Bottom Paint

[tigerregis]

I've read Fastbottoms on almost every marine site I frequent or once did. Give him credit for maintaining his POV for many years. Often I've disagreed with him, but when I have a dental problem, I don't go to a proctologist. He has put his credentials here, can anybody here match or outdo them? Anecdotal stories are not evidence. His advice is not to sell anything, but to assist owners in husbanding their boats with good stewardship.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by jacob30

A thin layer of algae biofilm does not need cleaning I would argue.

It depends on what your needs are. A raceboat owner isn't going to want a thin layer of anything on his hull. Again, if the bottom gets foul to the point that the growth can't be easily wiped (not scrubbed) off with carpet or a white pad, you have waited too long and are going to remove paint unnecessarily when you do clean it.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by tigerregis

I've read Fastbottoms on almost every marine site I frequent or once did. Give him credit for maintaining his POV for many years. Often I've disagreed with him, but when I have a dental problem, I don't go to a proctologist. He has put his credentials here, can anybody here match or outdo them? Anecdotal stories are not evidence. His advice is not to sell anything, but to assist owners in husbanding their boats with good stewardship.

I think I love you.

[fstbttms]

Interesting- one of my fellow California Professional Divers Association board members e-mailed this to me just now as part of a discussion we were having about a new anti fouling technology that has apparently been successfully tested in Florida and is now going on a boat in San Diego:

"Most of the east coast is laden with brackish water. Similar to the Delta in California. The primary growth in those Florida areas are barnacles which are seasonal and moss and silt. I did a "field week" there a couple of years back and it was surprisingly light to moderate growth. Like they had hull cleaning infrequently (2 to 6 months intervals). However, boats do not paint as much there either. More like 3 years as opposed to 1.5 like they do in all of California. So the hulls in general are more nasty but you never see inches of accumulation like in our back yard. Even in SF Bay the growth is heavier than in Florida. But I would liken the patterns to that area in California with the exception of the seasonal barnacles. These are a complete set of different circumstances differentiating growth patters and it is not at all how these last emails are characterising the maintenance and growth in Florida as opposed to Ca. "

[MarkSF]

I can see the fouling on my rudder from the dock. With Pettit Trinidad SR and two coats of it, after 2 months it's looking pretty dirty. I can also feel the boat starting to get a little sluggish.

BTW, I am now glad I went with blue paint. On black you can't see the fouling.

This is in SF Bay.

I guess my attitude is that bottom cleaning every 2-3 months is one of the best deals compared to all the other costs of boat ownership, especially if I get even part of the cost back in terms of extended bottom paint life.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by MarkSF

I guess my attitude is that bottom cleaning every 2-3 months is one of the best deals compared to all the other costs of boat ownership, especially if I get even part of the cost back in terms of extended bottom paint life.

Words of wisdom. And I don't say that because you are a customer.

[MarkSF]

Don't see it as an excuse to put your rates up

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by MarkSF

Don't see it as an excuse to put your rates up

Damn! Busted!

[Dreaming Yachtsman]

As most people know and some have stated here quite emphatically, bottom fouling rates are highly dependent on location and usage patterns of the boats. Thus, my recent experience cruising in the US Virgin Islands won't directly apply to buxomwench8's situation, even though it does answer her specific questions.

Having had our first boat in San Diego bay for a dozen years, I definitely would recommend painting on your upcoming haulout. Our boat was cleaned monthly and the paint lasted a couple of years. After that, our cleaner started charging us a surcharge because she was spending extra time cleaning.

Bottoms on our current boat were painted last November with Micron 66. When we hauled out last month after cruising USVI and Puerto Rico for 6 months (mostly on mooring buoys or at anchor and didn't stay in one place more than 10 days) it didn't need pressure washing because it was so clean. A few barnacles had just started to grow on the props but the bottom was perfectly clean except for a light film at the water line which wiped off easily.

[MarkSF]

Sounds similar to my experience in SF Bay. I got nearly 3 years out of the last paint job but the paint really was on it's last legs for the final year, in need of very regular cleanings. Anything beyond 2 years is a bonus in California.

[HopCar]

"Bottom line (wherever your boat lives)- anti fouling paint should be cleaned when it begins to get dirty. This assures that the gentlest cleaning media can be used, thereby preserving the paint and extending its lifespan. Letting it get even moderately foul means more abrasive cleaning which takes paint off your hull and hastens the time when you will need to haul for paint again."

fstbttms, You made the above statement and I said I agree with it. If I'm ignorant then we both are.

I also said it is possible to leave a boat in salt water with out bottom paint, if you have a diver clean it frequently. I know this for a fact from personal experience. I didn't say it was a good idea but it won't hurt the boat. My own boat went about four years without hauling one time. After the first year and a half there was very little usable paint left but my diver kept the bottom in good shape including changing zincs as needed. I know of one boat that has gone ten years in salt water without hauling but the guys diver did a fine job of keeping the bottom clean. There was no damage when he did haul the boat.

Please explain what damage will occur to a boat that does not have anti-fouling paint but is maintained by a diver such as yourself.

To reinterate, I'm not advocating not using antifouling paint. I think you should use the best paint you can afford and at the first sign of growth, call in a diver to extend the life of the paint.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by HopCar

Please explain what damage will occur to a boat that does not have anti-fouling paint but is maintained by a diver such as yourself.

I didn't say damage will occur, I said damage may occur. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that a diver with a metal scraper in his hand, hacking away at shelled animal growth could damage gel coat. Or that a shelled animal base, forcefully removed by whatever means, could pull up whatever it is attached to, like weakened or chipped gel coat.

[Siskiyous]

On the fishing boat fleet in Crescent City, CA no one uses a diver, paint is usually reapplied at two years though the reason boats are hauled is to check the zincs, still considering the cost of hauling, and the uncertainty of when you may haul again it would be silly at two years not to touch up the bottom paint - most of this is done by the owner or crew, no yacht center expenses involved.

I can't speak to yacht practice.

[Jerry Woodward]

I would also think the smoothness of the bottom would affect the ability of growth to get a foothold. Do people buff out the hull after painting, and does this help? I would also think that cleaning with an abrasive like a scotch brite pad would accelerate subsequent fouling.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by Jerry Woodward

I would also think the smoothness of the bottom would affect the ability of growth to get a foothold.

A really fair hull makes removing the fouling growth easier to remove, but does not hinder its growth.

Originally Posted by Jerry Woodward

Do people buff out the hull after painting, and does this help?

Yes, many racers will burnish their anti fouling paint to a high degree of smoothness (using sandpaper) but again, this does nothing to retard fouling. It makes the cleaned bottom fast, however.

Originally Posted by Jerry Woodward

I would also think that cleaning with an abrasive like a scotch brite pad would accelerate subsequent fouling.

Paint manufacturers recommend using 3M Doodlebug pads to clean their products. And in any case, the cleaning media used is completely dependent on the condition of the paint and the degree to which the boat owner has allowed his bottom to become foul. No hull cleaner is using a brown scrubber (very abrasive) because they like it. They use it because nothing less abrasive is going to remove the fouling growth.

If you want your bottom cleaned gently, don't let it get even moderately foul.