Albert in Baxter's Dry Dock
Albert went into dry dock yesterday and today, after Jon & Ian of Baxter's had pressure washed her, I went over to inspect her. I was very pleased to find that she had survived the last two years very well indeed. As Jon said the hull is in very good condition even after 14 years.
Of particular interest were the anodes which we contemplated changing two years ago. In the end we decided, that since they had lasted quite some time and we planned to get her out of the water again in two years, they would do for the time being. I had occasionally caught a glimpse of them in clear river waters and decided that they still existed, but over the last two years I have remained unsure if it was the right decision. It was therefore with some relief that I found that they were still doing their job but they will need replacing this time. I presume that because the blacking was in good condition they haven't had to work too hard.
Anodes that have done their job
The only negative points appear to be a small chip out of the propeller and a small section where some blacking that has peeled off with pressure washing to reveal bare metal. The latter will be easily fixed but we will have to live with the former.
Prop with small chip
The hinges on the side and stern hatches of Albert were never a strong point and some had started to fail. We are having them replaced with "butterfly" hinges with bronze pins. They look much better.
The painting plan appears to be to put on the first coat of paint on Friday. As another boat painter said to us in 2000 when we had our last boat repainted "we're going to make her look a lot worse before she looks better". She did of course.
