Used the CaviBlaster yesterday

[fstbttms]

I rented a gas-powered, wheeled CaviBlaster to clean a very heavily fouled, 30' X 60' fiberglass barge yesterday. I had never used this tool before and when we got into the water, I was sure we were looking at a two-day job (which would've been a real bummer, considering I bid it as a one-day gig. ) All 1800+ square feet of this thing was completely covered in a very dense field of large mussels, barnacles and other assorted shelled animals. I can't imagine trying to clean it by hand. Much to my surprise, the CaviBlaster made pretty short work of it. We had every single bit of 3-dimensional fouling growth off the hull in three hours!

We have several floating home communities here and they all pretty much have hulls that are fouled like this thing was. I'm going to do a little marketing and see if I can't drum up some more business that would require using the CaviBlaster. I'm not going to say it's easy money, but it sure as hell is good money!

Cavidyne LLC

 

[DCBC]

Great idea; you should be able to make a bundle... Welcome to the 21st Century BTW.

 

[Rich Keller]

You need to be very careful with that equipment depending on the operating pressure. I worked with a much larger model doing bridge reconstruction that ran at 8,000 to 10,000 psi. That thing would cut through you like a hot knife through warm butter. What is the operating pressure? How much did you charge?

 

[fstbttms]

You need to be very careful with that equipment depending on the operating pressure. I worked with a much larger model doing bridge reconstruction that ran at 8,000 to 10,000 psi. That thing would cut through you like a hot knife through warm butter. What is the operating pressure? How much did you charge?

You sure you're not thinking about a different tool? The biggest Caviblaster unit runs at 3700 psi (the one I used ran at 2200 psi) and even with the big one, you can pass your bare hand through the cavitation flame with no problems.

I charged $1800 for the job.

 

[Rich Keller]

This was not a Caviblaster, it was called a water blaster, not sure if that was a brand name, with a maximum operating pressure of 20,000 psi. The unit was about the size of a small car and when cranked all the way up with a cutting tip I was told it could cut through 1" of steel. We operated it at about 8-10K with a fan tip to clean bridge pilings and it would also remove any loss cement and shine any rebar it touched. You should also be aware of blow back if you point the stream into a small pocket and have the pocket shoot the stream back in your face. This was not a real big problem diving a helmet but on scuba it could cause you a problem. Last inspect the barrel on it for damage before you use it, I had one of these things with a defect in it and it blew up in my face. If I was on scuba it would have taken my head off, as it was it put a long deep gash in the lexan face plate of my helmet.

 

[fstbttms]

One of advantages of the CaviBlaster is the safety of the unit. Working at such low pressures, it won't hurt you at normal operating distances. Plus, I hit myself with the zero thrust blowback several times while using it and it did no harm. This thing won't polish metal but it sure as hell will knock off the fouling. You should check it out:

Cavidyne LLC. Demonstration videos

 

[sterlingMarineService]

Very cool! I had seen this on a suppliers website but wasn't sure it would stand up to the challenge based on all the "safety" remarks! It also claims it wont hurt the anti-fouling paint. Is that true?

 

[Bombay High]

This was not a Caviblaster, it was called a water blaster, not sure if that was a brand name, with a maximum operating pressure of 20,000 psi. The unit was about the size of a small car and when cranked all the way up with a cutting tip I was told it could cut through 1" of steel. We operated it at about 8-10K with a fan tip to clean bridge pilings and it would also remove any loss cement and shine any rebar it touched. You should also be aware of blow back if you point the stream into a small pocket and have the pocket shoot the stream back in your face. This was not a real big problem diving a helmet but on scuba it could cause you a problem. Last inspect the barrel on it for damage before you use it, I had one of these things with a defect in it and it blew up in my face. If I was on scuba it would have taken my head off, as it was it put a long deep gash in the lexan face plate of my helmet.

Rich,
The water blaster is a very different animal to the caviblaster. I have only ever used one that went upto 10,000 PSI and believe me that is plenty to hurt yourself.
The caviblaster is more light duty and designed to be used for private boats with fibreglass hulls etc.

 

[fstbttms]

The caviblaster is more light duty and designed to be used for private boats with fibreglass hulls etc.

No so. In fact, it is not really marketed to the pleasure craft maintenance industry at all. Yes, it can be used to clean fiberglass boats, but it was designed to remove heavier fouling than most pleasure craft ever see. Further, the Caviblaster is available with diesel power units that weigh as much as 2400 pounds. That's not something your average hull cleaner is going to move from boat-to-boat. That's for industrial use.

 

[fstbttms]

It also claims it wont hurt the anti-fouling paint. Is that true?

That's the manufacturer's claim. They have data from Navy testing apparently showing that it did not remove anti fouling paint. On the private sector side, I have seen the report (generated in Italy- don't ask me why) illustrating its use on Intersleek 900, which is not actually an anti fouling paint, but a non-toxic foul release coating that is very easily damaged. The Caviblaster didn't harm it. So how does it work on more traditional, copper or zinc-based paints? Couldn't say for sure.

Having used the smallest Caviblaster unit, I can say that for most hull cleaning applications, it would be more trouble than it's worth. Only a time saver on really foul hulls and running gear. Plus, it's really a 2-man job to move it around and the $13,000 price tag ain't nothing to sneeze at.