Keel questions

[Bill]

Pulled our 28.5 and notice mosture on the keel between the hull and the keel. It runs along just about the entire keel. Does this mean I need to rebed my keel,just tighten the bolts, strip the keel down to get all the mositure out? Looking for some help. With the lead keel I have always been laboring with the rust and have tried many formulas that I learn from this site. Any info will be appreciated.

 

[Steve Dion]

Have you ever stripped it and painted?

Bill:Have you ever stripped the keel down to shiny metal and primed and sealed it? This is what I have heard is what needs to be done if you want to put an end to the rusting problems. Two coats of metal primer and 2-3 coats of epoxy barrier coating and then the regular bottom paint.There have been several posts about the rust on the joint. I think I would have a yard inspect this and determine if this is just a matter of faring or if the keel is really loose.Being that you are on the hard, I would remove the faring and let it dry out over the winter. Then you will have a better idea of where to start. Then you can decide if you want to tackle this yourself or let the yard do it for you. If the keel is not loose then you probably can just clean it out, fill with some caulking, fare the joint and refinish the keel.

 

[Tim Leighton]

PROBABLY NOT MUCH YOU CAN DO

Bill: That keel of yours is likely Iron, not lead, since lead doesn't rust (I don't think!). You don't say what year your 28.5 is, but if it was built around the same time as my 31, then rust around the keel is something you almost have to live with or spend a LOT of money correcting. In the 15 years I owned TIDE (I just sold her), I had to work on the keel for the last 10 years of haulouts. Basically I would grind out all rust spots, and then prime with a product called OSPHO which chemically bonds with the rusted areas and prevents further intrusion at that spot. I then made a thick paste of (West System) epoxy and faired out those areas. After the epoxy set up I'd sand smooth and paint. It was never a permanent fix, but wasn't a big problem to deal with at each haulout either. Even my boatyard manager didn't recommend a total stripping and rebuilding of the keel. As long as your keelbolts are in good shape and the keel itself is generally sound, you are probably OK with repairs similar to those I've listed here. Good luck and smooth sailing!Tim Leighton