Proper newbie maintenance questions...

[Psycloud]

Wife seems to be getting hung up on a few things so thought I'd ask the long term boaters what they think:

 

1) Buttons/Rope fenders: Ours are going green - is this anything to be concerned about, i.e. should we be cleaning them with some kind of cleaner or just leave them be?

 

2) Washing the paintwork with canal water and a soft broom. Personally I don't think this is ideal and that the canal water isn't going to do anything to improve the paintwork - what do others do?

 

3) There's a few scrapes on the blacking at the bow where we or the previous owner have grazed the concrete kerbs under the bridges. Should we be touching this up or leave it until next full blacking?

 

Thanks

 

David

Edited October 21, 2012 by Psycloud

[Guest]

My advice would be to keep on top of scrapes in the blacking - I wish we had.

 

We normally wash our boat with canal water - it seems illogical to me to use piped water to wash such a large object that's floating on - errrr water. It's done no harm that I can see to our paint (the same can't be said of the offside trees and bushes on the T&M)

 

Fenders - if it bothers you some anti mould cleaner should do it.

Edited October 21, 2012 by The Dog House

[Tony Brooks]

Wife seems to be getting hung up on a few things so thought I'd ask the long term boaters what they think:

 

1) Buttons/Rope fenders: Ours are going green - is this anything to be concerned about, i.e. should we be cleaning them with some kind of cleaner or just leave them be?

 

2) Washing the paintwork with canal water and a soft broom. Personally I don't think this is ideal and that the canal water isn't going to do anything to improve the paintwork - what do others do?

 

3) There's a few scrapes on the blacking at the bow where we or the previous owner have grazed the concrete kerbs under the bridges. Should we be touching this up or leave it until next full blacking?

 

Thanks

 

David

 

 

Traditionally fenders were given a good dose of creosote now and again but thats hard to get now and I am not sure how synthetic rope would take to it. One also has to think about possible pollution. I suspect I would simply dunk it in bath of strong bleach solution and give it a good scrub. That should kill and remove the bulk of the algae. You might consider letting it dry and the give it a dose of wood/fence treatment but please let that dry before hanging it back over the water.

 

As long as the canal is not polluted with visible oil etc. I can not see that doing as you are ding will do much harm, but I would give it a good wax polish (no silicons please) two or three times a year. I would also try to wash down early in the day before boats have stirred the silt up. In summer I have been known to apply "wash & wax" during rain so I do not have to rinse and leather the boat.

 

Either should be fine. I find a cheap long handled radiator brush is good for this job and can be thrown away afterwards. Keep and eye on Lidle/Alde for their special offers.

[dmr]

I just pressure wash the fenders every other year when we are pressure washing the boat before blacking.

 

Canal water should be OK, don't do it on a really dirty canal/near a chemical factory/River Weaver etc.

You could always do a final quick rinse with tap water and squeegy it off before putting the polish on.

 

Boats do get scraped at the front, don't worry about it. They are made of good steel that only rusts very very slowly, not like cars!

You could touch it up once a twice a year to keep the boat looking good, though fresh blacking is much blacker than old blacking.

Next time you black, if you have any left over, decant it into a couple of jam jars to patch up later, and as said above, get some cheapo throwaway brushes for this.

 

..........Dave

[RobinJ]

Wife seems to be getting hung up on a few things so thought I'd ask the long term boaters what they think:

 

1) Buttons/Rope fenders: Ours are going green - is this anything to be concerned about, i.e. should we be cleaning them with some kind of cleaner or just leave them be?

I wipe the dipstick on them and every opportunity (like adjusting them) wash or treat them with whatever is to hand (parafin/turps etc.). Be careful with bleach and or anything that could help rot the core (eg carpet)!

2) Washing the paintwork with canal water and a soft broom. Personally I don't think this is ideal and that the canal water isn't going to do anything to improve the paintwork - what do others do?

