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Conference unifix::sailing

Title:	SAILING
Notice:	Please read Note 2.* before participating in this conference
Moderator:	UNIFIX::BERENS

Created:	Wed Jul 01 1992
Last Modified:	Mon Jun 02 1997
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	2299
Total number of notes:	20724

1370.0. "Barnacle Control Methods" by HAMSTR::PACL () Mon Oct 16 1989 10:38

    Has anyone found an effective way to control barnacle growth on props? 
    My boat spent a particularly inactive summer in a quiet saltwater pond
    this summer (used only a couple of times) and last weekend I discovered
    that the prop was so fouled I couldn't even make headway (barnacles
    were one inch thick!).  I'm considering antifouling paint (won't last
    long) or wrapping a tarp around the prop (assume barnacles need moving
    water for feeding - also bottom paint leaching into this dead water
    should tend to discourage them).  Does anyone have any other thoughts?

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
1370.1	BOTTOM PAINT WORKS OK	VBV01::HJOHNSON	Hank Johnson DTN 373-5443	`Mon Oct 16 1989 11:08`	9
	I used zinc cromate primer then bottom paint and it lasted as lnog as the bottom. I have a 15" two bladed prop and rarely use more than 1800 RPM. Faster turning props would probably not last as long with this method. NOTE - Do NOT paint the zinc.
1370.2	WAX WORKS, TOO...	RAIN::WHITCOMB		`Mon Oct 16 1989 12:05`	11
	There was a letter in Practical Sailor advising that parifin wax be used to coat the prop to prevent barnacle growth. Well, I tried it and up until the middle of Aug it had worked fairly well. I say fairly well because the prop was not completely free of them but those that were there were easily snapped off using fingers. I haven't had the time nor the inclination to dive down since that time but she'll be coming out of the water in another month and I'll report back then. John W.
1370.3	"Update on parifin use"	RAIN::WHITCOMB		`Sun Nov 19 1989 17:19`	10
	My boat is out now and I'm happy to report that parifin wax does work fairly well. True there are a few on the hub of the prop but none on the blades. My prop is a three blade, 16 by 12. Since the boat has no tach I can't be sure of the rpm but I'm sure it's low speed. Maybe a higher speed prop with a higher centripedal force would have thrown more of them off. Anyway, next year I will use wax again as both price and ease of use are right! John W.
1370.4		HAMSTR::PACL		`Fri Dec 01 1989 13:13`	5
	Good ideas, thanks! I think I'll give the parafin a try and monitor results over the course of the summer. Bob
1370.5		DECC::CLAFLIN	Doug Claflin dtn 881-6355	`Thu Apr 18 1996 09:23`	11
	Same problem, many years later. Any advice on how to keep barnacles off the prop? I understand that I can put TBT on the prop. I have a similar problem with my knot meter. It is a little nylon prop. It gets all sorts of stuff growing on it. TBT would give a nice smooth finish thereby not disturbing the water flow, and my speed reading. Speed on Holiday II, what an oximoron (sic). Doug
1370.6	Try antifouling paint	GRANPA::KMAYES	Starboard!	`Fri Apr 19 1996 15:25`	14
	Doug, Last year I painted my prop with bottom paint. When I hauled the boat in December it was still coated and barnicle free. I also paited a light coat on the knotmeter wheel. It performed flawlessly (albeit, not necessarily accurately) for the season. "Labyrinth" went back in this week with prop and wheel again coated with bottom paint. I have noticed an increasingly large number of boats at my marina doing the same thing, and the yard routinely paints props unless asked not to by owners. FWIW, Keith