Bottom Paint and Growth

[michaelmrc]

heres a question for everyone do mussels and barnicles grow faster on a boat in a marina or one anchored out. i was just under mine yesterday cleaning the hull and it had a full layer of muscles underneath. they came off easy enough but i just had the hull cleaned 6 weeks ago granted the diver did say it was time to repaint the hull. thanks

[zeehag]

yes they do--water has different ways of moving in a marina than in anchorage and stuff hangs around--mine needs to be scraped every 3 weeks, which shows me the paint is gone. as long as is 6 weeks, paint is not dead yet.

[DumnMad]

Depends, some marinas have river water flowing through and growth is reduced.

[mbianka]

Originally Posted by michaelmrc

heres a question for everyone do mussels and barnicles grow faster on a boat in a marina or one anchored out. i was just under mine yesterday cleaning the hull and it had a full layer of muscles underneath. they came off easy enough but i just had the hull cleaned 6 weeks ago granted the diver did say it was time to repaint the hull. thanks

My boat is on a mooring and I was away for a little over a month because of a freelance work gig. Got some before and after video's of what I found when I got back:
THE BIANKA LOG BLOG: PROP TALK
The bottom was slimed up but, looked like a nice sail would take care of that. The unpainted prop well that was a different story.

[Ex-Calif]

My theory is that ablative paints need to be sailed a lot. That's how they work.

Sitting on a mooring with "decent" currents therefor should be better than in a marina with no flow.

Old paint (as OP noted) is a factor. As is the environment - water temps, tendency for growth etc.

It is all in the big mix of fouling factors.

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by DumnMad

Depends, some marinas have river water flowing through and growth is reduced.

Definitely depends... My marina has almost no barnacles and just a little slime. It's in a creek with very little current. But the marina down the road, in a river, has nothing but barnacles and oysters... I think being anchored will depend on the same issues. Marine life, water flow, salinity, type/condition of paint, etc...

You would think being at anchor would automatically have more waterflow and less growth. But if your anchored out in the exact same waterway the marina lives in, not much is going to change between the two. Anchor outside the marina's local ecosystem and it could be a completely different story.

[FSMike]

Interestingly, I was told that barnacle growth is more likely in areas with a current than without. Salt water, not fresh.