[Rhodes22-list] boat lift and bottom repair update

Fri Jul 11 22:25:01 EDT 2014

I have been putting my boat lift to good use the last week. I am stripping
the bottom paint, which is a miserable job under any circumstance but being
able to do so while sitting on a bar stool makes is immeasurably more
comfortable. I used copious amounts of "safe" paint remover (West Marine)
and a carbon blade scraper (Sandvic) to get most of the paint off. Regular
steel bladed paint scrapers are almost useless. I still have to go at it
with sandpaper to remove the last 10%. 

The paint remover will dry faster than it will soften the paint in 80 degree
weather. When it dries it stops working and you then have to remove the hard
paint remover. The best solution I found was to coat the bottom in sections
of about 4' and then cover it with plastic film. Heavy film (6 mil) falls
off with its own weight while 2 mil stuff stays in place. With the plastic
you can leave it to work for well over 24 hours. I had to do this at least 3
times to get to the point where I will sand. It is a totally dirty,
stinking, exhausting job. My arms were dropping off after the first hour -
and there were at least 20 hours after that to really make me miserable.

In removing the paint I have found lots of blisters which I assume are
osmotic blisters. Most a quite small and none have any fluid or space behind
them. In some areas the gelcoat has dozens of mini blisters within a patch
of about 6 square inches. Has anyone seen this?  I expect that the
blistering is worse than it looks as the boat has been out of the water for
over three years. Has anyone tackled this problem with their boat?

After I grind out the blisters and fix with epoxy I intend to put on
multiple epoxy barrier coats. 

I plan to raise the waterline by 2" as some of the blisters are above the
current waterline. My boat seemed to sit stern down as the actual waterline
was higher than the painted waterline. Of course that could be from weight
in the stern but I don't think I have anything there that you would not
expect to find such as the motor. I want to make sure that any part of the
hull that sits below water has the epoxy protection so I am adjusting the
waterline to something just above where the boat actually rests in the
water.

Finding the new waterline can be a difficult task but by having the front
and rear slings on the lift operating independently with chain hoists I am
able to level the boat quite easily fore and aft. I then used my rotary
laser level ($60 at Home Depot) first to align with the existing waterline
and then cranked it up 2" to locate the new line. This seemed to work pretty
well and I am happy that the lines on the port and starboard meet perfectly
at the bow and in the same plane at the transom. 

I discovered that the original lines were not located in the same place port
and starboard and where they meet the transom were not in the same plane so
that the waterline across the transom was not level. I probably never
noticed before as boats are always listing anyway but when it comes to
locating a new line that difference can be a real pain. The lines seemed to
go off for the last 3 feet at the stern so I was able to use the rest of the
boat to align the rotary laser with the existing waterline, crank up the
level 2" and then take the lines trough at the stern. 

BTW, I discovered that if you want to raise the waterline exactly 2" and
have it work out evenly on both sides, you can't just measure up 2" from the
old line. If you measure up on both sides at exactly the same place it might
come out the same on both sides but it definitely will not be exactly 2". To
get that right I dropped a ruler vertically at the side of the boat and
aligned the 2" mark with the laser and then marked the new position where
the ruler end touched the hull. I then used the new mark to align the rotary
laser to and from there marked the rest of the hull. This is definitely a
summer job as the laser light in these armature tools is quite weak for
outdoor use and the line cannot be seen until dusk. You can rent commercial
units that are much brighter but I already had the unit from when I
installed a suspended ceiling.

Once the paint is completely removed, blisters filled and the hull faired
and ready for epoxy I will tackle the repair of the outside of the keel.
Finally, I will try to get access to the inside of the keel with a view to
removing and replacing ballast and making structural repairs to the keel
from the inside. All that depends on what I actually find inside the keel
and whether it is practical or even possible to remove what is there.

These jobs just get worse.

Graham 

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of The Rhodes 22 Email
List
Sent: July-11-14 8:39 PM
To: 'The Rhodes 22 Email List'
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Motor winch

One option also is to purchase one of these things and wire it into your
winch.  At only 23.00 + shipping, it is a really inexpensive solution.

http://www.amazon.com/Pilot-Performance-Lighting-PL-SW29-Wireless/dp/B000BRJ
F62/ref=sr_1_1?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1333130375&sr=1-1

James

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of The Rhodes 22 Email
List
Sent: Friday, July 11, 2014 7:04 PM
To: The Rhodes 22 Email List
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Motor winch

Does anyone have an idea of how long to expect the remotes to work? Stan I
don't know if this is a newer feature on the Rhodes and no one has prolonged
experience or if the remotes last for years. 

John Waldhausen
Sent from my iPad

> On Jul 11, 2014, at 2:54 PM, The Rhodes 22 Email List
<rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> wrote:
> 
> I have the Chicago Electric Power Tools Model 95912 12 volt electric 
> winch from Harbor Freight and have searched far and wide for a new 
> remote... no luck. Stan said he has no replacement. I ended up buying 
> what may have been the last winch on the market from an ebay seller. I 
> figured if I lose my remote I can just install the new winch (which 
> also came with a remote). I tested the new remote with my current 
> winch and it doesn't work so I assume each remote came with a code 
> matched
to its specific winch.
> 
> You could consider installing a wired winch remote. I believe I saw 
> explanations on how to do this somewhere on the Internet. Good luck.
> 
> PS: I keep a Schaefer BoomVang Kit on board that I could quickly 
> install between the stern rail and the motor in case I drop my remote 
> overboard or my winch motor quits.
> 
> Geoff
> 
> 
> On Fri, Jul 11, 2014 at 4:16 PM, The Rhodes 22 Email List < 
> rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> wrote:
> 
>> Dear all
>> I have a Rhodes with the Chicago power tools remote control winch to 
>> raise and lower the motor. It comes from Harbor freight. I have 
>> searched both company websites to find a replacement remote. I cannot 
>> find one. ( my original works but is corroding) does anyone know 
>> where to obtain a replacement?
>> 
>> John Waldhausen
>> Bainbridge island
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