Glanford Boat Club, on Island Carr, Brigg, was a hive of activity when "Lifting Day" saw members' craft taken from the River Ancholme onto dry land for the autumn and winter months. This annual procedure offers security and the chance for a bit of maintenance during the close season. The big cranes will re-appear to put the boats back in the water next spring.
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Apart from the River Ancholme being lowered for the winter, Scribs, an important reason for hoisting these boats out is to extend the life of their hulls.
ReplyDeleteGlass Reinforced Plastic(GRP) are usually long-term maintenance free, but over-exposure to water can allow moister to seep through the outer, water-proof gel coat of the GRP by a process called osmosis - cf also biological osmosis in plants.
In addition, under-water metal components on a boat - ie the boat's stern gear of prop, rudder, drive shaft and etc will invariably corrode...and corrosion will be hastened if such parts are connected to an electrical current - is battery, or if they create static electricity - which invariably, because of their function, they do. Consequently, these electrolysis processes speed up metal corrosion. The whole thing is called technically, cathodic corrosion.
Lifting the boat out on a regular basis allow obviously an inspection of the hull and any metal components....and for remedial action to be carried out as required.
Boats with engines are (or should be fitted) with sacrificial anodes - special lumps of metal that cathodic corrosion tends to erode in preference to rudders and drive shafts etc.
These anodes can be are erodes at different rates according to whether the boat is used in fresh, or salt water and by the different intensities of electrolysis that the boat creates during it operation.
Therefore, it is important to renew these sacrificial anodes as required - they are usually just simply screwed, or bolted to suitable, underwater metal section of the boat's stern gear.
It is usually recommended that wooden boats stay in the water - they could dry out too much.
But, occasionally, they too need to bottom inspected and things like anodes replaced.
Capt Birdeye