Made a bottom scraper from an old hand hoe

[sdowney717]

I rewelded the hoe onto the handle, and put a new handle on.
Then I painted with this foam spray glue.
Then I heated with a torch and it melted into this smooth rubber plastic substance.
It is feeling as a really tough coating.

I discovered this when thinking how to keep it from rusting, and was thinking glue, and I had this already.
Then I tested on boat hull, and hoe part almost came loose. It was only spot welded onto the rod.
So I needed to burn off the coating, and I saw the coating turn into this glossy tough rubber.

When I was using on hull with boat in water, it was working very well until the spot weld nearly broke loose.

I am also going to get a flat shovel. I found a nice spot in Chisman Creek where bottom is hard sand and I can bring boat into about 4 feet of water.



Before i burned it to make it smooth.


A heat gun sort of works too. It takes a lot of heat, and you heat till it stops bubbling out gas. Then it settles into a smooth flowing rubber plastic.
Water sheds off it like rainX

[ahp]

I used a hoe just as it was taken from the garden. The O'Day Daysailor grew some barnacles. I ran a line up the mast, took it over to the next finger pier and heeled the O'Day over as much as I could. I scraped one side then turned the O'Day around and did the other. It works.

[sdowney717]

I straightened out the 90* bend. Modeled after the ones I use when hauled out.
When it is straight, you can push it into the barnacle bases, its easier to part them then.
I think they have a 6 inch wide blade. I plan to buy a flat shovel.

This is the 3rd summer and got big ones growing. I went in Oct 2014.

[Bob Cleek]

A standard garden hoe with the blade straightened out to run in line with the handle is pretty much a standard implement of destruction in all the California boatyards I've been around. It works great for the "rough stuff." Then a follow up with a power washer and the job's done.

[Breakaway]

Looks good. Suggest you file the corners round so they have less tendency to gouge.

Kevin

[sdowney717]

i will price both and think which is best.
I can get a shovel with a nice grip to fit my hand on its end, which means easier for me to push.

Yes I already ground them a little so they curve.
When I used it, I easily cleaned a 3 sq ft area.

I also bought scuba mask with a snorkel.

[johngsandusky]

I use a plastic windshield ice scraper to avoid gouging. I also use a driveway sealing brush/squeegee.

[sdowney717]

Kmart has a decent hoe on sale for $5.99 if you buy online and pick up in store.
I used my torch to heat the curve and straighten it out. then painted them brown.
The steel bent rod is as thick as all I have seen. The blade is the same thickness as the $15 hoe at Lowes.
Blade is welded on all around the rod.
Without a torch to get it red hot, I doubt you can bend it straight, but you can try with a sledge hammer.


onedrive photos test
If I post these now, and then later on move them into an album, will they disappear here? No is ok, I put in a onedrive album, and they are still showing.

[Phil Y]

I like that you experiment with stuff. It's good. The next thing you will need is a Hookah, so you can stay underwater and clean the whole hull. People will give you a lot of scary warnings. But use an oil free compressor, a filter, breathing quality air hose, a purpose designed hookah regulator, and practice the same safety as for Scuba, and you'll be good. You can do the whole thing for less than $500. Less than $200 if you shop well.

[sdowney717]

I like that you experiment with stuff. It's good. The next thing you will need is a Hookah, so you can stay underwater and clean the whole hull. People will give you a lot of scary warnings. But use an oil free compressor, a filter, breathing quality air hose, a purpose designed hookah regulator, and practice the same safety as for Scuba, and you'll be good. You can do the whole thing for less than $500. Less than $200 if you shop well.

I would love t get such a thing.
I did buy a mask and snorkel off Amazon.
In Chisman creek, Seaford Va, we have lots of hard bottoms to stand on.
Plan is next weekend take boat out with the family, son in law, and while the grandkids are swimming we will clean off as much as we can. Right now the water is mid 80's.

[sdowney717]

Some feedback, back in July I got in and scraped the entire hull clean using both tools I made. The little hand scraper was very easy to use.
With the modded hoe, I was able to reach all the way to the keel.
One improvement could be using a pool noodle on the handle near the hoe end for buoyancy., to help hold it up against the hull when scraping.
It took me about 2 hours and I also washed the outer hull.

