Bottom Paint - Does Good Paint go Bad ?

[s/v 'Faith']

I have a line on 2 gallons of Pettit Horizons bottom paint for a real good price. The paint is about 5 years old.

IIRC, bottom paint is ok as long as it has not frozen.... any way to tell? Any one know for certain?

I tried calling Pettit, and so far they have not gotten back to me. They are closed for the day, and I am supposed to meet the guy tomorrow.... thinking I will pass unless anyone has an answer here.

[AiniA]

Can't imagine that there would be a problem. Really would need some serious mixing before application.

[ShipShape]

I use *really good* bottom paint and just found out it is only good for two years after manufacture. I've got a three year old can in storage and shook it the other day and it is definitely full - if all the solvent is still there I'm hoping it is still good. But then again, chemicals break down over time, even something as simple as aspirin doesn't have a very long shelf life. I'm not sure what I'll do - if I call the company they will tell me the paint the paint expires after two years, I expect Petit will likely tell you something similar. Ask everybody in the yard. - maybe someone has used old paint or has a story to tell. Five years is really old, personally I would buy fresh paint - money for paint or time and money to haul out for another bottom job much sooner. Boats....

PS Does Pensacola still have that really great organic food coop?

[s/v 'Faith']

Originally Posted by ShipShape

.... Boats....

PS Does Pensacola still have that really great organic food coop?

Yea, I agree but am tempted by 2 gallons of Horizons for $75....

Have no idea about the 'organic food coop'... not sure what that is, probably something down town. I don't spend much time there unless I am sailing past it.

[s/v 'Faith']

Originally Posted by ShipShape

....

Does Pensacola still have that really great organic food coop?

Ok... I am a bonehead! Just went for my evening hike, figured out that 'Coop' was 'Co-op'.... Around here a coop is where we keep chickens!

Don't know anything about that, most of our stuff comes from our neighbors.

Thanks for the reply on the paint though... (just wanted to update since i figured out what coop you were referring to).

[s/v 'Faith']

Well,

I went to pick up the paint this afternoon. The cans were a little rusty, but looked ok. I opened one, and there was nothing like 'cottage cheese' in it so I paid for them and took them to my friend at the paint store.

He warned me that the shaker would generate heat in the paint (apparently the high metallic content makes lots of friction). He put a stir in before shaking, and found 4" of solids at the bottom of the cans. After a couple tries he got them ballenced in the shaker. He double bagged them in case of a blow out... the Benjamen Moore heavy duty paint shaker was up to the task.

The 3/4 gallon of Easypoxy (1 part poly) shook out fine, not sure what I will use it for since it is black.... but it was thrown in with the rest so I guess it is good.

He shook the bottom paint for about 5 minutes, when it came out one of the cans had blown it's seam on the bottom... not much paint had come out. The other can was opened and it looks good. There is still about 1/2" of stuff on the bottom that needs to be mixed in but I think I can do that with a drill operated paddle (like I normally do with bottom paint).

It did not smell bad, and I think it will be fine. Will update when I haul out and do the bottom. Thanks for the input.

[ShipShape]

Thank you very much 1) for keeping us posted, and 2) for being a guinea pig trying such old bottom paint.

[SabreKai]

It looks like you may be lucky. I had two quarts of VC-17 left over for a year, but when I opened it the stuff had condensed down to rock. I tried to stir it with a drill but no joy. Lumpy as hell. Perhaps if I'd taken it to a paint shop for some shaking.....

[ShipShape]

My three year old can of bottom paint was four years old - two years expired - and I decided to give it a try. I only had one gallon and purchased the same brand of paint for the rest of the bottom. Here is a haulout pic eight months after painting, the boat was not pressure washed. I am in a shallow slip and my boat sat with his keel buried in a hole most of last winter, I used black for the first coat so that is the dark you see near the bottom of his keel, the tan below that are barnacles because the bottom paint got completely worn off there. So, can you tell which is the fresh paint and which is the expired paint?



Of course results from different paints may vary, but it looks like it is worth a try to save resources and money and give expired bottom paint a try. Hopefully s/v 'Faith' will give us an update someday.

[Teknav]

There is no reason not to use old paint, as long as there were no evaporation of the solvents used in the paint's formulation. When you open a freshly mixed/shaken can of paint, pour out a little at time for usage then tightly cover the remainder; jot down the day of usage, on the can. Do not pour back into the original can, unused paint; it is no longer the same formula as it was exposed to evaporation. Paints are tested for storage stability for up to two years, in some cases. After that period, there could be some chemical degradation rendering it less desirable. The best bottom paints should contain one or more of the following: Copper, Zinc and/or Arsenic.
Mauritz