Bring Back the Paddle Steamers
Aquablast UHP equipment and Aquablaster wet abrasive blast systems were the preferred choice during
the restoration of two historic British paddle steamers – the famous Clyde paddler Waverley and the
Tattershall Castle, now a landmark floating pub on the Thames opposite the London Eye.
Both vessels were extensively refurbished on the River Yare at Great Yarmouth at old-established
George Prior Ship Repair. Sadly, the George Prior repair yard closed down on completion of the
Tattershall Castle project.
The Aquablaster pressurised wet abrasive system was used to restore the enormous Waverley
paddle wheels, ventilators and many inside areas where traditional open dry grit blasting
would have created vast quantities of dust.
On her second visit to Yarmouth, the external hull was blasted with Aquablast’s new Superstripper
system, using wet garnet abrasive boosted by UHP water. There was no dust and less than 15 Kgs per
square metre abrasive was required.
This allowed the work to proceed on a pontoon barge on the open river, again something
impossible to do with traditional grit blasting.
The same technique was used to prepare the hull of Tattershall Castle for re-painting
together with Ultra High Pressure (UHP) water blasting at 40,000 psi in areas where it
was preferable not to use any abrasives.
The 240-foot Waverley- the only surviving sea-going paddle steamer in the world - was built in
1947 but now, thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund, has a new lease of life ahead of her carrying
tourists on her favourite River Clyde route in Glasgow “doon the watter” to Rothesay.
Tattershall Castle dates from 1934 and served as a Humber ferry before the Humber
Suspension Bridge made her redundant in 1981.
Aquablast surface preparation techniques have been involved in a variety of restoration projects
involving ships, cars, traction engines and ancient monuments.
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