Make a big toot again by clearing seagull scum out of a boat air horn

Charles Beddingfield makes his boat air horn loud again

TAGS:

I take a dim view of seagulls and they undoubtedly look upon me with contempt, if the state of the boat air horn is anything to go by.

They mug me for my ice cream and if I leave the Tudor Rose unattended for a fortnight, it takes half a day to clean up their wretched mess, which even affects the boat air horn.

A boat air horn

Tudor Rose’s long boat air horn. Photo by Charles Beddingfield

At the end of my budget when refitting the Tudor Rose, I bought a cheap air horn from Amazon.

It’s not of marine quality but has a powerful compressor and a long trumpet that was really designed for 44-ton trucks to scare lesser fry on the motorway.

I once gave what I intended to be a tiny toot on it to let a paddleboarder know I was approaching. The resultant mighty trump echoed from the cliffs and blew the poor lady clean off her board.

But when I demonstrated the boat airhorn recently to my young nephew, though we were both deafened by the raucous air compressor mounted overhead, the trumpet issued no more than a frightened whimper.

Well, serves you right for buying cheap tat, I thought.

Clogged-up boat air horn

Investigation revealed the trumpet was actually fouled internally with the detritus of a seagull’s banquet.

I presume they smash their crabs on the edge of the trumpet and simultaneously defecate right in front of it, and since the boat naturally lies head to wind on her mooring the trash gets blown up the spout where it dries like corrosive cement.

I dismounted the trumpet and took it home for attention.

Removing the rear cover plate (five screws) and plastic diaphragm revealed the seagull waste had penetrated every crevice within the trumpet and built up on the diaphragm, stopping it from working.

The end plate of a boat air horn

The horn’s end plate is held on with five screws, some of which had seized. Photo by Charles Beddingfield

After cleaning out the trumpet with a bottle brush and copious rinses of fresh water fortified by a dose of disgracefully foul language disputing the parentage of seagulls generally, I cleaned the diaphragm itself, cut a new gasket for the end cover from the side of a cornflakes packet, reassembled the horn and tested it with a blast from a bicycle pump.

This time it nearly blew the roof off the garden shed.

a fouled boat air horn

There’s not much inside, just a plastic diaphragm that was fouled with seagull mess. Photo by Charles Beddingfield

When my ears stopped ringing and I had assured the neighbours there was no dire emergency, I made a canvas bonnet for the mouth of the trumpet to stop the seagull’s mess from entering.

However, this rather muted the sound, so I later made another out of a supermarket net veg bag, which keeps the trash out but lets the horn speak at full volume.

A canvas bonnet looks good, but a supermarket net veg bag is better for sound. Photo by Charles Beddingfield

Next time a seagull lands on my wheelhouse I’ll blow the thing overboard with a rollicking blast.

Moral of the story?

est your horn or it might not work when you really need it.

And if you buy a similar instrument it’s worth removing and greasing the screws to stop them from seizing in their threads. I had to drill the heads off some of mine.

 

 

Want to read more articles like Make a big toot again by clearing seagull scum out of a boat air horn?

A subscription to Practical Boat Owner magazine costs around 40% less than the cover price.

Print and digital editions are available through Magazines Direct – where you can also find the latest deals.

PBO is packed with information to help you get the most from boat ownership – whether sail or power.

        • Take your DIY skills to the next level with trusted advice on boat maintenance and repairs
        • Impartial, in-depth gear reviews
        • Practical cruising tips for making the most of your time afloat

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter