On Wed, Jan 12, 2011 at 09:52:29AM -0600, Lee Huddleston wrote:
>
> Stainless would solve both problems but looses its "stainless"
> properties under water. Hmmm?? Having just written that last
> sentence makes me wonder. If stainless essentially becomes mild steel
> under water, so what? My whole boat is mild steel.
So, even if the bit about SS was accurate - which it's not - you've
still got full hull integrity. That's a win. :)
Another list that I'm on is all about building boats in steel. The
designer, Brent Swain, has been using SS standpipes and through hulls
for over 30 years, and has never seen a single problem. I'm a certified
welder myself, and speak from long experience with metal boats as well
as some technical expertise - and his take matches my experience.
> Does stainless steel under water just act like mild steel
> or does it become weaker or more brittle?
SS under water does not act like mild steel. It does not oxidize at any
perceptible rate, while unprotected steel wastes away pretty fast (I've
got bare SS in the water where the standpipes come through as well as my
stern ladder rungs, and a couple of chips below the waterline, so I've
got intimate experience with both situations.) If you think about it,
even assuming that the top .0001" of the SS was being affected in some
way, the rest of the pipe - 1/5" in schedule 80 - is still the same
resilient material it always was. In addition, what you have exposed to
salt water inside the valve is _maybe_ 2 square inches of surface in a
1.5" valve, most of which is the surface of the ball - and you've got
maybe 3 lbs. of SS surrounding that. It's not going to rust away or
collapse.
Where I find SS does very badly is in structures that are 1) stressed
and 2) alternately exposed to salt water and air. I.e., you should check
your dinghy tow point - usually an SS U-bolt - yearly. The one I had on
my previous dinghy failed, and I replaced it with one about three sizes
over. Another permanently solved problem.
Ben
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