Steve: My old M15 and the Sage 17 AIR BORN didn't/don't have antifouling bottom paint. neither spent/spend much time in saltwater. the longest my M15 spent was about 10 days. the longest for AIR BORN is 15 days. after this time both boats had slime on the bottom and AIR BORN had one, very small barnacle (hadn't stuck hard, flicked it off with my fingernail). the slime came off easily when taking the boat through a car wash (ie, the you use a power washer wand and 'foaming brush' kind). my M17, SWEET PEA, lived on a buoy in Quartermaster Harbor (Vashon Is.) for about 20 years. she has bottom paint. since i've owned SWEET PEA, she has lived on her trailer excluding times cruising (longest in-water time just over three weeks). if you were to keep a boat, any boat, in the PNW saltwater more than a couple of weeks you need to apply antifouling. it is also best if you apply a barrier coat to the boat before applying anitfouling, if the boat will be in water long-term (more than a couple of months barrier coat is to protect the bottom against blistering, yeah, bottom paint ain't cheap. i bet a M15 would need less than 2Q. a Sage 17 needs just over 2Q. -- :: Dave Scobie :: former M15 owner - www.freewebs.com/m15-named-scred :: M17 #375 SWEET PEA - www.m17-375.webs.com On Thu, Jul 31, 2014 at 12:05 PM, stevetrapp <stevetrapp@q.com> wrote:
Dave, I was surprised to read that you have sailed your M-17 on the waters of Puget Sound. I moved to the South Puget Sound area two years ago and towed my M-15 along after previously having had it on the fresh and cold water of Lake Couer D' Alene in Idaho. I heard admonishment from local boat owners about the damage the waters of Puget Sound can cause, and upon discovering that hull paint runs about $ 400 gallon, have taken the approach that scrubbing and rinsing with fresh water would be a less expensive approach. Have seen your Sage 17 on its trailer near waters of Puget Sound, but did not observe expensive hull paint. What do you do regarding protecting your boat from saltwater? Steve M-15 # 335