I had been contemplating stripping my bottom. That is the boat's bottom... ;-) and investigated the various methods for this big job.

There is the DIY method but having watched a boating buddy labor for almost a week, using a chemical stripper paste, and having him seen give up and spend even more money to have the boat yard finish the job for him, I gladly convinced myself there must be an easier and better way to do this.

So what alternatives do we have to strip bottom paint? Sanding! Blasting? OK, blasting with what? Sand? Nut Shells? All possible but not very appealing.

What about baking soda? That is a lot of cake, you may think and you are right. In my particular case, it was 150 lbs of baking soda!

It is the most environmentally friendly way to get rid off bottom paint without killing the entire neighborhood.

After having received some junk-mail from the C-Map electronic chart people, informing their membership about a 10% discount offered by MassSodaBlast LLC, I rushed to make an appointment because, being a sailor, how could I give-up a 10% discount?

The appointment was made and prior to the day of blasting, MassSodaBlast put a tarp underneath the boat and tented the entire bottom perimeter in preparation for the blasting job.

The blasting job is very tedious and tiring. I watched them do it for a while. There was a guy all dressed-up in a space-suit with a full helmet connected to an air canister, using a very noisy blaster, working long hours to remove the bottom paint. I did not stay around for long but was told that the entire job of removing the bottom paint on my NC40 had taken about 8 hours!

I am writing this up again in February of 2009 during the reconstruction of my web pages. The actual job took place a couple of years ago around 2006.

The end result was quite admirable. All of the bottom paint was removed and the hull was really very smooth to the touch.

Bremer Speck was ready for barrier coating and new bottom paint.

The total cost for blasting and material for my 40 foot hull was $1600.00. Considering the alternatives, I still think this is quite reasonable and I highly recommend this process!

For readers in the New England area, you may want to try contacting MassSodaBlast. They may be able to help you. Call them on 508.337.3525 and tell Dave Rapoza you were referred by me.  Who knows, he may cut you a deal, too!

A picture is worth a thousand words! The blasting sequence is shown in the thumbnail photos here below.
Click on each photo to see a larger view.