I have a swing keel on a Santana 21 that is heavily rusted. After dropping it out and cleaning off the heavy rust, can I use a rust converter like "Corroseal " on it. Will it last in fresh water?
Do rust converters work on rusted keels?
- Thread starter CurtPollard
- Start date
Maybe. The rust converters stop the rust and provide a paintable surface. I don't think they will prevent further rusting without being overheated with an epoxy paint.
The other concern is compatibility with whatever bottom paint you might use. In this I think it would be wise to stick with one brand and not mix and match brands. TotalBoat has a rust converter and compatible epoxy paints. If you mix and match and there is a problem, each company will point to the other company as the source of the problem.
www.totalboat.com
The other concern is compatibility with whatever bottom paint you might use. In this I think it would be wise to stick with one brand and not mix and match brands. TotalBoat has a rust converter and compatible epoxy paints. If you mix and match and there is a problem, each company will point to the other company as the source of the problem.
TotalBoat Rust Primer Metal Treatment | Converts Rusted Metal
Phosphoric acid-based rust primer treatment converts rust to an inert substance. Use on rusted metal surfaces prior to priming and painting.
www.totalboat.com
Some of the rust converters don't actually do conversion at all. Read the fine print carefully. Some of them simply seal off the air to slow the rust
If you have a heavily rusted part, rust converters are not going to do the job you are expecting/desiring. The better way to do it, is to remove the swing keel and sand blast down to bare metal, then use a rust converter if you'd like. If you can't remove it, then get a heavy wire brush and wire brush it down to bare metal - problem there is you likely won't be able to get to locations that you really need to clean. If you can get to those locations with a scraper then scrape the best you can and then apply the rust converter. At least it's something...
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I would be also concerned with the wear and rust damage at the keel's pivot point. Most of these boats, as a result of their age, suffer from various degrees of keel slap. If the lateral play is excesive the keel can cause damage to the walls of the hull keel trunk. If the keel will not come down, it is likely fouled by marine growth. For safety be very careful working around the keel and make sure it is fully blocked and supported so it cannot accidentally lower. You may first try to scrape any growth which attaches to the actual keel. Avoid scraping growth attached to the keel trunk walls until you can free the keel. As far as protection I would follow the recommendations made above by others. I would finish it with a hard anti foul paint.