduce galling and seizing
edit: i did see the rust indicators but did not find cracks in the tangs - those were discovered by failure
Edited by MN3 on Jul 15, 2019 - 12:59 PM.
MN3
MN3 wrote: most relies have been about rinsing /washing - all good data
but if you really want to protect critical areas you need a maintenance cycle for deep clean and inspections and rust delay
I would recommend anyone who sails in salt take the beams off every few years at the least to inspect, clean and protect the ss bolts. you don't want to go years between turning your bolts
i have suffered 2 broken tangs, front and rear beam cracks, cracks in the dolphin striker and seized beam bolts that broke out the lower plate that was bedded under the hulls- all found during deep inspections and most could have been "boat ending" if not found before just one more use
when i had a bow tang fail i removed the deck lids - i found a few bulkheads that had deep cracks (as if they were glass hit by a hammer)
I also highly recommend tef-gel on bolts. it is a pretty amazing product and will extend the life of, and reduce galling and seizing
Really good advice.
another great way to avoid corrosion is to use with neoprene nylon or plastic washers to separate ss parts from alum (and carbonfiber)
Edited by MN3 on Jul 23, 2019 - 08:53 AM.
MN3
MN3 on point once again! I sense your sage advice comes from years of practical experience and hard sailing. I believe a vast majority of us sail cats which are on average 10-20+ years old and by their very nature have been rode hard and put away wet. Count yourself fortunate if your cat has minimal corrosion and or your a fresh water sailor. During the off season I frequently take the boat to “parade rest” and really go after the mentioned areas.
I view it as good insurance when I out sailing far and wide where I’m on my own merit. Then again if I were leisure sailing on a protected lake in light winds, I’d might take a more manyana attitude where the only concern is slipping on Barbie’s suntan oil. Ughh!
MM3, why not use a stainless washer atop the synthetic one, for those crossbar bolts?
Would be more secure and still isolated, no?
On a lot of saltwater boats, bolts and threads are fused together. I'd take stuff apart that can be taken apart and put some Tef-gel in. Same if you install a new rivet. You don't have to do it all before the first outing in saltwater, but just start incorporating into your maintenance and tinkering. Places where large stainless objects (e.g., dolphin striker bar) meet aluminum could be considered high priority items. Similar with rudder bolts and where diamond wires join with the spreader bars.
Edited by traphappy on Jul 24, 2019 - 11:00 PM.
MM3, why not use a stainless washer atop the synthetic one, for those crossbar bolts?
Would be more secure and still isolated, no?
indeed - there are 2 stainless washers atop the neoprene ones on my outside beam bolt and a single stainless on the inside bolt (as it is sitting on a alum plate that was welded to the beam to spread out load over the compression tube inside the beam)
PS MM3=
MN3 = 
Edited by MN3 on Jul 25, 2019 - 08:20 AM.
MN3
MN3 on point once again! I sense your sage advice comes from years of practical experience and hard sailing.
Or stealing good ideas from others 🙂
but thanks for the shoutout
MN3
MN3 wrote: another great way to avoid corrosion is to use with neoprene nylon or plastic washers to separate ss parts from alum (and carbonfiber)
Edited by MN3 on Jul 23, 2019 - 08:53 AM.
FWIW, I've found that Lowes has a good selection of nylon washers. Much better than HD, for some reason.
FWIW, I've found that Lowes has a good selection of nylon washers. Much better than HD, for some reason.
Ace hardware has by far the best selection of fasteners and washers locally
unless you go to or order from pinellas fasteners
MN3
Thanks Andrew, the color of those washers had me fooled. Looked like the fiber ones we see sold locally.
The selection and quality of non-metal washers is pretty poor around here, so if anyone has a preferred web source please shout it out. I worry about the UV and salt water resistance in the ones I’m seeing, so we generally goop fittings near the waterline.
I like your navy logo almost as much as this one:
I still use tef-gel on all bolts / etc that could rust or would rust without a washer
mcmaster carr ( https://www.mcmaster.com/ ) is a fantastic resource - but i don't see these type of washers on their site / i would be happy to grab you any parts you need locally and send them via snail mail (let me clarify "any"): must be under 1000 lbs and $1000
the washers on my beams are around $ 0.50 - .60 each and so far (the ones on my 6.0) have lasted 8 years without even discoloring - however they will deform if used in a track or other non flat surface
MN3
Thanks again. Tef-Gel arrives today. 😎 I got the 2oz tub and bought some 20ml syringes. I figure those and a flux brush should work well for application in the field.
WOW! :-O That is sticky sh@t!
They should call it Tef-GOO,..
nohuhu wrote: WOW! :-O That is sticky sh@t!
They should call it Tef-GOO,..
Yes and it stays that way for years
meant to tell you: invest in gloves - this stuff will stay on you for a long time
Edited by MN3 on Jul 26, 2019 - 08:23 AM.
MN3
McMaster has fiberglass washers which are great for isolation: https://www.mcmaster.com/fiberglass-washers
Tefgel on all threads on a boat you intend to keep. Bumax 88 fasteners on parts where you can't get tef gel (water tight etc.).
Just some of the small details you get when buying a used boat from me...
Fiberglass makes sense, assuming it degrades slower in pacific marine environments than the other materials.
Rubber, glues and leather don’t last long out here on the rock. I’ve heard we have microbes that feed on them and I can confirm that surf shoes seem to decompose while your wearing them, and quality Teva sandals and Merrell boots need replacing almost every year, even when they are not used regularly.
(Hey- No jokes about my personal hygiene! It’s not just MY footwear!)
Thanks Sam.