No good deed goes unpunished
- Thread starter Kermit
- Start date
Jackdaw is probably right about this, however, I operate RADAR systems that move constantly. Granted the pedestal is bolted to one spot but the antenna dish rotates and plunges several times a day and birds still nest in them.
I was away from my Hunter 33.5 for about 6 weeks. When we came back to the marina people were saying, "Oh there's the bird boat people." Birds had nested in the end of the boom and had christened the helm cover completely. Since then I've always sailed with an empty water bottle in the end of the boom. Try explaining that to the new owners.
This time of year I think those little birds (Wrens?) can build a nest in an hour. One year I had to pull a couple of pounds of nest out of my boom in the fall along with some eggs. What a mess. That's when I started taping a cut plastic bottle over the end for the winter. But, I only needed it for about a month in the spring. A dock mate left his boat without the sail cover on for a few hours one year and found nests in the pleats of the mainsail when he came back to go sailing.
We have the same nest building going on in Narraganset Bay, RI. Upon removal of my winter cover I immediately cover both ends of my boom. I failed to do this (twice!!) and what a mess.
Two years running I have had a small bird make a nest in the cabin of my balboa up along the shelf that runs along the sides of the cabin. I store the boat under a Stimson Bow Roof shed and keep the hatch open for ventilation. Not as big a deal as Kermit's mess.... nothing a shop vac could not handle. One year I went into the boat in early spring and there was a rather large (about the diameter of a grapefruit) wasp nest on my VHF... and because it was early spring it was cold out... the wasps were mostly dormant.... I didn't even notice them for some time... I got lucky that year. And there was the time I stored some brand new fuel line in the boat over winter and a mud dauber made her nest in the fuel line... I hooked it all up before a cruise and left for the coast. The O.B. died about 100 yards from the bridge at Oriental and I had to sail back to the landing under jib and main without any auxiliary. That one cost me a day at a marina and an emergency call to a mechanic ($$$)... I would have never thought it was the fuel line because I knew that it was a new fuel line but the first thing the mechanic did was check the fuel flow. Duh!!!! expensive lesson learned.
But it still beats watching reruns on TV.... or going to work..... or just about everything else....
But it still beats watching reruns on TV.... or going to work..... or just about everything else....
Kermit, Holy Sh/t! Is that from seagulls? I bought a Windex vane for my masthead and it came with something they simply call a bird spike that sticks straight upward from the pivot point on the indicator. Do they work or not? Our Marina is plagued with a seagull infestation.
By the way, where can I get a mainsail cover like your's with the Hunter logo?
By the way, where can I get a mainsail cover like your's with the Hunter logo?
One time a few years ago wasps built a nest in a pocket used for winch handles and the like in the cockpit sidewall. I was disinclined to fight them for it so I just sailed away. Shortly after leaving the dock the last of the wasp warriors left the boat. When I returned that evening, they were all waiting in the air above my slip. As soon as I docked they dashed into the pocket. We coexisted all season in this manner.
Simply take it down them down to my Laundrymat and it will be returned after a $20 cleaning. If you want to re-s eal it, bring your own bottle of
http://www.goldeagle.com/product/303-fabric-guard
for $10 per piece of Sunbrella coated.
Jim...
PS: My marina DOESN'T use the bollard cone caps. Therefore the birds target the pier and not my boat.
I would do that except my bimini has a couple of windows in it for checking sail trim.
Well at least at MINE, we might have to charge $10 more for hand cleaning the windowed cover. I have one 80 lb washer on gentle cycle, cold water that would not damage the isinglass if taped over using painters tape to prevent scratching.
I bet you could find such a "Drop off" service laundry or cleaning service near you.
Jim...
PS: You should see the challenges we get for stain removal and cleaning. My favorite was the rolled rug that had so much dog hair, you would have thought it must be a bald dog now. Sunbrella suggested dishwashing liquid for bird droppings.
My best guess is an osprey but another club member thinks great blue heron. I saw the osprey on RobertLangDirect's mast just a few days before.
I assume the sail cover came with the boat when @Crazy Dave Condon sold it to the original owner. I bet the store here would be able to make one for you.
At the risk of getting my flippers slapped, this is how I cleaned the canvass. I pressure washed the heavy stuff off and then used Dawn detergent and a dock brush to scrub it good. Then pressure washed the suds. Maybe I shouldn't have been so aggressive but I was hot, tired and hungry and just wanted to get the job done.
If anyone wants to know what the white stuff that surrounds the blob of osprey crap is, just ask.
If anyone wants to know what the white stuff that surrounds the blob of osprey crap is, just ask.
I have pressure washed them and scrubbed with a brush and the soap concoction that Sunbrella recommends. Most is gone but enough remains that is unsightly. Has anyone tried using the cleaner for pet stains? I haven't but I am tempted since both are waste eliminations.
Presoak for a long time in a 5 gallon bucket first with Dawn or whatever that has a good grease cutter. That tis the key. I would be careful as to the pressure on the power washer. I did not several times and cut thru the skin like a crazy man.