What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of a steel hull as compared to a fiberglass hull? Thanks for the responses.
Fiberglass or Steel Hulls
- Thread starter Tai Chi Sailor
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Grinding sanding and painting
Watching a dockmate work onher steel hulled boat makes me want to stay away from steel. It seems (from a distance) that it is a constant struggle to fight corrosion. OTOH it seems bullet proof. Tom
Watching a dockmate work onher steel hulled boat makes me want to stay away from steel. It seems (from a distance) that it is a constant struggle to fight corrosion. OTOH it seems bullet proof. Tom
Bet it would stop a 22 caliber!!!!
Yep I said that it appears to be bullet proof. I would trust it to stop a 22 no problem. But if you brought out a 50 caliber sniper rifle all bets are off. If I was to hit something offshore a steel boat would probably be my choice. But overall I think that fiberglass is hard to beat. Face it most of our boats spend most of the time sitting at the dock. Fiberglass is about as impervious to corrosion as possible. So given that corrosion of steel is unavoidable and hitting something is possibly avoidable we went with a fiberglass boat. But if I was in the great white north with big chunks of ice in the water steel would be a choice. We never even considered wood but cold molded plywood might be as good as fiberglass in some situations such as a homebuilt boat. A boat at our dock had an interior bulkhead mounted chainplate give way and they lost their mast last week. Dry rot!!! Wood scares me!!!! My chainplates are bolted to fiberglass.
Yep I said that it appears to be bullet proof. I would trust it to stop a 22 no problem. But if you brought out a 50 caliber sniper rifle all bets are off. If I was to hit something offshore a steel boat would probably be my choice. But overall I think that fiberglass is hard to beat. Face it most of our boats spend most of the time sitting at the dock. Fiberglass is about as impervious to corrosion as possible. So given that corrosion of steel is unavoidable and hitting something is possibly avoidable we went with a fiberglass boat. But if I was in the great white north with big chunks of ice in the water steel would be a choice. We never even considered wood but cold molded plywood might be as good as fiberglass in some situations such as a homebuilt boat. A boat at our dock had an interior bulkhead mounted chainplate give way and they lost their mast last week. Dry rot!!! Wood scares me!!!! My chainplates are bolted to fiberglass.
Steel for serious cruising
We all love the soft, cleanable texture of our fiberglass hulls for our coastal cruisers and family boats, and fiberglass can be quite tough where the cloth and resin overlap, but if I were going on one of those serious long round-the-world type cruises I would go for steel whatever the maintenance difficulties. Your boat is your liferaft out there...
We all love the soft, cleanable texture of our fiberglass hulls for our coastal cruisers and family boats, and fiberglass can be quite tough where the cloth and resin overlap, but if I were going on one of those serious long round-the-world type cruises I would go for steel whatever the maintenance difficulties. Your boat is your liferaft out there...
You know Rich,
Choose steel and you probably wouldn't make it around the world. Not because of some disaster, but because of all the headaches with the hull.
Choose steel and you probably wouldn't make it around the world. Not because of some disaster, but because of all the headaches with the hull.
you know Fred
I have to disagree with you on this one. A steel hull that was properly sandblasted both inside and out, and epoxy primed and painted BOTH inside and out to correct thickness, with properly rounded edges and has stainless in areas that would likely be chipped would need far less maintenance than a glass hull that needs everything to be regularly rebedded and for the occassional core fix. Now, that said, many used steel hulls were not properly blasted and painted, and often had only primer on the inside. Consider checking out www.metalboatsociety.com BTW, I own a glass hull
Peter
I have to disagree with you on this one. A steel hull that was properly sandblasted both inside and out, and epoxy primed and painted BOTH inside and out to correct thickness, with properly rounded edges and has stainless in areas that would likely be chipped would need far less maintenance than a glass hull that needs everything to be regularly rebedded and for the occassional core fix. Now, that said, many used steel hulls were not properly blasted and painted, and often had only primer on the inside. Consider checking out www.metalboatsociety.com BTW, I own a glass hull
PeterPeter is correct!
Peter: You are correct. Properly prepared steel can live in salt water for decades. Look at these offshore drilling rigs. Once they are planted on the ocean bottom they are never maintained. The key is the preparation and the coatings that are used. That will be the difference!
Peter: You are correct. Properly prepared steel can live in salt water for decades. Look at these offshore drilling rigs. Once they are planted on the ocean bottom they are never maintained. The key is the preparation and the coatings that are used. That will be the difference!
Steel boats
Thanks to Peter and Steve for their spot-on posts. Given the proper design details, paint system, and application, you will never see rust. You maintain paint, not steel. I have seen some beautiful steel yachts (from Holland)as small as 28', but I would consider about 35' to be the point at which weight is not a factor. Condensation can be eliminated, as can hard chines. They will stand up to abuse that would destroy wood or fiberglass, and if you do need repairs, you will find a welder where neither skills nor materials exist for other materials.
Thanks to Peter and Steve for their spot-on posts. Given the proper design details, paint system, and application, you will never see rust. You maintain paint, not steel. I have seen some beautiful steel yachts (from Holland)as small as 28', but I would consider about 35' to be the point at which weight is not a factor. Condensation can be eliminated, as can hard chines. They will stand up to abuse that would destroy wood or fiberglass, and if you do need repairs, you will find a welder where neither skills nor materials exist for other materials.
But guys, what about weight?
and hull-form (performance) and aesthetics? We don't sail oil platforms.
and hull-form (performance) and aesthetics? We don't sail oil platforms.
Light wind or heavy seas
In a light wind, you'll wish you had a lighter hull, regardless of whether it is glass or steel. In a heavy wind or heavy sea, you'll be glad to have a heavier hull, again whether glass or steel.
