Sonihull Review- IT DOESN'T WORK!

[fstbttms]

I have posted many times in this forum about ultrasonic anti fouling systems and why I think they are snake oil. I have also freely admitted that to my knowledge, not one of the many thousands of boats my company has serviced over the last 29 years here in the Bay Area has used an ultrasonic system (hence part of my argument about their ineffectiveness.)

Well, all that changed today. We dived a new client's boat, a Catalina 470 that has the Sonihull system installed and running continuously. According to my diver, when I questioned him about the state of fouling on this boat, he said "Pretty bad. Lots of barnacles everywhere." I find this highly ironic as this is precisely the fouling organism these devices are designed to repel. I look forward to providing future reports as we service this boat going forward.

[HopCar]

Fstbttms, back in the seventies there was a company that sold speakers to attach to your hull. You would connect them to a radio and play music to the barnacles. Of course you had to pick the right music to drive the barnacles away. Turns out barnacles like all kinds of music!

[osprey877]

Originally Posted by HopCar

you had to pick the right music to drive the barnacles away. Turns out barnacles like all kinds of music!

FALSE. Barnacles are no different than boat owners. Some only like country, some like rock, others have very eclectic tastes. So unfortunately whatever genre of music you play, there will be enough barnacles attracted to your boat to cause a problem. Best results are obtained by following 7-11’s example and playing classical music. Some people have tried playing top40 classic rock from their dock neighbours boat in the hopes of luring the barnacles to their neighbour, but this frowned on in most marinas.

[KingTide]

Not impossible that the install was not done right. Ultrasound won't go through cored hull by exemple. I have seen considerable difference with VS without ultrasonic system installed. Not sonihull but same technologies.

[markxengineerin]

It would be SO EASY to do a side by side comparison and report the results scientifically, for any of these companies producing these systems. Yet I've never seen such a comparison. Probably because it does not work, but I'd love to be proven wrong.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by markxengineerin

It would be SO EASY to do a side by side comparison and report the results scientifically, for any of these companies producing these systems. Yet I've never seen such a comparison. Probably because it does not work...

Bingo

[Montanan]

Sorry, to say.

Just play Nickelback soundtracks, the key to antifouling lies in the continuous repetition of the sound.

As a side benefit, playing such also aids in keeping other boaters to a distance. One must utilize proper amplification, especially late at night and really early in the morning. Barnicles and boaters need their nocturnal rest so one just needs to interrupt such with vigor.