Aluminium Boats - Episode 176 - Lady K Sailing

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[@artfulalias3984]

I realize your format is easily digestible, not highly technical. Still it's important to not be incorrect. So please take this as constructive. Corrosion by stray current is electrolysis, not galvanic corrosion. Corrosion through dis-similar metals is galvanic corrosion. Steel and aluminum are both rugged, strong materials. But strength is not a single property, as I believe you understand. Maybe this is another place where your audience could be informed just a little more without being too technical, just as you did when comparing fiberglass high tensile strength to steel isotropic strength. If aluminum is built to the weight of steel, it is stiffer "stronger" globally and takes more energy to crush, dent, hole, buckle, etc. Steel is hard and abrasion resistant as well as "strong" so it is exceptionally rugged overall. That's all assuming aluminum's great strength is not used to make the boat as light as possible, which just like fiberglass, can result in a boat which is strong enough as a whole, but less than rugged in places.

[@timdonkin2588]

Another happy aluminium yacht owner here. Regarding welding the deck fittings on, much stronger than bolting, another advantages is no through hull fittings. It creates a very dry boat, most aluminium boat owners talk about vacuuming their bilge, not sponging it.. Another benefit is that I have no seacocks, many aluminium yachts have standing pipes welded in for water intake (eg, toilet water inlet). There are advantages and disadvantages to every building material, it just comes back to personal preference. Thanks.

[@stevedraycott4289]

Why do Americans say "ALUMINUM" but then say "MAGNESIUM" ?

[@ashleymalamute]

Those Dutch Bestaever aluminium yachts are just plain gorgeous, and tough, but for circa $700k for a 36 footer, it's insane.

[@devroRR]

There is not much maintenance on aluminum boat. What maintenance are you talking about? just you need to change anodes regularly

[@joshua3113]

I would certainly opt for steel over aluminum myself because I used to be a welder. With steel, you were right in saying you could carry around a welder and I could teach almost anyone how to weld steel effectively. Aluminum on the other hand definitely needs to be maintained by a pro. Welding aluminum is so different than steel and you can make a small issue way worse in an instant trying to maintain aluminum hull by yourself. Can you learn to weld aluminum? Sure but it will never be as easy as steel to fix.

[@jfuite]

“More rare than I like my steaks” - shows a picture of a Holstein cow. I guess he is a sailor not a rancher.

[@SAILINGDIRTYBIRD]

Im discovering Aluminum,,, face it, The Caribbean is not a good place to be post Pandemic, upper latitudes are becoming more of a Sane choice.... insulated Aluminum is the way to go i figure....

[@flaparoundfpv8632]

Using sacrificial metal has nothing to do with it being soft. hardness is not an electrochemical property.

[@boganbob2708]

Most working boats in many industries around the world are built in steel or aluminium. Many spend most of their time at sea, in nearly all conditions, 24 hours a day. Hardly any of them choose to use fibreglass.

[@dherman0001]

I lived aboard the Tole More, a 165 foot 3 masted gaff rigged schooner. She has teak decks and an aluminum hull. No complaints whatsoever. From Erie PA to Hawaii, she was a dream! 13 knots, oh yeah!

[@WreakingHavoc18186]

Aluminum boats aren’t as bad as you think. The difference between an aluminum anode and the material used in boat construction is completely different. Quality aluminum boats are built out of 6160-T6. Anodes are a much softer material.

[@NickFabi]

To be clear rust is a type of corrosion (the wearing-away of metal), and to put it simply, aluminium does not rust, but it does corrode. Although these terms are often used interchangeably, they are fundamentally different.

[@mikeh720]

"places you wouldn't take a little fiberglass boat"...you mean like Svalbard on a Pearson 36? 😂

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

I may stand corrected in my assertion but my understanding with regards to the limited number of aluminium yachts on the water is largely due to the limited number of yards around the globe that are capable of producing them. Yes, I'm aware that there are quite a few commercial vessel manufacturers but how many sailing vessel manufacturers are there that possess the plant and skills to build aluminium recreational yachts? Not many would be my presumption.

[@chippyjohn1]

An Aluminium can also be used as a heat transfer for the heat generated by AC or the engines, meaning you do not require sea water heat exchangers that become blocked with barnacles. Aluminium does not burn like fibreglass does, so more safe if a fire does start. Aluminium is recyclable, not just burnt or put into landfill. Aluminium is easier to repair from the outside for temporary fix, just screw on some gasketed sheets. You cant epoxy a hole in a fibreglass boat when underwater.

[@magnusb6311]

Great episode, learned a lot about alu boats.

[@koborkutya7338]

Hey, never heard of engine oil being detrimental to aluminium. Btw one great thing of aluminium to be mentioned is that you can dispose of it properly once the boat lifetime is out. Fibreglass sailboats are piling up at various places of the world because practically it is extremely difficult to recycle them. In Europe we see that people tend to just abandon them at places where the community or some authority will have to remove them and have it replaced on the community's expense. In alu boats it will never be an issue, even if they reach their end of life (which is, as you also said, can be extremely long). I read a statisic that cca 70% of the aluminium ever produced is still in circulation. These big hulls, masts and booms are prime examples of well recyclability (if there is such a word?).

[@mjf1036]

The US coast guard has been successfully running aluminum boats for decades. When I was there in the 80’s maintaining a couple of 41’ we just replaced zincs every year or two along with bottom paint. On the daily and weekly just wash off salt spray to keep corrosion away. Now the Navy has tested and found that much larger ships of aluminum are not the best material for their missions.

[@10lauset]

Distant Shores is documenting their construction of an aluminum sailboat at the moment. But on another note, when I lived on Protection Island in Nanaimo one of my friends had a welded aluminum boat. When he moved off the island he couldn't sell the thing because the sheets were slightly made of different marine aluminum batches and suffered from dissolving rot and couldn't do anything about it. I knew they were finicky but this was a new one. Buy twice as much of the same batch and use half if it? .. Cheers to you ..