sandblasting pontoons

[1983 ercoa 21']

Has anyone here tried sand blasting the crud off the pontoons? What was end result?

 

[alldodge]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Has anyone here tried sand blasting the crud off the pontoons? What was end result?

:welcome: to iboats

You can blast but do not use sand, use soda or plastic, but plastic is costly

 

[robert graham]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Seems like sand would etch/pit the surface and cause future crud to stick more?....How about a strong pressure washer?....

 

[icyveins]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

muriatic acid applied with a weed sprayer, let sit only for a few minutes at a time then hit it with the power washer. worked well for me, and let me tell ya.....the PO didn't do any log maintenance.

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Glad to be here.
I have tried a high pressure washer,the works,acid,wire wheel,grinder with a sand paper type wheel has done the most good. I'm at wit's end with the build up on these rooms the blaster I contacted informed me of the rough texture blasting leaves behind he also said that primer holds very well to it and could paint.I'm. Thinking this is the way to go and forgo the endless battle of dulling toons.i bought this boat from 1st owner and from day one was left on the water so to can image the build up. Was wondering if anyone else has gone this direction and could share pros and cons?

 

[alldodge]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Glad to be here.
I have tried a high pressure washer,the works,acid,wire wheel,grinder with a sand paper type wheel has done the most good. I'm at wit's end with the build up on these rooms the blaster I contacted informed me of the rough texture blasting leaves behind he also said that primer holds very well to it and could paint.I'm. Thinking this is the way to go and forgo the endless battle of dulling toons.i bought this boat from 1st owner and from day one was left on the water so to can image the build up. Was wondering if anyone else has gone this direction and could share pros and cons?

Painting the water line and below is a real goo way to go. I use Interlux Mercon CSC shark white on my cruiser and it stays fairly clean. It's design to work with boats that are trailered and cleaning it is real easy. Still need to use primer

 

[gm280]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Glad to be here.
I have tried a high pressure washer,the works,acid,wire wheel,grinder with a sand paper type wheel has done the most good. I'm at wit's end with the build up on these rooms the blaster I contacted informed me of the rough texture blasting leaves behind he also said that primer holds very well to it and could paint.I'm. Thinking this is the way to go and forgo the endless battle of dulling toons.i bought this boat from 1st owner and from day one was left on the water so to can image the build up. Was wondering if anyone else has gone this direction and could share pros and cons?

Well if your main goal is to paint it after removing the "crud", why not just use the muriatic acid and power washer and then move on to priming. I mean if you can't remove the "crud" enough to satisfy your needs then prime and paint. Save the sandblasting step because it would really not do anything for the final finish anyway. If the "crud" is indeed that hard to remove, it will not come off after priming and painting either... Just move on to sanding and prime and paint... JMHO!

 

[Silver Eagle]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

A friend of mine had a 28ft pontoon boat. One day he decided to take it to Philadelphia to have the toons sand blasted. Well he got the boat back a week later, put it back in the water tied it up next to his cabin and went inside for lunch ,when he went back to the boat it was gone. Seems that while he was eating his boat sank in 10 foot of water. Talk about something that was hard to get out of the water.

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I have my concerns about this very thing but I have found someone in my area that has alot of experience with blasting aluminum and does not stay in once place long enough to push through or heat the aluminum to warp it which would crack welds. I also fully intend to pressure test my toons after he's done.thanks for sharing that story I knew there would be one along them lines. So after getting the toon out what did he find had happened to make it take on water? What process was required to repair it ?

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Well everything I have heard scared me out of sandblasting the crud off I'm going to try a different route with different grits' of sandpaper on a belt sander starting with a heavy grit and finish with a lighter grit as I get closer to the aluminum. Now if this weather would ever warm up I'll get started

 

[gm280]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Well everything I have heard scared me out of sandblasting the crud off I'm going to try a different route with different grits' of sandpaper on a belt sander starting with a heavy grit and finish with a lighter grit as I get closer to the aluminum. Now if this weather would ever warm up I'll get started

There are a lot of thread on here that deal with polishing aluminum out. And their results are truly amazing. Maybe you should search for them and read a few before starting your sanding effort. I'd skip the belt sander and use a DA or orbital sander myself. A belt sander can leave very deep lines in the aluminum if not careful. Orbital sanders will not do those things and you can control the work a lot easier. JMHO!

 

[WaterDR]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

A little chemistry lesson guys....considering I am an indistrial water engineer by trade and have metalurgy experience....it all comes down to one thing: You need to know what you are trying to remove. "Crud" is not a technical term. We all sorta know what you mean, but removing an organic deposit is completely different than say, removing oxidized metal.

