Damaged Whaly Scrapped in Havant

Plastic Whaly Boat

This job for a local sailing club in Havant presented a unique challenge involving a modern casualty: a Whaly boat. These plastic, rotationally moulded tenders are known for their resilience, but even they are susceptible to old age. This particular Whaly had suffered a severe impact, resulting in a large, irreparable split down the side of the hull. It was beyond the point of welding or patching and was immediately deemed unfit for use as a safety boat. It was probably as a result of so many years or use and good service that the hull eventually started to give way.

The sailing club needed the boat gone promptly to make way for a brand-new replacement safety vessel. However, the club’s boat park suffered from typical tricky access, with narrow paths and limited turning space, making it impossible to manoeuvre a large vehicle or trailer close enough to simply lift the casualty out whole.

Full of Rainwater

Compounding the problem, the damaged Whaly was completely full of rainwater. The plastic hull, once buoyant, was now an extremely heavy, waterlogged mass, which made dragging or lifting it intact an unfeasible and dangerous operation without significant machinery.

Given these constraints, the Boatbreakers team made the decisive call to chop the boat on site. This process involves using specialised cutting equipment to safely section the plastic hull into smaller, manageable pieces. This approach is highly effective for polyethylene and polypropylene boats like the Whaly, allowing for quick, contained disposal.

Irreparable but Recyclable 

The team systematically sectioned the hull, allowing the accumulated rainwater to drain safely. Before loading the plastic pieces onto transport. This ensured maximum efficiency and minimal disruption to the busy sailing club. The irreparable Whaly was removed piece by piece, freeing up the essential space needed for the club’s new safety boat and providing a responsible end-of-life solution for the damaged plastic vessel. As the hull is entirely made of plastic this can be sent to be 100% recycled which is always a good outcome.