In a light wind, you'll wish you had a lighter hull, regardless of whether it is glass or steel. In a heavy wind or heavy sea, you'll be glad to have a heavier hull, again whether glass or steel.
On that point
I always thought the advantage of a steel hull was when crashing into stuff like ice and coral reefs. Has anybody heard of a glass hull failing just because of wind? Seems something has gotta hit it,,,,
I always thought the advantage of a steel hull was when crashing into stuff like ice and coral reefs. Has anybody heard of a glass hull failing just because of wind? Seems something has gotta hit it,,,,
What do the long-distance cruisers use?
I always read the details about their boats that the "professional cruisers" publish in their articles in the magazines and it looks to me like a sizable number of them use steel-hulled boats. How fast they are, or how much maintenance trouble, is not always easy to gauge from their descriptions. The steel and aluminum hulls are created from welding plates, usually without a mold. The weights of the steel boats listed on Yachtworld.com don't seem to be very far off from fiberglass boats of similar size--perhaps the plates are relatively thin or they adjust the ballast. In any event, steel-hulled sailboats are not the slow and overweight creatures you think they are. (BTW, when I visited Britain in the 80's I paid a visit to Cutty Sark, the Tea Clipper that held the record for a transatlantic passage for half the 19th century, and--guess what?--she has an all-iron hull with iron keel and ribs...not a detail I had ever read about...)
I always read the details about their boats that the "professional cruisers" publish in their articles in the magazines and it looks to me like a sizable number of them use steel-hulled boats. How fast they are, or how much maintenance trouble, is not always easy to gauge from their descriptions. The steel and aluminum hulls are created from welding plates, usually without a mold. The weights of the steel boats listed on Yachtworld.com don't seem to be very far off from fiberglass boats of similar size--perhaps the plates are relatively thin or they adjust the ballast. In any event, steel-hulled sailboats are not the slow and overweight creatures you think they are. (BTW, when I visited Britain in the 80's I paid a visit to Cutty Sark, the Tea Clipper that held the record for a transatlantic passage for half the 19th century, and--guess what?--she has an all-iron hull with iron keel and ribs...not a detail I had ever read about...)
Rich, I was hoping that you had some data
You know, like a weight comparison of the steel vs. glass hulls. Or the number of steel hull cruisers compared to glass. (and most importantly, the budget level. Are steel boats mostly harbor hideouts) And what are the listed weights of the steel boats for sale? And what is their PHRF? THAT will tell us something! And I'm happy for you because you visited a historic ship, the Cutty Sark. But what does a 19th century longevity record have to do with our thread? Oh, it's not a good idea to speak of steel with aluminum. Those two materials are just about as 'opposite' as you can get.
You know, like a weight comparison of the steel vs. glass hulls. Or the number of steel hull cruisers compared to glass. (and most importantly, the budget level. Are steel boats mostly harbor hideouts) And what are the listed weights of the steel boats for sale? And what is their PHRF? THAT will tell us something! And I'm happy for you because you visited a historic ship, the Cutty Sark. But what does a 19th century longevity record have to do with our thread? Oh, it's not a good idea to speak of steel with aluminum. Those two materials are just about as 'opposite' as you can get.
Aluminum Hulls
The marine aluminum alloys (5083 and 5086) are excellent materials for boat hulls. Superior to steel (due to their strength to weight ratio) and fiberglass (due to their strength and ductility) in most aspects. The primary problem with aluminum hulls is that they are a little more expensive (but not much anymore). And the welding technology (MIG/TIG) is not as commonly available in out-of-the-way places. Steel hulls below about 50 ft. overall are generally heavier than either fiberglass or aluminum hulls because of allowances in the plating schedule for additional thickness to provide for corrosion losses but they are strong. Pound for pound (note not inch for inch) the marine aluminum alloys are stronger than steel and their corrosion resistance is superior. The only other drawback to aluminum hulls is that they will corrode in the presence of copper and copper alloys. A snippet of wire from an electrical installation will pit and corrode any aluminum part it rests on. There have been reports of a penny eating through an aluminum tank top. With the advent of reasonably priced titanium thru hull and seacock fittings and the ever present Marelon stuff there is no need for bronze fittings on aluminum hulls and the copper problem is much reduced. Ted Brewer has designed a beautiful long range, radius chine, 42 foot cruiser called Sandingo after which I lust mightily but can't afford. It is shown in one of his books on boat design.
The marine aluminum alloys (5083 and 5086) are excellent materials for boat hulls. Superior to steel (due to their strength to weight ratio) and fiberglass (due to their strength and ductility) in most aspects. The primary problem with aluminum hulls is that they are a little more expensive (but not much anymore). And the welding technology (MIG/TIG) is not as commonly available in out-of-the-way places. Steel hulls below about 50 ft. overall are generally heavier than either fiberglass or aluminum hulls because of allowances in the plating schedule for additional thickness to provide for corrosion losses but they are strong. Pound for pound (note not inch for inch) the marine aluminum alloys are stronger than steel and their corrosion resistance is superior. The only other drawback to aluminum hulls is that they will corrode in the presence of copper and copper alloys. A snippet of wire from an electrical installation will pit and corrode any aluminum part it rests on. There have been reports of a penny eating through an aluminum tank top. With the advent of reasonably priced titanium thru hull and seacock fittings and the ever present Marelon stuff there is no need for bronze fittings on aluminum hulls and the copper problem is much reduced. Ted Brewer has designed a beautiful long range, radius chine, 42 foot cruiser called Sandingo after which I lust mightily but can't afford. It is shown in one of his books on boat design.
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