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The metal used in aluminum anodes is actually an alloy and is more active than the aluminum used in saildrive legs. It is the preferred anode material for saildrives in salt or brackish water.

If the marina is in brackish water, you can use aluminum anodes. But if it is straight freshwater, you need magnesium. None of the three anode materials (zinc, aluminum and magnesium) are suited for both salt and freshwater however. That said: "The common anode for fresh water is magnesium. Aluminum is a good “catch all” anode meaning a boat that frequents both fresh and salt has decent protection in either environment. The quality of the anode and the purity of the aluminum or magnesium is also important. On this topic, experience (water type, boat location) is your best reference." https://martyranodes.com/about-freshwater-anodes/

The shaft key.

Oh, I guess I didn't realize that in a huge forum with tens of thousands of members all gathered to discuss recreational boating, that you were talking about all the other vessels on the planet that don't fall into that category. How silly of me.

I never said or inferred that. But in most of the world where recreational boating is a “thing,” it cannot be argued that the majority of those boats live in marinas. Your example of Ireland (a tiny country with only a handful of marinas) is certainly not representative of the rest of the world.

You miss the point. I'm talking about boating the world-over. Certainly you can parse out regions where marinas (and therefore boats that live in them) are few. But as whole, my initial statement is a fact: The very, very great majority of boats that live in the water do so in marinas.

Yeah but let's face it- the very, very great majority of boats that live in the water do so in marinas. And most of those do so year-round.

I'm sure the boatyards would love it if everybody hauled out annually. But unless there is some urgent issue, hauling every three or four years is typical. Certainly most anti fouling paint, properly applied and maintained, will provide good performance for three years and change. And repainting is far and away the most common reason to haul a boat.

There is no OEM recommendation measured in run hours.

In my experience, most Max Prop owners (easily over 99%) never have their props lubed between haulouts and suffer no ill effects. Why would you haul out annually in any case? Or even every other year? BTW-

I told you not to ask.

It is absolutely possible to put too much grease into a Max Prop. Don't ask me how I know.

Max Prop "clones"? That's a new one on me. Do tell...

So good, he had to quote it twice! Unfortunately for this guy (whomever he is), every word I posted is 100% true.

I assure you that if a diver used a wire brush on Trilux 33, he would have taken it down to the aluminum in a matter of seconds. That product is quite possibly the least durable anti fouling paint you can buy and the only reason to use use a cleaning tool as abrasive as a wire brush on it would be to remove the hard growth a missing or otherwise failed coating had allowed to grow. Assuming you are referring to Micron 66, I can also assure you that there is no anti fouling paint that you can buy in California that will be successfully cleaned with a t-shirt or terry cloth rag unless the paint is brand new or nearly so. Certainly not for the life of the paint. While Micron 66 is (IMHO) the best anti fouling paint available in California, as it ages and loses effectiveness, it will eventually need more abrasive cleaning media, even if cleaned monthly. That is the nature of anti fouling paints and to infer otherwise is to admit that you don't know much about in-water hull cleaning.

Not true. Plate anodes are very common on fiberglass boats. Primarily powerboats but they are used on some sailboat models as well.

Word on the dock is that OCSC in the Berkeley Marina are going under and are looking for a buyer.

Minimum of 100% off. You must be in SoCal.

While I hate to see any boatyard go away, I never recommend British to anyone. Least knowledgeable yard when it comes to anti fouling paints I have ever encountered. You are correct. My mistake.

The word on the dock is that British Marine in Alameda is shutting down for good because their landlord has tripled the rent. Anybody else hear this?

...when a customer tells you eleven weeks after his previous service that he can see growth on his keel and that he thinks you skipped cleaning it last time.

Again, most powerboats don’t get enough use to make a difference but those that do get a lot of use and can achieve a decent speed can keep fouling at a minimum. I once had a client with a 45-foot sport fisher painted with Micron 66. He used it a lot and it rarely got dirty enough to where it truly needed cleaning. But where I am, boats like that are few and far in between.

If you think creating and uploading customer-usable videos to YouTube is merely a 3-5 minute process, then you have never done it. And again, we have 700-800 clients being cleaned on 1, 2 or 3 month schedules and I don't have an office staff to do this kind of stuff. While we happily do provide pix or video on request, I simply do not have the desire or capability to produce several thousand short videos every year.