Bimini Babe

All done, boat went back in on Friday. Scraped it back, blasted it with a heat gun (didn't have time for the full dehumidifier treatment - or a dehumidifier for that matter), soacked 4 coats of everdure in followed by 3 coats of resin, then paint. It aint pretty, but by god it's waterproof!

Hi Wheels, sadly it looks so. Tried to dry out the keel floor and paint over it a couple of years ago (knowing no better as I did at the time) and of course the paint has cracked and peeled, leaving the wood open to moisture again. So this time I am determined to do it properly. Sadly though ethylene glycol seems to have a hard time penetrating epoxy or urethane paints (which of course I painted my bilge with), so I'm going to have to scrape it all off again I think. Plus the wood under the paint is still wet, while the exposed wood has now dried out after a couple of weeks on the hard with he

Thanks Wheels, read some interesting things about it over the weekend. Also interesting to read that those expensive 'penetrating' epoxies (Everdure, CPES, etc) actually don't seem to work as well as plain old bog standard epoxy resin. In case you're interested.... http://www.boatdesign.net/wiki/MaterialsForBoatbuilding#PRESERVING_WOOD_AGAINST_DETERIORATION http://www.angelfire.com/nc3/davecarnell/rot.html http://www.storerboatplans.com/wp/boat-building/materials/plywood/qa-epoxy-preservatives-that-soak-into-the-wood-cpes-everdure/

Hi folks, anyone know where I can buy pure ethlyene glycol (i.e. not anti-freeze)? I've read it's the business for dry rot in boats - kills the beasties and opens up the wood's 'pores' so to speak, making it more receptive to epoxy. Wouldn't have the first clue where to buy it though.

Lived on her last year in and out of marinas to save a bit of cash for cruising next year and beyond...

Read Beth Leonard's 'Voyager's Handbook'. Excellent planning information. You can get older versions much cheaper than this too, if you don't mind some of the specifics being a bit out of date. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Voyagers-Handbook-Essential-Bluewater-Cruising/dp/0713684771/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309076175&sr=8-1

Sounds a bit conspiracy-theory-esque to me. Not that I doubt your sources of course, it may well be true. But these days it's really impossible to completely protect your privacy, so I don't think it's even worth worrying about. Bet you still swipe your Onecard every time you shop?

It's not an encroachment on personal freedom until someone utilises it as such. Lots of new technology these days could potentially be used to encroach on our freedoms and privacy - but we don't blame the technology. Personally I think it's great - and a triumph that it's so accessibly cheap! GPS microchips in children - now that's a different story...

What do you mean personal freedom AC? I thought these units were for tracking your property? Surely your car isn't going to complain about its human rights being violated because you're tracking its every move??!

Wow! Thanks TL! Looking forward to more details...

DR I make a point never to get involved in a marital dispute - there are no winners. Except maybe the bird with the free cat!!! Seriously though, I feel for ya man. (No, not you DR, the guy with the missing cat.) My ma just had a similar thing happen to her. She and the Mr parted, he was gonna buy her out and then... OH! The boat has disappeared. WTF??? My only adviceould be to invest in some beefed up security. What are those tracking devices worth? The ones that text your cellphone if your boat moves? A lot, I guess.