Rust Prevention

[Bransher]

Several members have mentioned using POR-15, and I remember one member writting that he was going to try Rust Bullet.
Does anyone have an opinion on which is better?
Rust Bullet claims in their advertising that they are better, but what else would you expect them to say?

I dipped my trailer into the brine for the first time 3 weeks ago and I am already seeing some of the results.

[bastonjock]

is there a product in the States called hammerite?its the best coating i know for holding up against corrosion,a couple of small anodes on the trailer might work a treat too

[kmclemore]

Yes, we do now have Hammerite here in the States, but sadly it's not the same stuff as in the UK and elsewhere. The non-US stuff uses trichloroethane as a solvent base, while the US stuff uses methylbenzene as a solvent base. It makes a huge difference, if you ask me - the US stuff is not as good as the UK/etc. Fortunately I still have a lot of UK Hammerite in stock that I brought over - back when bringing that stuff on a plane was legal - and I use it *very* sparingly for restorations only since I know I can't replace it. But you're right, it's really great stuff.

As for POR-15, that is also a very good coating. I don't know about "Rust Bullet", so if it were up to me I'd go with the known quantity, POR-15. I've never seen it fail.

[bastonjock]

mmmm wonder if they will change the formula over here? all paint has to be water based except in special circumstances.

on a completely different tack,kevin you would have been shocked at last nights BBC top gear program,they had Lady Penelopys car on it,and its no longer a Rolls Royce,the one for the new movie is a "FORD" can you imagine it,the old girl is driving a stretched fiesta

[Bransher]

Thank you gentlemen for the information.

I would rather have had a galvanized trailer instead of the painted finish. Even if it had been offered as an option I would have payed the extra for it.
I wonder on average how long the painted trailers last when used continually in salt water assuming you rinse after use and touch up with spray paint occasionally?

[kmclemore]

on a completely different tack,kevin you would have been shocked at last nights BBC top gear program,they had Lady Penelopys car on it,and its no longer a Rolls Royce,the one for the new movie is a "FORD" can you imagine it,the old girl is driving a stretched fiesta

Sigh... yes, it appears you are right:

Original car - modified Rolls Royce:


New car - modified Ford Thunderbird:

[Bransher]

The renown Lady Penelope and her Ford.

I am not familiar with her. I spent all of my time watching this guy.

[Boblee]

We have a product here called Ozspray I was given a sample can by their rep and to say I am impressed would be the understatment of the year.
I will be galvanising my trailer but this stuff will still be used on anything that goes near the water and even works as a skin conditioner.
The main ingredient is lanolin and where other products also use lanolin use a petroleum base which evaporates this one doesn't, the rep said it would migrate from cold to hot areas and he was right and it just doesn't budge in water.
Been meaning to check out their website but haven't had time yet, they do export OS www.woolube.com.au

[bastonjock]

Thank you gentlemen for the information.

I would rather have had a galvanized trailer instead of the painted finish. Even if it had been offered as an option I would have payed the extra for it.
I wonder on average how long the painted trailers last when used continually in salt water assuming you rinse after use and touch up with spray paint occasionally?

my concern with painted trailers being dipped in salt water is that whilst you can fight off the corrosion on the outside,what happens to the bare inside?

my trailler at 6 years old shows no signs of corrosion,its been hot dipped galvanised,i also be having it checked by ultrasound for any internal corrosion.

Imho anodes are a must with painted trailers,try and find a way to inspect the insides also

[Bransher]

bastonjock wrote:

Imho anodes are a must with painted trailers,try and find a way to inspect the insides also

The way I understand it is that the anodes are the sacrificial metal that will disintegrate by means of galvanic corrosion when the object is immersed in seawater. Since the trailer is only in the water for a few minutes while launching or recovering, I don’t think they would be necessary.

bastonjock, you also said that you had your trailer hot dipped galvanized. Can you tell me what the cost was to have this done? Also, who does your ultrasound testing and how is it done?

[davidbagnall]

On my old 14 foot catamaran I used fish oil (which stunk ) but did a fantastic job keeping rust at bay. I see there is now oderless fish oil which I was thinking of using...
Has anyone had any experience with it?

[kmclemore]

On my old 14 foot catamaran I used fish oil (which stunk ) but did a fantastic job keeping rust at bay. I see there is now oderless fish oil which I was thinking of using...
Has anyone had any experience with it?

One can only wonder where they find odorless fish!

[Lease]

On my old 14 foot catamaran I used fish oil (which stunk ) but did a fantastic job keeping rust at bay. I see there is now oderless fish oil which I was thinking of using...
Has anyone had any experience with it?

I 'fish oiled' my trailer about 12 months ago. All going well. Used the fish oil as a base, and then painted with killrust type paint ver the top.

I got the stuff that they sell in aerosol cans. Took about 5, or six as I recall. I got mine from one of the cheappie discount stores in Melbourne, but I'm sure you could get it at Supercheap Autos, or whatever.

The brand that I got is called Australian Export, by Motor Mate products. No website that I can find.

[bastonjock]

bastonjock wrote:

Imho anodes are a must with painted trailers,try and find a way to inspect the insides also

The way I understand it is that the anodes are the sacrificial metal that will disintegrate by means of galvanic corrosion when the object is immersed in seawater. Since the trailer is only in the water for a few minutes while launching or recovering, I don’t think they would be necessary.

bastonjock, you also said that you had your trailer hot dipped galvanized. Can you tell me what the cost was to have this done? Also, who does your ultrasound testing and how is it done?

with regard to the anode question,the minute that you put your trailer into sea water,there is a corrosive effect.If you want to know how efficient an anode is then i suggest trying a simple experiment,get two pieces of steel,sand paper them up a bit untill they are both shiney or have a shiney area,attach an anode to one and chuck both in sea water.,wait 24 hours and retrieve.I used to work as an inspection diver on the oil rigs and one of the things that you had to study for the CSSWIP qualifiacation was the "Galvanic series" what it means is that a more noble metal will sacrifies its self to protect a less noble one.If you have a steel hull and a brass porp,the hull will sacrifies itself to protect the prop,so to protect the steel you need to put anodes in with it (Zinc),the corrosion all comes about through the flow of Ions between the metals.

in order to have your trailer checked by ultrasound,you would have to find an engineer that does that sort of stuff,i have a guy come round every year to inspect my compressor for my business and as he charges by the hour or part thereoff,i get him to check the trailer.

The hot dipped process is done by the trailer companys over here,by its name the process is to dunk the trailer into hot galavnic paint,you can get "galvafroid" paint over here and as its name suggests its cold gavanic paint,hot dipped is a better process as the cold stuff tends to be applied by either gun or brush and you can always miss a bit.

[tangentair]

I just read the "directions for those who do not like to read directions" on that POR-15. How would you paint a trailer? Strip it completely first? and how would you get the stuff(s) inside the box frame?????????