Where I was, I was standing on hard ground in Chisman Creek up to my mid chest area. Most of the growth was closer to the waterline.
The rudders were heavily barnacled. the props seemed surprisingly good. I had sprayed with green Moeller marine chromate prime both shafts and props.

when I put this boat in Oct 2014, I had coated a lot of the hull with the black PL. It is intact pretty much everywhere and survived fine being scraped.
However at the waterline near the bow and also at the stern waterline, some of the coating looks like it was torn and roughly abraded.

In that winter 2014, our marina froze solid in ice up to 4 inches thick and more and the boat was tight in the ice but moving, I wonder if the ice cut into the black PL in a few spots?

See what I mean about the ice? This was a multi week long really cold time and these pics were after things began to thaw and I was able to actually get there 2 weeks after the snow and cold.

[Ian McColgin]

I use a garden rake - the back side. Lashed to the handle and tucked behind the tines I put a small fender allowing the rig to float up against the hull, thus much recusing the work on all but the very bottom vertical parts of the keel and rudder. The back of the rake is a square section with nice firm right angles, so it scrapes off most of the slime and bangs off all the bigger stuff from barnacles to sea squirts.

The tines are not quite as long as the fender diameter so I can lash a coarse scotch pad over that side, turn the rake over after first scraping, and do in what's left of the slime.

About half the hull can be reached from the dink. Once that's gone, I find a place with some current and go at the lower portion swimming with mask, snorkel, and fins. The job is far enough away that the released critters don't find me before being carried off by the current and eaten by swarming bait fish. I feel like I'm really running the food chain.

There is also a wonderful scotchpad bottom scrubber unit on the market. I've had two. They are so good they keep getting borrowed and never come home.

[sdowney717]

Using a fender would definitely help a lot with that garden rake.

Realized had not shown my modified hoe.
Hoe being not too wide, can apply some decent scraping power concentrated on the edge.
Also knocked off the sharp corners.

to remove the hook, I used my acetylene torch, it is pretty strong hoe. Got it for about 7$ at KMart.
I sealed the wood end and metal rod in a layer of PL, then painted it brown.

I was thinking a short section of pool noodle mid way on the handle would help force it up. Plus it wont sink out of sight maybe If I let go.

[Paul Schweiss]

Google floor scraper. Why heat and straighten a garden hoe, when you can buy it straight already.

Boat shops have them for scraping all the various goo's that fall and cure on the floor, also used for clearing out the infusion manifold and bag after the resin cures, then the grinders get to have a go.

[sdowney717]

Google floor scraper. Why heat and straighten a garden hoe, when you can buy it straight already.

Boat shops have them for scraping all the various goo's that fall and cure on the floor, also used for clearing out the infusion manifold and bag after the resin cures, then the grinders get to have a go.

I like to do things as cheap as possible, but also competently. I have seen the floor scrapers, they have a much wider blade, (the ones I have seen) A wider blade will not concentrate the scraping power like a smaller width blade will do. My blade pretty much matches in size the one the marina uses at haulout.

I was actually concerned too wide a blade will just be bumping over the barnacles.

I found the smaller hand held scraper to be very good and easy to use.

I actually would not mind diving if I had an air supply and some experience and the water was not cold and clear enough to see. In this creek, after 2 foot, visibility is nil. I effectively cleaned the entire hull, except for the keel.

I also saw the rudder zincs were gone, not even the SS bolt remained.

[Breakaway]

I like to do things as cheap as possible, but also competently. I have seen the floor scrapers, they have a much wider blade, (the ones I have seen) A wider blade will not concentrate the scraping power like a smaller width blade will do. My blade pretty much matches in size the one the marina uses at haulout.

I was actually concerned too wide a blade will just be bumping over the barnacles.

I found the smaller hand held scraper to be very good and easy to use.

I actually would not mind diving if I had an air supply and some experience and the water was not cold and clear enough to see. In this creek, after 2 foot, visibility is nil. I effectively cleaned the entire hull, except for the keel.

I also saw the rudder zincs were gone, not even the SS bolt remained.

I put rudder and trim tab zincs on with a locknut, instead of just relying on the threaded insert in the anode. YMMV


Kevin


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[sdowney717]

I put rudder and trim tab zincs on with a locknut, instead of just relying on the threaded insert in the anode. YMMV


Kevin


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Good idea, I think they just corroded away. I was surprised the bolt fell off too.