I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex)
with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from
aluminum?

Jim, wrote:
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex)
with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from
aluminum?

Bead blasting. LIke sand blasting, but you use a barrel of tiny plastic
beads. Should remove the paint without denting or scratching the
Aluminum.

Jim, wrote:
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex)
with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from
aluminum?

If they did that, they probably didn't prep it very well either. It'll
flake off on it's own in a year or two, tops.

Aluminum is nice because it's lighter than steel and doesn't rust. But
it does have an issue with electrolysis. Any galvanic corrosion... bad
ground, stray current... can eat a hole thru it in almost no time flat.
A penny dropped in the bilge will go thru 1/4" aluminum in about 2
weeks. So if your prospective boat has an electrical system, check it
out very carefully and note the cost of any needed repairs/upgrades.

Fair Skies
Doug King

"DSK" wrote in message
...
Jim, wrote:
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT somewhere
along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex) with a
BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from aluminum?

If they did that, they probably didn't prep it very well either. It'll
flake off on it's own in a year or two, tops.

Aluminum is nice because it's lighter than steel and doesn't rust. But it
does have an issue with electrolysis. Any galvanic corrosion... bad
ground, stray current... can eat a hole thru it in almost no time flat. A
penny dropped in the bilge will go thru 1/4" aluminum in about 2 weeks. So
if your prospective boat has an electrical system, check it out very
carefully and note the cost of any needed repairs/upgrades.

Fair Skies
Doug King


Even in fresh water??? If yes, I'm shaking down all my passengers for spare
change from now on.

If you repaint the bottom, make sure the bottom paint is copper free!
If you do your own electrical work, be careful when you're stripping
wire. Don't leave those little metal strands in the bilge.
Don't use the hull as a ground for 12 volt equipment.
I think some people use a metal other than zinc as a sacrificail metal
for an aluminum boat in fresh water.
Make sure you always shut off your battery switch when it's not in use.

John

Doug Kanter wrote:
Even in fresh water???

(rolls eyes)
C'mon, Doug... if the penny is inside the hull, in the bilge, what
difference does it make what kind of water the boat is floating in??

The dissimilar metals is what does it. Different metals have different
valence bonds, meaning that they are more or less eager to give up an
electron to the metal atom next door. As they swap electrons, the bonds
break down and you have bunch of loose atoms.
Zinc is used for zinc because it is "least noble" ie the most eager to
give up it's electrons, and breaks down the fastest, which actually
offers some protection against galvanic corrosion by other metals in
contacts with it. That's why they use it for zincs!


...If yes, I'm shaking down all my passengers for spare
change from now on.


Shucks, I do that now, and I have a fiberglass boat. If asked why, I say
it's because the compass is so sensitive.

DSK

"DSK" wrote in message
...
Doug Kanter wrote:
Even in fresh water???

(rolls eyes)
C'mon, Doug... if the penny is inside the hull, in the bilge, what
difference does it make what kind of water the boat is floating in??

I knew it was a 1/4 baked question the moment I asked it. :-(


The dissimilar metals is what does it. Different metals have different
valence bonds, meaning that they are more or less eager to give up an
electron to the metal atom next door. As they swap electrons, the bonds
break down and you have bunch of loose atoms.
Zinc is used for zinc because it is "least noble" ie the most eager to
give up it's electrons, and breaks down the fastest, which actually offers
some protection against galvanic corrosion by other metals in contacts
with it. That's why they use it for zincs!


...If yes, I'm shaking down all my passengers for spare change from now
on.

Shucks, I do that now, and I have a fiberglass boat. If asked why, I say
it's because the compass is so sensitive.

I don't have a permanently mounted compass, but with some of my guests, I
think this ploy might still work.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"DSK" wrote in message
...
Jim, wrote:
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex)
with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from
aluminum?

If they did that, they probably didn't prep it very well either. It'll
flake off on it's own in a year or two, tops.

Aluminum is nice because it's lighter than steel and doesn't rust. But it
does have an issue with electrolysis. Any galvanic corrosion... bad
ground, stray current... can eat a hole thru it in almost no time flat. A
penny dropped in the bilge will go thru 1/4" aluminum in about 2 weeks.
So if your prospective boat has an electrical system, check it out very
carefully and note the cost of any needed repairs/upgrades.

Fair Skies
Doug King


Even in fresh water??? If yes, I'm shaking down all my passengers for
spare change from now on.

Typica liberal, squeeze everything out of them and throw them away!

"Bert Robbins" wrote in message
news

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"DSK" wrote in message
...
Jim, wrote:
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or
latex) with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove
paint from aluminum?

If they did that, they probably didn't prep it very well either. It'll
flake off on it's own in a year or two, tops.

Aluminum is nice because it's lighter than steel and doesn't rust. But
it does have an issue with electrolysis. Any galvanic corrosion... bad
ground, stray current... can eat a hole thru it in almost no time flat.
A penny dropped in the bilge will go thru 1/4" aluminum in about 2
weeks. So if your prospective boat has an electrical system, check it
out very carefully and note the cost of any needed repairs/upgrades.

Fair Skies
Doug King


Even in fresh water??? If yes, I'm shaking down all my passengers for
spare change from now on.

Typica liberal, squeeze everything out of them and throw them away!


Quiet, meat sock.

"Jim," wrote in message
...
I'm looking at a deal on an aluminum boat -- price is good, BUT
somewhere along the line someone painted it (don't know if oil or latex)
with a BRUSH!. What's a good cheap, and safe way to remove paint from
aluminum?


You might try one of the several "peel away" products.