Hello, I'm in Tampa, FL and I have recently received a Michi Craft DE 17 canoe (virtually identical to a Grumman), build date of May 1985, from a friend; it has spent the past 15 years upside down, under a tree, with vines growing all over it. I need somme advice on a few problems I am having.
1.) There are little mildewy things with tiny strings growing out of the scratches in the hull. I've been scouring them with a synthetic equivalent of 000 steel wool and bleach white, which is working. However, I'm concerned that I'm damaging the hull. I've read that most aluminum boats (this is my first one) have a thin layer of corrosion barrier on the metal, at least on one side. How much abrasion will that layer take before it's gone? (I've tested a 12" x 6" area near the keel; it cleaned up pretty nice, and I polished it with Flitz aluminum polish, but now, it's so shiny I can see myself in it, and I'm afraid I went too far.) If I have damaged the corrosion barrier in that area, what do you recommend for a repair?
2.) The interior bottom of the hull is completely covered with white, dusty oxidation, which is not responding well at all to the 000 wool and bleach white. I have some No. 1 wool but, for reasons stated above, I'm leery. I'm planning to paint the interior side, to reduce glare, so I'm thinking about just etching the entire inside with Aluma Prep 33 (aircraft product) and then treating it all with Alodine (aircraft product that prepares aluminum for paint bonding). Afterward, I would just paint it with some dull gray tempo or something similar. Does this sound appropriate?
3.) Last question. It has rather large decks from the bow and stern apexes that join with flimsy, cosmetic bulk heads that encase floatation blocks. I need to remove the decks because there are insect nests well embedded in there, and I can't hose them out. I've noticed that they've used pop rivets (only place on the boat where pop rivets were used in lieu of aircraft rivets) to secure the decks-can someone tell me what size, grade, and material (I assume aluminum) replacement rivets I might use?
1.) There are little mildewy things with tiny strings growing out of the scratches in the hull. I've been scouring them with a synthetic equivalent of 000 steel wool and bleach white, which is working. However, I'm concerned that I'm damaging the hull. I've read that most aluminum boats (this is my first one) have a thin layer of corrosion barrier on the metal, at least on one side. How much abrasion will that layer take before it's gone? (I've tested a 12" x 6" area near the keel; it cleaned up pretty nice, and I polished it with Flitz aluminum polish, but now, it's so shiny I can see myself in it, and I'm afraid I went too far.) If I have damaged the corrosion barrier in that area, what do you recommend for a repair?
2.) The interior bottom of the hull is completely covered with white, dusty oxidation, which is not responding well at all to the 000 wool and bleach white. I have some No. 1 wool but, for reasons stated above, I'm leery. I'm planning to paint the interior side, to reduce glare, so I'm thinking about just etching the entire inside with Aluma Prep 33 (aircraft product) and then treating it all with Alodine (aircraft product that prepares aluminum for paint bonding). Afterward, I would just paint it with some dull gray tempo or something similar. Does this sound appropriate?
3.) Last question. It has rather large decks from the bow and stern apexes that join with flimsy, cosmetic bulk heads that encase floatation blocks. I need to remove the decks because there are insect nests well embedded in there, and I can't hose them out. I've noticed that they've used pop rivets (only place on the boat where pop rivets were used in lieu of aircraft rivets) to secure the decks-can someone tell me what size, grade, and material (I assume aluminum) replacement rivets I might use?
