AS SEEN IN THE SEPT/OCT 2006 ISSUE

I mean come on; wouldn't you rather be fishing instead of scraping?

For inboard boaters, marine growth is the bane of boating. Barnacles, tube corals, and now zebra mussels pose a major threat to vital running gear, especially propellers. To address the problem, an innovative solution has recently hit the market, an epoxy based antifouling coating that has undergone years of testing in the warm, nutrient rich waters of South Florida. It is not only EPA compliant, but also purportedly contains no green house gas causing volatile organic compounds. Applied as a powder coat, it cures to a hard, ultra-slick finish that is both self-cleaning and maintenance free. What more can a captain ask for.

In May of 2005, this unique powder coating was applied to one of the propellers on a Luhrs 41 ft. convertible, Office Hours, while leaving the other prop completed untreated. The first thing noticed was that the Cummins electronic readout indicated a five to seven percent decrease of load on the protected prop, suggesting less hydrodynamic resistance.

Six months later in October, after the boat was run hard for three months and then allowed to site for three months, the vessel was hauled to see how the two props compared regarding marine growth. Not surprisingly, the bare prop had a jungle of algae and barnacles flourishing on its blades. However, those conducting the test were even more surprised to see that although the coated prop was bare of any marine growth, the treated surfaces had partially eroded, primarily along the leading edges of the individual blades. The product’s developer, Matrix Engineering Concept’s Jack Thygesen, explained this is normal, indicating heavy usage, and pointed out that the coating was intact in the lower pressure areas where growth is most likely to occur. Interestingly, despite the slight erosion, electronic readouts continued to reveal less loading on this prop.

The innovative product we’re discussing is called Mussel Buster Propeller Protection®. It’s a new, recently patented, environmentally friendly, and very effective way of keeping your inboard boat’s running gear in “Ready to Run” condition. This keeps you in your boat instead of under it, which is the goal of every boat owner. Mussel Buster® has routinely experienced multi-season life cycles which match up against some of the most effective, and most expensive, bottom paints on the market. Because of Mussel Buster’s unique technology and distinct properties, it is not sold to the general public as an over-the-counter running gear or bottom paint. The application requires specialized equipment only coating professionals have access to. Therefore, what is offered to the general public is the actual coating process. Propellers being delivered for coating require a standard report generated by a computerized scanning system, so that the coating applicators are assured that the propeller(s) is stress-crack free and in top overall condition. The computerized scanning and strict quality standards are what make Mussel Buster® unmatched in performance and durability. Once the coating is applied, four years of extensive testing in the harshest of conditions have shown that it greatly increases a propeller’s performance over an uncoated one. Props are the only hardware items that require a visit to you local specialist, whereas struts, shafts, rudders, intake baskets, etc., can receive the specialized powder coating without any additional testing.

During the application of the Mussel Buster®, there are no volatile organic compounds, known as VOCs, emitted into the environment, unlike virtually all prior technology which often contains several pounds of VOCs that evaporate as solvents into the air, contributing to the greenhouse gas effect.   

Mussel Buster® can be applied to propellers, rudders, trim tabs, suction screens, scoops and metallic bow thruster props made from all types of materials except aluminum, fiberglass, and plastic. Coated products have proven to reduce the load on your engine(s) because the finish is ultra-smooth, thus reducing frictional resistance through the water. 

On top of the load reduction, Mussel Buster® is also resistant to marine organism fouling; so when you get into your boat after weeks or months of sitting, and you push the throttles forward, nearly all the growth which has settled on the props washes completely off. A number of boat owners have reported that their boat sat for as long as six months, and they were still able to simply wash the wheels clean with nothing more than a few turns of the engine. The following lists some of the major attributes of this extremely durable and extremely effective product.

Applying the specialized powder coating…

• Saves you money, because your wheels are always clean
• Reduces frictional resistance of the propeller through the water by approximately five to seven percent
• Reduces fuel consumption
• Is environmentally friendly
• Significantly reduces cleaning time
• Reduces the need for diving services to clean running gear
• Eliminates electrolysis erosion from props and rudders
• Reduces general boat electrolysis by encapsulating major metal surfaces exposed to seawater
• Makes cleaning bow thrusters a snap

MUSSEL BUSTER® a registered trade mark of Matrix Engineering Concepts, Inc. and continues to be the only multi-season marine running gear protection for the boat owner who is serious about performance and efficiency.

This specialized powder coating was proven in the tidal waters of Martin, Palm Beach and Broward County, Florida, which all boat owners know are some of the harshest waterways in the world to prove a point about anything. With South Florida's warm tropical climates, test boats were moored in some of the worst areas in the country for barnacles, tube corals, and other performance robbing marine organisms.

The following are just a few of the individuals who took part in the initial testing:

• Herb Jarrett, Treasure Coast Propeller, Inc., Stuart, FL.
• Bruce Melnik, VP, Boeing Space Coast Operations, Merritt Island, FL.
• Carl Ring, Former Pratt & Whitney Product Engineer, Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
• David Gresham, Yacht Broker, Jacksonville, FL.
• Captain Gerhard Badecker, NAMS - CMS, Pompano Beach, FL.

To date, more than 200 varying sets of propellers, rudders, trim tabs, bow thrusters and suction screens have been coated and tested. A high percentage of users are repeat customers, many of whom are seeing multi-season performance with only a moderate scuff sanding at haul-out to revitalize the ultra-smooth surface. The team at Matrix tell me they continue to receive numerous accolades regarding Mussel Buster’s® performance. In all honesty, they say they also dealt with a few complaints regarding pattern wearing, however, these same individuals have never complained about the ability of Mussel Buster to protect their submerged hardware. Pattern wearing is caused by hot spots and cavitation on the blade faces and hub. Powder coating will wear in these areas in some cases, and should be considered normal; however, owners have seen only insignificant fouling even on bare metal still surrounded by the coating. Mussel Buster® is not and has never been billed as "armor plating." However, Mussel Buster is, when applied correctly, an extremely tough coating that significantly reduces fouling which makes cleaning, if necessary, a snap, and keeps you in your boat rather than under it.

Finally, natural reef formations off South Florida are shedding at an alarming rate, as much as 40% over the last ten years. That's right. In only ten years, as much as 40% of the reef system has been lost, possibly forever as reported by Reef Relief. Some contributing factors are the high release of toxic materials from bottom paints, and nitrogen rich run off from farm land fertilization and live stock waste. Matrix Engineering Concepts, Inc. has no control over farm land fertilization or live stock run off, however, they do help lower toxic materials given off by anti-fouling paints to the ocean and VOCs to the air we breathe. To my knowledge, Mussel Buster® is the only propeller protection coating that has no VOCs. To that end, we hope that anyone who views this will consider all of the benefits, environmental and functional, of utilizing Mussel Buster® to protect their boats.

For more information or to locate an application specialist near you, contact:

Matrix Engineering Concepts, Inc.
West Palm Beach, Florida
1-561-848-1288
www.MusselBuster.com

Captain Joe Ternyila has been fishing and boating from Maine to the Caribbean for over 30 years. Licensed to 100 tons along with a commercial towing endorsement, Capt. Joe’s specialties lie in operating and maintaining inboard powered vessels ranging to well over 100 ft.

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