Hunter 40.5 Ground friendly?

[DobbyR]

Hi Folks, This is my inaugural posting.
I need to clean the bottom of a Hunter 40.5 and the options are limited.

The best option is to beach it against a wall. I have never grounded such a big boat. Has anyone done this before? What issues are there? Will it be bow or stern heavy. Any suggestions welcome.
Steve

[JPA Cate]

As I understand it, the big danger is with how the keel to hull joint has been manufactured.
I suggest you PM Kenomac as he got rid of a Hunter because of the keel problems he had.

If you gotta get the bottom clean and are somewhere it is possible, hire a hookah, and clean it afloat. All I hear is that the Hunters are not designed to take the bottom for cleaning or any other bottom contact, either.

Good luck.

[DobbyR]

Looked up a Hookah and it seems to be the thing that I want. However, it will take time to get one. (I am in China) It is not slime on the bottom of this boat, it is a whole ecosystem.

After your mail I am more nervous. The tides are right tomorrow but maybe I should research this a bit more.
Who is Kenomac and how can I contact him?

Maybe contact the manufacturers?

Steve

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by DobbyR

Looked up a Hookah and it seems to be the thing that I want. However, it will take time to get one. (I am in China) It is not slime on the bottom of this boat, it is a whole ecosystem.

After your mail I am more nervous. The tides are right tomorrow but maybe I should research this a bit more.
Who is Kenomac and how can I contact him?

Maybe contact the manufacturers?

Steve

Kenomac is a frequent poster on CF who got rid of a Hunter 45+ because of failure of the keel to hull joint. He posted pictures of the keel repair on the "Fake Boats" thread. He is not the first person on CF to post serious doubts about the Hunter keel to hull joint. You can contact him by clicking on CP at the top near the left of the page, then selecting to send a personal message to him. Next time he's online, he's going to see the request , and most likely will answer soon thereafter.

If the fouling is as you describe it, a large bladed putty knife, or a dry wall spreader will help you scrape off the bouillabaisse clinging to your hull. It can be done free diving, in small bits. If you start from the bottom of the keel, the successive dives are somewhat shallower. Only do a bit at a time, stop for 20 min or so, then do another bit--40 footer, maybe divide it into six or 8 zones. You can do it, but if you get too tired (you'll know), then it's time to do the rest tomorrow, or tomorrow and the day after, but if it were me calling the shots, I would not ground that boat to do it due to the danger of affecting the keel to hull joint. I'd rather get tired and cold.

[robert sailor]

If you are going to clean your bottom free diving let me give you a hint. Take a rope and tie it to the toe rail and then go under the boat and tie it to the other toe rail, have it snug. Now take a breath and pull your self down and you can clean about 3 feet either side of the rope. Move the rope down as needed until finished. Takes about 1/2 the effort of free diving. Your not kicking to keep yourself against the boat and you can stay down longer. Easy..peasy!

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

If you are going to clean your bottom free diving let me give you a hint. Take a rope and tie it to the toe rail and then go under the boat and tie it to the other toe rail, have it snug. Now take a breath and pull your self down and you can clean about 3 feet either side of the rope. Move the rope down as needed until finished. Takes about 1/2 the effort of free diving. Your not kicking to keep yourself against the boat and you can stay down longer. Easy..peasy!

That's a very good plan! Works especially well if there is any current running.

Jim

[DobbyR]

The deed is done! The keel did not push its way through the hull. It sat quite nicely balanced. The request for information from Marlow-Hunter is below.
Viewing the under side raised all sorts of other questions. The rudder is bent a few degrees to port and some sort of seal / gland on the rudder stock has slid down. That can wait for another posting. This boat has had a hard life. It spent three weeks of its life on the sea bed 20m down. All interior ply wood has delaminated. Why, when one pays so much for a boat, are the interiors not made of marine ply?


Hello Steve,
The 40.5 was designed to have 75% of the boats weight on the keel if left for long periods of time. It can take 100% for short periods but would not recommend more than a few weeks.
....
Eddie Breeden
Marlow-Hunter, LLC
Ph - 800-771-5556
Ph - 386-462-3077
Email - aftersales@marlow-hunter.com