Sandblasting the Batfish

[Mark Sarsfield]

Rick,

Over in the Drum forum they mentioned that they can rent a sandblaster for $550/month and someone was donating the sand to them.  They are estimating 2 months to sandblast the whole boat and still being open for visitors. 

We have a huge sand bar out in front of the boat.  Maybe we can get the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge it or give us some sand that they already have dredged. They recommend sandblasting over scraping, because scraping won't remove as much of the paint - and it takes forever.  The sandblasting will take it down to the steel. 

They are also sandblasting and painting the inside of fuel tanks.  Has anyone been inside the Batfish fuel tanks?

[Travis McLain]

I seem to recall Rick saying something about how the company did not want to sandblast the Batfish because it was lead based paint, and they did not want that to hurt the environment or something. But I may be wrong, Rick let me know if I am.

[Tom Bowser]

I believe you can still sand blast even lead base paint. You just have to be more careful to contain the residue and not do it with a lot of wind. When the Drum was put up high and dry 6 years ago they had that to contend with and it does cost a little more to dispose of the sand but it solves the problem for ever.
Tom

[AVGWarhawk]

What is the law on lead based paints?  I believe special handling is involved. I would check with the local EPA on that matter before I let sand and lead based paint fly.

[Mark Sarsfield]

Each state is different, but it's something to look into.  They would treat the sand as "hazmat" because of the lead content, but the military and gun clubs dispose of leaded sand from target ranges all of the time. 

For us it would probably mean putting a huge drop cloth under the area being sandblasted and removing it at certain points in proper containers - drums of some kind. 

Lead paint does hold up to the elements better than other paint and it is still possible to buy outdoor lead paint - something that most people aren't aware of.  It would just require going through the same hazmat situation 30 years later when it gets stripped, again.

[Tom Bowser]

Has it been 30 years since it was last painted? Sherwin-Williams says they have a paint that sholud last 8 years, I will let you know how it holds up. LOL
To,

[Mark Sarsfield]

She looks like it's been that long.  Actually, I think it's been about 20 years.  I seem to remember a lot of work being done on her in the 80's.

What type of paint was Sherwin-Williams offering?  The water-based stuff really doesn't do the job that well, IMHO.

[Tom Bowser]

Really not sure yet but you can bet it should be good because we are going to put up a sign saying it was painted with their paint so they will want it to hold up for as long as possible. It will not be water base and it won't be epoxy, they said the epoxy doesn't hold up to sunlight without an urethane over coat. I will let you know when I find out.

[Mark Sarsfield]

Okay.

[Rick]

Good news and bad news.   The Batfish Memorial Foundation and the Subvets post has determined that the original bid including a water blasting is not a good long term solution.  So I am working on plan anotherone.  I am working with Liberty Auto Restoration for a solution that includes sandblasting the boat.  The first step is that we need to test the paint on the boat and the groudns.  The best possible out come for this will be that the paint is .5m or less lead content and the ground is contaminated.  My rep at Liberty Auto is alread getting some people to step up and donate material.  He is really going to bat for us here.   We need to find someone that is willing to test the soil and paint.  Then we can move onto the sand blasting process.

On a side note.  I am going to need to get some steal donated for the extensive patch jobs that need to be don around the torpedo tubes.  Help me find some resources.

Rick

[Lance Dean]

RICK I'm so glad to see you posting here!  Welcome!

I tell you what would be awesome is if a company like LINE-X would get involved in something like this and use their stuff on a submarine.  It can be color-coded to match anything and can be put on smooth or textured.  It never comes off!

[Rick]

I will check them out.  We are still in need of testing the soil and the paint at this point.  I have a vague idea of how to take the samples,  but we need to see what we are up against before we start striping the paint.   

[Mark Sarsfield]

Does the pipe company next door have sheet metal stock, too?  Since they are "neighbors" I'd hit them up for a donation.  One nice thing about taxes is that companies are always looking for write-offs.

In addition to the 10 outer torpedo doors, some of the superstructure under the deck needs some TLC, too. 

Also I noticed that we still have some auxiliary equipment under the deck.  I'm assuming that they were for mooring to a sub tender or another ship.

if we replace the deck before we strip and paint, I guess we'll have to be very careful about where they aim the sand blaster.

[Rick]

Unfortunately the pipe company only has the pipe.  They have helped out in the past and will be a good source in the future.  our front gate is made from one of their pipes.   

I agree that the ideal solution is to paint before we put the deck down,  However the new decking has been on site for 2 years and this has become a saftey issue.  Also the museum has been inactive on this project for too many years.  I am determined to show Muskogee what a real treasure that they have and that good things are happening here. 

(Ok, I am done on my soapbox now)

[Mark Sarsfield]

Sounds good.  I'm sure that the sandblasting crews will be careful and are experienced with this sort of stuff.  It will be nice lettingt he public have full access to the upper deck, again.  Hell, we'll set up a few tables and serve lunch on the bow! (jk)