3 Ways to Prevent Marine Growth on Boats
Marine growth is unavoidable for anything that stays in the marine waters, such as rocks on the shore, shipwrecks, buoys… and even your Stabicraft boat, especially if you’ve never hauled it out of the water even since you first used it. Any object left in the water for some time can be quickly covered with slimy algae and will eventually be colonised by other marine organisms such as barnacles, mussels, and seaweeds. Water conditions, changes in tides, water temperature, the salinity of the water, and the quality of nutrients present in the water are the main factors in how fast marine growth can accumulate at the bottom of your boat’s hull.
The process of plant and animal life growing on human underwater structures is known as fouling. Its impact on all water vessels is disadvantageous for everyone involved in maritime activities. For example, shipping industries see this as an annoying infestation since It makes ships far less efficient when they travel through water. When boat pilings are infested with seaweed and barnacles, the hull of the ship will corrode fast requiring more maintenance work.
For smaller water vessels such as boats, marine growth on your boat’s hull creates drag that slows down your boat and reduces the maneuverability of your boat. This can make it a bit more difficult in driving the boat. All these instances will negatively impact fuel efficiency. If left untreated, the growth can spread to other parts of your boat. If marine organisms enter your Honda motorboat engine, they could damage its parts which will prevent it from operating.
Prevent all of those unfortunate events from happening by following these tips:
Paint Your Hull’s Bottom with Anti-Fouling Paint
A boat’s hull needs to have a layer of protection to stop marine growth from sticking onto its surfaces. Anti-fouling paint is designed to prevent marine growth from clinging to the boat’s hull. Make sure to slap on two coats or more to make it effective. You can find anti-fouling ingredients in marine paint or gel coat paint. Make sure that’s the type of paint you will buy when you’re planning to repaint your boat’s hull.
Invest in Marine Growth Prevention System
In addition to anti-fouling paint, you can also invest in an anti-fouling system to further help with marine growth prevention on your boat’s hull and running gear. There are a few types of anti-fouling systems to choose from.
Electrolytic Anti-Fouling System: This is how it works: A DC current is passed through pairs of copper and aluminium or iron anodes which produces copper ions. Copper ions prevent marine organisms from settling down on the boat’s surface.
Ultrasonic Anti-Fouling System: High-frequency waves are used to prevent marine growth and even reduce fouling on a boat’s piping system.
Chemical Dosing: Small doses of an anti-fouling chemical will be periodically injected into the seawater cooling system close to the seawater intake point which can be found in seawater boxes. This creates a protective layer that prevents marine growth and corrosion in the boat’s pipework.
Regular Bottom Cleaning Sessions
Anti-fouling paint and marine growth prevention systems can only go so far in keeping your boat’s hull and boat gear clean and free from microorganisms. Eventually, these irksome critters will find a way to stick onto your hull’s surface and quickly expand. That’s when consistent boat bottom cleaning comes in so you can regularly scrub away marine growth build-up from your vessel. Make sure to regularly clean your boat every month.













