2023 Life Logs, Day 139: Back to Boat Work
Date: Friday, May 19, 2023
Weather: Sunny, Still on the Cool Side; High 62, Low 53 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
The boat work continued today. Heather took the day off work so she could apply the first epoxy barrier coat over the bottom of the boat. In March, the bottom was soda blasted to remove all bottom paint down to the barrier coat, and the gel coat in some places. This was done because there were years and years of bottom paint on the boat and it was lumpy and peeling. Removing that paint by sanding was just not a good idea for the environment or the people doing it. Thus, the soda blasting. To build back correctly, two or three coats barrier paint have to be applied and then two or three coats of bottom paint. So today was step one, the application of the first barrier coat and I went to assist Heather.
There are eight stands that are supporting the boat, keeping it upright, and we needed to place eight more side by side to the ones that are there so we could clean and apply barrier paint under the stand supports. First, Heather had to wipe down the entire bottom with Interlux 202 Fiberglass Boat Wash, wipe that down, spray with water, wipe that down, and wait for it to dry before applying InterProtect 2000E, the barrier coat paint. The stands are very heavy, but I was able to drag the needed stands to the boat while Heather did the boat wash. She then placed the new stands next to the ones in place, unscrewed the ones holding up the boat, one by one, while replacing each one with a new one so she could wash down the areas under the base plates. Then we painted. Heather did most of the painting,
but I helped by painting the bottom of the keel and the bow of the boat, and by being Heather’s go-fer. Once done with the first coat, we had to wait for the barrier coat to dry, move the stands again, and paint the areas where the stand plates had been. This took most of the day, but the next coats will go faster because we don’t need to do the boat wash, just paint. And we now have a technique for changing the stand supports. Tomorrow Heather can’t paint because we are supposed to get rain, so we hope to start applying teak sealer to the teak on deck. The boat is still under cover, so we can do that when it is raining. The next painting day will be Sunday, and then Wednesday late afternoon. After that, Heather is out of town until the day of the boat launch, so I will have to do any painting left with whatever help I can find. Jed absolutely cannot even be near the boat when this painting is being done as he is very allergic to paints, varnishes, and any cleaners. But I am sure I can some help if needed.
I saw a photo of L’Escargot, the sailboat owned by friends Bruce and Jane Woodin, on Facebook today. She is ready to be launched and looks fantastic.
Congratulations, Woodins, on a job well done. I couldn’t help but be a bit envious, but we’ll get there. In a week and a half, Eider will be renamed Ardenna and will be ready for her launch.
