White Dot Sailing lifted a customers boat in early May, a great time to get your boat ready for the season. We managed the whole process, from booking the lifting and supervising the movements from slings to cradle, to managing contractors and suppliers. Almost all of the work is carried out by us, we bring in trusted suppliers & contractors where we need to.
Early summer is an ideal time for some routine maintenance, the yards are quiet and the weather is much more reliable. Better weather means paint can go on at a lower humidity and is much less likely to be disturbed whilst drying, With most boat owners only starting to use their boats from mid- May onwards, why have your boat ready in early Spring only to have it sitting at it's berth gathering weed for 2 months?
This Elan 320 has been anti-fouled with International's VC 17m, a hard anti-foul which enables an ultra smooth finish. The paint changes colour to Graphite once it's been in the water a few weeks. We also took the opportunity to polish and wax the topsides, this gives the boat a clean waterline and the gelcoat a protective coating from the harsh conditions of a full season.
The importance of regular maintenance routines and inspections can't be understated. This, the first haul out by the current owner highlighted a problem with the boats anodes. Having originally been in fresh water, the boats anodes had not been changed when she was brought to her new salt water home. A new bearing housing along with the correct type of anodes were needed. A thorough polish of the prop revealed no damage and a quick respray of the sail drive leg finished the job. Without routine maintenance this problem would have persisted and a replacement sail drive leg would have been needed.
A good finish on the anti-foul means a faster hull and less growth by the end of the season. This boat has had 2 coats on the hull and 4 on the high friction areas- the keel and rudders.
If you're interested in creating a regular maintenance schedule for your boat, contact us here.
