Aluminum Boats

We have written a lot about hull construction materials and impact resistance. In this post I relate a true story about when construction strength and impact resistance were dramatically tested right before my eyes.

It is amazing how often people look surprised, and even mildly alarmed, when I tell them that we own an aluminum boat. The next tentative question(s) is almost always about electrolysis and the general longevity of the material.

As the old saying goes, you pay for your pleasures, and that’s certainly true when it comes round to the annual re-fit. The many little jobs that were just too awkward afloat, added to the big ones like antifouling, can all back up and lead to a formidable worklist.

Installing a seacock properly is not a trivial project and that is especially true on an aluminum boat. John takes you through the process of installing a new seacock on Morgan’s Cloud.

Question: I was wondering if you think the engine should be grounded to the hull or not [on an aluminum boat].

To continue our series on different ways to get out voyaging, here is a link to an interesting site about the build of a near sister ship to Hamish & Kate Laird’s Seal, one of the most interesting aluminum boats we have ever seen.

We were out walking on the foreshore here in Nova Scotia a few days ago and came across this remnant of what I’m guessing was a commercial wharf. Clearly it had been in the water for quite a while before it fetched up here in a winter blow.