Preparing Your Sailboat for Spring Doesn't Have to Be That Hard
I ascribe to the “20-5 Rule” of sailboat cosmetics: if it looks good from 20 feet with the boat moving at 5 knots, it’s good enough for me! Others may be more persnickety. Not me. I’ve sweated out the laborious chore of five coats of varnish twice a year on a 43-foot sailboat with more teak on it than the presidential yacht, Manitou. I’ve also paid a tidy five-figure sum to do the same chore. But all that’s in the past now that I have downsized my fleet and have other, more pressing commitments (like playing with grandchildren) rather than painstakingly sprucing up the bright work and chipped and faded enamel of my 40-year-old 20-foot catboat, Mystic Wind. And today, I’m happy to report that I have set a new record for springtime touch up. Four hours from start to finish. Pretty cool.... four hours was all the time I could allocate before a weather window began to close on my prep work with a splash date for my craft looming in the not too distant future. Here is the step-by-step of my efforts today.
- 9:45 am. Arrive and chew the fat with boatyard friends
- 10:00 am. Remove Shrink wrap. Almost too good of a job. Mildew here and there on the hull because of no circulation.
- 10:30 am. Lightly sand teak cap rail, coaming and hull.
- 11: am. Clean scum off bottom.
- 11:15 am. Clean mildew and grunge off hull using Blech White Tire Cleaner (a miracle product for removing most anything…including some paint if you’re not careful.)
- 12:00 pm. Tape around teak and between bottom paint and hull.
- 12:15 pm. Alternate applying Cetol to cap rail and Cetol Gloss to other surfaces. Three coats applied. Nice sun and wind for drying!
- 12;45 pm. Touch up bottom paint above the waterline where scum has discolored. Inspect rest of bottom and touch up here and there.
- 1:15 pm. Apply one coat of Interlux Brightside gloss enamel to hull with roller.
- 2 pm. Stand back and admire my four hours of labor.
- 4:45 pm. Back home after playing with the Time for a Goslings Black Label!
I probably will go back out tomorrow and apply another coat to all surfaces. But for the present, Mystic Wind passes the 20-5 Test with flying colors...
By Craig Ligibel
