[Rhodes22-list] Home Made Peel Away Bottom Paint Remover

[Rob Granger]

Okay guys...  I thought I had posted this here before but I guess I belong
to too many groups and lost track.  On another list I belong to, I read a
post where a guy claimed that peel away bottom paint remover is nothing
more than sodium hydroxide mixed with hydrated lime.  The paper only serves
to keep the paste moist so it remains active.  Well I'm a chemist so that
piqued my curiosity and I gave it a try.

I mixed about 2lbs of potassium hydroxide with a bag of garden lime in a 5
gal PVC bucket and then rolled it onto the bottom of my new-2-me Rhodes.  I
also added some glycerol to keep it moist instead of using paper.  I left
it on for two days and then pressure washed the boat.  Attached are
pictures.  It worked remarkably well.

So here is the thing you need to know.  Lye used for canning or most drain
cleaners are either sodium or potassium hydroxide.  Read the label before
you buy. The lye is probably the most economical way to go here.  Garden
lime costs $4 at Lowes.  So for less than $8 you can strip your old bottom
paint.  To keep the paste moist so it remains active, add 5lb of sugar.
Sugar is hygroscopic and will trap moisture out of the air.

I could not believe my eyes as the bottom paint on the boat just flaked off
with the pressure wash.  And I wish I had known this trick several boats
ago.

Fair winds all,

... the other Rob
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