So, without getting into too much technical jargoon, water deposits are typical removed with an acid, and organic matter with caustic and/or mechanical action. So again, what you are removing if important to know.

Second, products like Shark Hide are useless on an AL boat that is left in the water. Don't waste your time.

If you care about the appearance of the toons, clean them and don't leave them in the water....ever. Otherwise, the aluminum will change color....it is supposed to....this is how aluminum protects itself and prevents further corrosion. Every time you acid wash the pontoons you are removing metal AND the protective layer.

If someone left organic matter on the pontoons for an extended period of time, you might actually have problems with under-deposit corrosion from acid producing bacteria that live under the organic material. This will look like large pits. What you think you are removing might actually be alum that appears raised when in fact, it is the actual metal surface....hard to tell w/o photos.

Anyway, thats my $0.02. IMO, people worry FAR too much about oxidized tubes....they are supposed to look like that.

Take pictures and post. That might help me.

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I have read alot of threads about removing this deposit that is left on the toons from being kept in the water it's whole life or at least the biggest part of it.
I have used a wire wheel on it in some small areas that took alot of time and the aluminum looks good under the unknown growth. I understand a belt sander leaving lines or groves in a round toon but my toon is a ercoa that has hex toons.
I have tried about everything I have read I'm down to the elbow grease that everyone talks about.
if there is something else I haven't read please share? I'm not sure what the growth is if it helps it came from Bella Vista lake in Arkansas. I'm pretty sure it's a shell lake meaning shell rock. Any helpful information is greatly appreciated

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I'm unable to upload pictures from my phone and this is the only internet access I have due to living in the country

 

[WaterDR]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Funny...in the last two years, I have been to China, Siberia and Mongolia....my phone and internet access always worked. But there are still places in the US where it doesn't. Go figure.

All I can say is this....don't kiil yourself, but if you should get the chance to get photos that are good quality, I may be able to make an assessment for you. Then again, sometimes pics don't help much. A microscope and some basic chemistry tests can though.

 

[WaterDR]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I have read alot of threads about removing this deposit that is left on the toons from being kept in the water it's whole life or at least the biggest part of it.
I have used a wire wheel on it in some small areas that took alot of time and the aluminum looks good under the unknown growth. I understand a belt sander leaving lines or groves in a round toon but my toon is a ercoa that has hex toons.
I have tried about everything I have read I'm down to the elbow grease that everyone talks about.
if there is something else I haven't read please share? I'm not sure what the growth is if it helps it came from Bella Vista lake in Arkansas. I'm pretty sure it's a shell lake meaning shell rock. Any helpful information is greatly appreciated

If its a mineral deposit, acid will take it off, pure and simple. Its just a matter of how strong you want to go, energy, and comtact time. You could try some lime away in a small area, but any phosphoric acid or especially muriatic acid (HCl) should remove ANY type of water deposit that any lake could deposit unless you somehow have a load of silica in the water and it was baked on. But even them, HCl should do the trick. If HCl does nto work, then I suspect what you have is NOT a water deposit.

If you have access to a standard water hardness test kit, there should be some 1:1 HCl in the kit. If there is, put a few drops on the material you wish to remove and if it bubbles....then you are realeasing CO2 and you have a hard water deposit consisting of a carbonate. If it does not bubble, then you do not.

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Well the weather finally straightened up for a day or two around here. I un bolted my goons turned them upside down and took the belt sander with 80 grit after the crud that has grown on them since 1983. I am very pleased it took about an hr to knock it all down and only one belt now to step to a lighter grit ( tomorrow) I do have a little corrosion were the water line is . What can I do to fill it in ?

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I'm currently looking into a product called por-15 to coat my goons with to stop further corrosion and add protection

 

[1983 ercoa 21']

Re: sandblasting pontoons

Well done some more sanding last night on the toons this stuff was thick and hard .
I'm making headway and see the light at the end of the tunnel lol now starts the slow process of the sanding with thefine grit.

 

[WaterDR]

Re: sandblasting pontoons

I'm currently looking into a product called por-15 to coat my goons with to stop further corrosion and add protection

POR 15 is a great product, but a big pain in the arse to apply correctly. I don;t think its designed for submereged marine use. I have experience using the product to restore a Jeep. Prep work is the key to the stuf and you have to work with it under ideal conditions and follow all the instructions. Don't get it on your skin or you will have a tatoo for life. Also, it is very expensive. It willl take many hours and will be pretty costly to coat pontoons with the stuff and frankly....not sure how it would hold up in constant contact with water. If I were you, I would contact the company.