Zincs

[Kevin]

Hello All, When replacing those zincs this season make sure your divers or boat yard dresses the shaft or prop prior to attaching the zinc. In some cases the oxidation caused by zinc consumption, will build a protective barrier coat that can render the zinc useless. Kevin

 

[david schudel]

zinc life

On the zinc subject, my prop zinc lasts about 5-6 weeks. The water temp is about 82-84 F, and very salty, so I thought that was normal. But is it? Any ideas are welcome. I do run shore power all day, 110V fridge and a/c unit included.Dave

 

[Vic]

Gee ... my zinc lasted 5 months and looks like new

Of Course when the boat came out for the summer last week I found that the boat yard had painted the shaft completely insulating the zinc from the shaft ... and the key in the water pump had disolved in 5 months.Why would anyone put a zinc on a painted shaft?for that matter why paint the shaft at all?

 

[Dave]

Shaft zincs

The only reason I can think of to paint the shaft is to prevent barnacles from attaching themselves. When they do this they will cause the shaft to be out of balance. Other creatures of the deep like Mussels will also attach themselves in large clumps if the boat is not used for say 4 months in the winter.I dive and before I replace my zincs I take a strip of emery paper (fine) and wrap it around the shaft and then work it back and forth like shining shoes to get a bright surface. Then I install the zincs. What do the "experts" recommend as far as painting the prop and shaft?Warmest regards,Dave