Ferro Cement Hulls

[emeraldsea]

A great example of what gives ferro boats a bad rep. A proper boat should have a ferro deck intregal with the hull meaning no hull-deck seam. I would guess that was a good point for water to enter and rust the armature which was obviously happening for an extended period. Spacing of the wire seems far apart and were the cross sections wired together properly? A really good build will have each cross section welded, and where is the galvanized wire mesh which is suppost to be on the inside and outside??? Glad this one is where it belongs finally.

For repairs on a proper boat, be sure to use epoxy or bond-all white glue for the cold joint of old cement to new. I recommend type 50 portland and silica sand.

[zuma]

The famed first post, a question for those more experienced with the ferro hull.

You often see ferro yachts advertised as 'Epoxy Sheathed', would this not remove the advantages of a ferro hulls reverse osmosis?

Some also have masts manufactured from steel in a triangular framework. Does this mast style have any particular pros & cons to the cruiser aside from the obvious ease of access to ropes and wires?

[ozskip]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

Difficult to tell from the photo, but something doesn't quite look right. The steel armature looks nothing more than oversized square builders mesh and the netting looks like the wrong type as well as not much of it and all rusted away. And the cement looks like a poor ratio of cement to sand, or the wrong sand or contaminated sand. Can't easily tell, but it shoudln't have crumbled like that and the internal steel should have been better protected. Which leads me to believe that this was not built correctly. I would expect that some visible external signs should have rared their ugly heads before hand. Namely rust. It is almost impossible not to have water hydrauliocly push paint away in blisters from the hull in a case like this. And it would have weeped rust around lower area's of the hull.

CYC man this was the answer you got from wheels back in september 2008 when you first posted the photo i only wish you told the whole story about this boat.

[ozskip]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Bingo, we have a winner.

There was plenty of rust all over the boat for years, but rust-remover and white paint fixed that problem with regular intervals.

Anyway, this is the boat that was docked in my canal for 10 years.
It is now on the bottom of a very deep ocean..RIP.

This may help

[Shanaly]

the only thing i fear, and it is more common in older vessels, is where the hull was not shaken/vibrated during layup. this results in ballast, usually steel pellets, having air gaps to rust in, which causes the keel to bubble and break up. apart from that, and the very wise counsel in the comments above, i love mine and wouldn't have anything else!

[CSY Man]

CYC man this was the answer you got from wheels back in september 2008 when you first posted the photo i only wish you told the whole story about this boat.

Why?

The whole story was on this board for years for anybody looking for info on Ferro Cement boats.

The pictures I posted was another warning to anybody looking to buy a "cheap" boat: There is no such thing..

If you imply I tried to hide or not disclose anything, it is a bit of a stretch, guess you got that from the other guy who accused me of posting "fake" pictures and being on a campaign or mission to bad-mouth ferro boats?
Unfortunately, the pictures are real, no religous following or head in the sand can change that.

To sum it up, I have nothing against a well built and sea-worthy vessel of any brand or any material, but too many dreamers are looking towards cheap boats so as to sail into the sunset for next to nothing and the cheapest boats around are ferro cement.
If all ferro boats were good, strong, and the best kep secret, perfect, but in reality there is some death traps out there: Buyers be aware.

(Yes, yes, there is also death traps built in steel, wood, glass or whatever, but lets start another thread on those with similar pictures, in the meantime focus on the facts: I did not dream up this sh!tty boat or bad-mouth a good one: If the truth hurts, it probably should.)

[samfreeland]

use a mallet to sound the hull by rubbing the side of it in an arc motion back and forwards you will notice as long as the sound it makes remains uniform its ok if the sound changes there may be a repair or problems. torsion cracks are ok as long as there not bleeding.

[atoll]

my old 48 ft hartley tahitian is for sale again if any body is interested in a big cheap yacht in turkey,currently lying in gocek,the current owner spent a lot of money on her.

eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace
photos here

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