one of my 2" thick wormshoe boards bowed due to tension when split from the 2x8

Could you just wrap the keel in metal or is it too curvy? Or would the worms head up the hull then?

like what drives them to the shoe? Do they hear their friends chewing the ez meal?

 

Nothing drives them to the shoe. The shoe is like a replaceable part. The bottom paint fails more likely along a keel's lower edge. Then worms enter and drill tunnels. Some tunnels can get 6 feet long, usually run lengthwise, but I have seen tunnels go up and over. Worms will attack any exposed wood without the bottom paint.

Idea is at haul out examine the worm shoe and replace as needed. Then repaint. Typically don't go past 2 years before another haul and bottom paint cycle.
I went too long so the worms got into the upper keel after eating the wormshoe.

Most of my holes were 1/4 to 3/8 wide and some were 1/2". And the holes run parallel to each other with just a thin section of wood. Somehow worms know there is a tunnel right next to them. But I had some tunnels crossing each other.

I also know some of the worm damage was before my time of ownership.

These worms are clams, they are filter feeders. They have their siphons at the hole entrance, and their mouth parts at the other end of the tunnel. And they just keep eating wood and filter feeding the water, till they die. And when you get more worms, they make more worm babies, they can get super abundant around your wood boat, like an infestation occurs, a population explosion.

 

Wrap in metal would stop the worms. Like using copper.

 

Today I put on the forward most wormshoe, 5 feet long.
Since my wormshoe is 2" thick, I had to cut a taper section as at the bow is only small notch in height for the shoe.
And it curves up here. What I did was cut a split on the table saw about 3 feet in this wormshoe board.
That allows for an easy bend up.

First I used a floor jack to press the middle to the keel and screwed it on. Screwed on the aft most part.

Then moved jack couple times forward and screwed progressively to the end.

Then I used the grinder to taper the sides, as the keel tapers in towards the bow.

Removed the screws on curved part, put the adhesive glue in the cut, and screwed it on.

Fit well to my keel repair
From the notch all the way up to the deck, is a thick stainless half round to protect bow if hitting something, which is one of the last things to put back on after bottom paint.

And I have to unscrew the worm shoe to paint on the bottom paint, then reattach it.
I had to screw it on to establish the glued curve.

 

This am removed it and painted with West Marine bottom paint ablative green, and it is back on.
I shaped the last wormshoe piece, test fit perfect fit and am painting it at home.
Supposed to hit 97 today, heat index 106
So I went to marina at 7 am for couple hours, that's it.

 

Last section attached

 

Please tell me you are not bonding to ablative!

 

No.
The adhesive glue is for wood to wood.
The worm shoe is screwed on to the keel.

 

I did first coat a thin coating of the wood as a sealer. Then painted it. I like the idea of sealing the wood up first. This glue is waterproof, water wont go thru the polyurethane rubber coating.
It is not UV resistant though, the sun will eat this stuff.

 

I am also planning to smear a thin coat of Silicone RTV Permatex gasket maker on the props. In the past I have painted with bottom paint and it does nothing.
I have been reading about prop speed. It is a liquid silicone coating that is painted on underwater metal to keep off barnacles. I thought, why not try the silicone gasket maker!

On clean metal, the gasket maker sticks pretty good.