Canal water isn't much different to rainwater, if you let it dry it leaves stuff behind, so wipe it off. You can tell if the paint is ready for something different when the water stops running off or forming globules and simply wets the surface.

3) There's a few scrapes on the blacking at the bow where we or the previous owner have grazed the concrete kerbs under the bridges. Should we be touching this up or leave it until next full blacking?

Scrapes will rust up to a point then stop once a film is formed, so provided they are above or below the waterline, it doesn't really matter, they will not get much worse by the time your out for blacking. Problem is those that keep getting wet and dry on the waterline, thye will continue to rust, so treat them with something as soon as possible and keep an eye on them!

[BargeeSpud]

You might consider letting it dry and the give it a dose of wood/fence treatment but please let that dry before hanging it back over the water.

 

I woud add that once your preserver has dried, that you pressure wash the fenders before putting back on the boat. This should clear any residual preservative thats hasn't soaked fully into the rope. Better than seeing a pool of pollution on the canal under you fenders at the first rain, which is what happened to me when I thought mine had dried fully.

 

You can still get creosote from the likes of B&Q, although how close it is to original creosote I don't know, probably not I'd suspect.

Edited October 22, 2012 by Spuds

[Tony Brooks]

I woud add that once your preserver has dried, that you pressure wash the fenders before putting back on the boat. This should clear any residual preservative thats hasn't soaked fully into the rope. Better than seeing a pool of pollution on the canal under you fenders at the first rain, which is what happened to me when I thought mine had dried fully.

 

You can still get creosote from the likes of B&Q, although how close it is to original creosote I don't know, probably not I'd suspect.

 

 

I don't think you can. The stuff they sell to the DIY market seems to be called creocote or some such. I think you can still get genuine creosote from a supplier in the Liverpool area - I am not going to try the forum's search to find the post that gives details because I am due out.

[Guest]

A search does reveal however that people have successfully used the - creacote stuff-

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=49998&st=0&p=931575&hl=creosote&fromsearch=1entry931575

[BargeeSpud]

I don't think you can. The stuff they sell to the DIY market seems to be called creocote or some such.

Of course, you're right Tony. Just checked a container I have in the shed & it is indeed called Creocote, an oil based timber treatment, made by a company called Bartoline. Its constituents include Slovent Naphtha (petroleum), Heavy Aromatic Diphenyl, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, Dicyclopentadiene & Naphthaline. Quite a heady brew!

Edited October 22, 2012 by Spuds

[Wild Is The Wind]

The chandlery at Middlesex & Herts creosote their new fenders free of charge if required

[Boat&Bikes]

I use a spray solution of Jeyes fluid to kill the mold on fenders,it works well and according to the label is ok to go into the water.Having said this i spray sparingly so as to avoid much spilling into the canal.

[BargeeSpud]

The chandlery at Middlesex & Herts creosote their new fenders free of charge if required

I'd still pressure wash before attaching to the boat.

 

I use a spray solution of Jeyes fluid to kill the mold on fenders,it works well and according to the label is ok to go into the water.Having said this i spray sparingly so as to avoid much spilling into the canal.

A good thing to do & very concientious.

Edited October 22, 2012 by Spuds

[Proper Job]

I leave the moss be.....

 

Gardening starts when the grass sprouts

[BargeeSpud]

The chandlery at Middlesex & Herts creosote their new fenders free of charge if required

Goodness! You can get something from Kevin for FREE!!!??

 

I'm moored just up from that yard, so I see your boat when we walk the dogs down towards Hemel on a Sunday, occasionaly.

[Wild Is The Wind]

Goodness! You can get something from Kevin for FREE!!!??

 

I'm moored just up from that yard, so I see your boat when we walk the dogs down towards Hemel on a Sunday, occasionaly.

 

 

It must be a similar boat Spuds, haven't been up that way since April.

[BargeeSpud]

It must be a similar boat Spuds, haven't been up that way since April.

Sorry, assumed that because there is a 60' Viking shell being fitted out there, that it must be yours.

Edited October 23, 2012 by Spuds