So, what can go wrong with aluminum?

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by double u

water can get under any of those, corrosion with trapped water (differential "oxygenation") is inevitable. friends had the alloy of the cockpitsole eaten through under the teak...
nonskid paint is the only thing we'd have
(but due to the near-inavailability of second hand aluminium boats-apart from Ovnis - TNB is going to be GRP)

Yup ! Google "Poultice Corrosion"

[Captsteve53]

Just a note and input regarding Tread-master, we used the original Tread-master M manufactured in the UK on a Aluminium work boat and twenty years later there's no reaction or have ever replaced on piece, we used the epoxy two pack recommended glue,

Great Product-guess it all depends as usual on the preparation and quality of laying!or perhaps one of the so called replica's

[Farang]

This is an example of what can go wrong with an alloy boat in the build stage of my recently launched cat from a well known Australian design. Poor welding skill and environmental control leads to voids everywhere and leaks, in this case the integral water tanks in the bilge. What happens when you get a de-registered house builder to build your boat!

My advice to others is to build indoors, employ a skilled fabricator, demand no leaks, grind out and re-weld all voids especially in high load and external areas and withhold final payment until you've performed a sea trial to confirm!

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Farang.

[Seman]

Hello Farang,
was your cat build in Australia or in the Philippines? Launched only recently?

[Farang]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Farang.

Thanks Gord, been an avid reader and sailblog member for 10 years. Former boat was a Valiant, but I figured with 2 hulls I could lose money twice as fast!

[Farang]

Originally Posted by Seman

Hello Farang,
was your cat build in Australia or in the Philippines? Launched only recently?

The hull in Australia, the interior in PH.

[Snowpetrel]

Lamellar Corrosion can affect older aluminum alloys due to the poorer grain structure. I have a few very small patches in the 38 year old aluminium on SP2. And I have heard of it on other similar era boats. Seems the newer marine alloys have this beat.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Farang

The hull in Australia, the interior in PH.

Hmmm.... that you, Daniel?

Jim

[Cherod]

Originally Posted by Farang

This is an example of what can go wrong with an alloy boat in the build stage of my recently launched cat from a well known Australian design. Poor welding skill and environmental control leads to voids everywhere and leaks, in this case the integral water tanks in the bilge. What happens when you get a de-registered house builder to build your boat!

My advice to others is to build indoors, employ a skilled fabricator, demand no leaks, grind out and re-weld all voids especially in high load and external areas and withhold final payment until you've performed a sea trial to confirm!

Dreadful welding