Pressure washing the antifouling paint on sailboats
Posted By RichC on July 5, 2017
Just wanted to archive some Practical Sailor “Waypoints” advice excerpted from Renee D. Petrillo’s A Sail of Two Idiots … good to remember about powerwashing.
… we had a narrow canal to squeeze through to reach the Travelift. Then we were strapped into it and hoisted out of the water. We then made one of the most expensive mistakes ever. We were asked if we wanted the bottom pressure-washed or to just give it a quick rinse. Because Americans often think that more is better, we went for the most powerful option. Our bottom paint had held up well from the Bahamas application, but with the pressure-washing, we watched $3,500 of liquid gold (or blue antifouling paint, in this case) wash into the boatyard. The boat bottom was now nice and clean, all right, but it would need repainting. You do not want to make this mistake.
Lesson 91: Just Say “No!” If your bottom looks good, and there’s a lot of antifouling paint on it, when someone asks if you want it pressure washed – say it with me now – “NO!!!!!” A light washing with a garden hose will do just nicely, thank you.
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