Boat Bottom Cleaning in North Miami, FL

Keystone Point's canals are still water behind gates, and a boat there grows a heavy waterline band and slime over the paint between trips. The running gear still fouls hard, because bottom paint can't stick to props and shafts, and that is where the diver's cavitation unit does most of its work. Sans Souci's deep-water canals are much the same, with a little more tidal movement near the bay.

Because the Oleta is the county's only undredged natural river and it drains into the bay right here, the salt-and-fresh mix around a North Miami dock is never quite the same as the neighbor's, and zincs can last anywhere from 3 to 13 months. The report records each anode's percentage so nobody guesses. Boats that run north to Haulover Inlet come home to the same still canal and the same schedule.

The FIU Biscayne Bay Campus sits on the bay inside the city, and Oleta River State Park, 1,033 acres of mangrove with kayak rentals and a bay beach, sits just beside it, so the north end of North Miami's waterfront is more park than dock. The Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve begins at the Oleta's headwaters, and Arch Creek, with its natural limestone bridge site, drains the historic center of the city. The boats we clean are behind the houses in Keystone Point and Sans Souci, where the canals run out past all of that to the bay.

Keystone Point and Sans Souci are gated, so the divers call ahead and send a text right before the visit; then the diver works from the dock, cleans and leaves. The Oleta's fresh water makes the zinc numbers here more variable than on the open bay, so owners who watch their reports see anodes last anywhere in the 3-to-13-month range.

North Miami boats we clean sit on Biscayne Bay, the Oleta River and Arch Creek, and in the Biscayne Canal. Private docks in Keystone Point and Sans Souci (ZIP codes 33161 and 33181) get the same 30-day visit.

A written dive report and photos come with every cleaning.

• Zinc percentage per anode; replacement at 50%.
• Bottom paint condition, so the next haul-out is planned, not guessed.
• Photos of the hull and running gear.
• Anything the diver spotted: clogged thru-hulls, damage, loose gear.

How long it takes and how often. 45 minutes to 4 hours per cleaning, depending on growth and boat length. Every 30 days for a boat that stays in the water; every two weeks in nutrient-rich spots or for a hull without bottom paint.

Full boat bottom cleaning guide