Keel Bolts

[Shawn Rodel]

I have an Ericson 88 38-200 while cleaning the bilge I noticed the keel bolts are coated with a rubber like coating. The coating is from top of bolt over nuts and around the base of the nuts, it is pealing off from the top of some of the bolts. It is gray black in color. There is not an excessive amount of water in the bilge at any given time, a little more with a heavy rain. The water is always clear and fresh so I am sure it is from the mast. I have seen a lot of pic's of keel bolts with out any coating, could this be a repair from previous due to leaks. The boat was surveyed 2 years ago with no report or discussion with regard to this. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

Thanks Shawn Rodel

 

[Christian Williams]

Our keel bolts and nuts are not supposed to be painted or otherwise "protected," since stainless needs oxygen to form its protective patina of chromium oxide. (But you never know what a former owner may have applied). Stainless rust, glop or any other coating should be removed by scrubbing or sanding, and a stainless brush is usually all that's needed. Rust stains come off with household rust remover, which also works great on embarrassing rust stains around deck hardware.

Prolonged deprivation of oxygen on keel bolts causes pitting, which is common and usually not structurally significant. The idea is to keep the bilges clean and more or less dry, without getting obsessive about it. That last is the biggest challenge for some of us.

(I painted my keel bolts once, subsequently saw the light, and had to use paint remover and an artist's brush to get it off.)

 

[Shawn Rodel]

Our keel bolts and nuts are not supposed to be painted or otherwise "protected," since stainless needs oxygen to form its protective patina of chromium oxide. (But you never know what a former owner may have applied). Stainless rust, glop or any other coating should be removed by scrubbing or sanding, and a stainless brush is usually all that's needed. Rust stains come off with household rust remover, which also works great on embarrassing rust stains around deck hardware.

Prolonged deprivation of oxygen on keel bolts causes pitting, which is common and usually not structurally significant. The idea is to keep the bilges clean and more or less dry, without getting obsessive about it. That last is the biggest challenge for some of us.

(I painted my keel bolts once, subsequently saw the light, and had to use paint remover and an artist's brush to get it off.)

Thank you, looks like I will be spending time in the bilge....Shawn

 

[K2MSmith]

For cleaning the rust on the bolts and deck hardware can you recommend what would be the best household cleaner is ? I know my grandfather used to use "naval jelly" or something like that but it sounds hazardous .. Also, is there a special wire brush for stainless ?

 

[Loren Beach]

Also, is there a special wire brush for stainless ?

I try to always buy wire brushes, even he "cheaper" ones, made with SS bristles. Some are, for more $, made with brass bristles.
I am trying to avoid have rust stains reappear caused by microscopic bits of steel wire embedded in surfaces.

 

[K2MSmith]

I try to always buy wire brushes, even he "cheaper" ones, made with SS bristles. Some are, for more $, made with brass bristles.
I am trying to avoid have rust stains reappear caused by microscopic bits of steel wire embedded in surfaces.

I'm assuming the stainless steel material the bristles are made of is softer than the stainless on deck hardware or keel nuts/bolts so it doesn't scratch it up ?

 

[Loren Beach]

I would not assume that. The relative hardness will determine which material scratches which. I know that is one reason that most shops have some brass wire brushes around, because the brass is softer, relatively, than steel parts.
Also, if you are cleaning a part, like a keel bolt, where a shiny appearance is not very important, than some surface blemishes would not matter.
(A few months ago I buffed out all of the SS stanchions after removing them, and it involves a (progressively finer) series of sanding and polish types. A lot of small scratches and nicks were removed, BTW.)

 

[K2MSmith]

I would not assume that. The relative hardness will determine which material scratches which. I know that is one reason that most shops have some brass wire brushes around, because the brass is softer, relatively, than steel parts.
Also, if you are cleaning a part, like a keel bolt, where a shiny appearance is not very important, than some surface blemishes would not matter.
(A few months ago I buffed out all of the SS stanchions after removing them, and it involves a series of sanding and polish types. A lot of small scratches and nicks were removed, BTW.)

The keel nuts/washers (and maybe bolts) look like they must have been replaced at some point in the boats past history as they are pretty shiny if you clean away the crud or the PO did a fantastic job and keeping them that way. I'll see what the HW store has available. It might be with a proper cleaner all I need is a scouring pad of sorts...

 

[goldenstate]

For cleaning the rust on the bolts and deck hardware can you recommend what would be the best household cleaner is ? I know my grandfather used to use "naval jelly" or something like that but it sounds hazardous .. Also, is there a special wire brush for stainless ?

I’m curious what you bought for a cleaner and how it worked. I tried CLR (Calcium Lime Rust) first in a 50/50 mix diluting with water and this had little effect. Then I switched to full strength CLR (sprayed on with a hand spray bottle) and it worked better, though the rust on the stainless yielded much easier than rust on the gel coat.

I know there is a product by StarBrite for rust stains and another by Goof Off.

I would up scrubbing with a worn Scotch Brite sponge with the CLR.

I would rate the CLR 6 or 7 out of 10 for this job. I think Naval Jelly is much heavier duty and prone to eat through metal and your hands...