This stuff is 50% solid by volume (75% by weight). I'm always amazed at how a seeming liquid can separate so thoroughly:
The picture above only shows the tip of the iceberg. After a minute or so, I gave up trying to re-mix it in the original can, and dumped it into a plastic bucket -- had to scrape the sides and bottom of the can to get most of the copper sludge out. Once it was all in the bigger bucket, it was much easier to mix it all back together.
So...would your wife let you apply anti-fouling in the living room? Mine does - guess I'm lucky -- though it does have a bit of a stink to it. She also lets me store boat parts here, as you can see:
After the first coat:
Then I cranked up the thermostat on the gas fireplace, to assist in drying this coat. I'll have to stay up late in order to get the second coat on, but it'll be worth it: tomorrow night I should be ready to start joining the two halves into a daggerboard case.
4 comments:
Lets you... come on...its so she knows where you are : )
Tom
F22#45
Hehe...yeah, that could be it after all. Wives can be sneaky that way. :)
Jay
This must be one of the few moments you are together. When are you sleeping Jay? I'm very impressed with your progress and updating your blog so frequently! Believe me, I know what I'm saying. One of the social side effects of the boat building is a diminishing of "bed adventures". At least my wive is sleeping when I go to bed. On the other hand, after my own epoxy works sitting down chatting and reading some building blogs with a good sigar and a beer is also quite relaxing.
Henny
Henny,
Thanks for the compliments - that means a lot, coming from you!
Actually I do get a pretty good night's sleep each night. I am fortunate to have flexible hours at work and usually I work early in the day, something like 6-3 or 6-4. When I get home, it's kiss the wife, grab a quick bite to eat, throw on some grubby clothes, and head out to the garage or tent. How long I work each day depends, but I try to be in bed asleep by 10 or 11. If I get home late, or something else is going on, I still try (doesn't always happen) to get out there for at least an hour or so. I haven't kept track, but I bet in in a year's worth of building I've skipped less than ten days (other than our recent vacation) working on the boat.
I am almost surprised to find after this first year, that I am still enjoying myself on this project . I have no illusions about the quality of my work (I’m sure I'm in the “average” range in that department), but I am excited as all heck to see this boat taking shape under my hands. Launch day, here I come.
I enjoy updating the blog, and don't find it a burden at all. Actually, I've found it to be a useful spur-to-action when motivation starts to flag - not much to blog about until you've actually accomplished something. And sitting down at the computer to write about the day or evening's work -- sometimes with a beer! :) - is often helpful for organizing thoughts and strategies for the next step. Lastly, this will sound idealistic, but I like to think that I’m “giving back” a little by helping other builders with their projects with my pictures and notes.
I'm not super-human though - many things in my life have suffered or changed since I started this project. I was once quite addicted to computer games, especially World of Warcraft; now I could care less (my wife likes that particular change). In past years, we would take 2-3 week vacations; this year I held it to ten days, and was aching to get back to my project the entire trip. My wife has given up on trying to get me to build her a new deck, or remodel the bathroom (I admire those builders with the willpower to get house chores done before starting to build.) Any when my wife goes to visit relatives, it's a rarity anymore that I go along with her. I make lots of excuses, but I think my extended family has come to realize that I'm AWOL for the duration of this project. (I'll admit to being scared, that if I take any long breaks the project may stall...) My wife has been *very* supportive of me so far, but if I screw up this project (recall my cedar-strip dinghy failure) after I've spent all this money, she'll kill me. Fortunately my kids are in their late teens, and are relatively self-sufficient -- I'd have a hard time working if I had to deal with little ones wanting to come outside and play with Daddy and his epoxy.
Regarding lack of "bed adventures"...hmm, speaking just for myself this has not been a problem so far. :-) (btw, not sure how you meant it but to me, "wife sleeping" sounds more like an opportunity than a problem :)).
Well, I rambled on for probably way too long (I really should be out in the garage, cutting my cheekblock plate.). I hope these insights into my boat-building life are useful, or at least entertaining.
Jay
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