Protecting my outdrive

[Capt. Bob]

I am moving my boat to Jacksonville and it will be kept in the water yearound. It will be off the St. Johns River on the Ortega River. The water is brackish but very saline and supports most saltwater sealife in that area.<br /><br />With that said, I am preparing to haul the boat here in Atlanta and do whatever I need to do to the outdrive and bottom to protect them.<br /><br />If you have experience with this situation please respond.<br /><br />I read a classified a while back for a plastic sheet bottom protector and I am wondering if I could use a heavy duty plastic bag and put it over the outdrive. Then I could add a tablet of swimming pool clorine occasionally to stop any marine growth. Any commments?

 

[Trent]

Re: Protecting my outdrive

First you need "bottom paint" Then make sure all your anodes are good. Also make sure all your continuity strap cables are connected and in good shape. If It were me I would install a "Mercathode System" to help protect your investment.

 

[magster65]

Re: Protecting my outdrive

Yeah, like you and Trent have determined, anti-fouling paint for the hull and I looked online briefly but couldn't find anything on them but there is a bag that hangs off your transom that covers the outdrive. You could probably make one. The logic is if the drive is not exposed to any light the growth is very slow to take and doesn't grow very fast either. I think they work well because I've used some boathouses before and the 'no light' theory is correct. There is a boat next to the boathouse I rented and he had a home-made cover of 1/8" rubber just hanging over his alpha, no growth on the drive and it wasn't painted with anti-fouling. The rubber cover had growth all over the sunny side and nothing on the dark side. This won't help with any electrolosis problems though, you'll need sacrificial anodes (zincs) to help combat that. You're on the right track. One other thing, chlorine is a powerful oxidizer and it may cause a new set of problems for you if you have too much nearby.