Hull Colors

[mesquaukee]

The boat I have was constructed in 1975 in England. Black gell coat was the original finish. Ten years ago I painted it dark blue. After 20 years in the tropics I have seen no print through. The hull has never felt hot in the sun. The interior is cooler than other boats with a white hull but then it is insulated.
Now I am in the process of striping off all the paint off and applying new dark blue gell coat on the hull with a black shear plank and dark red-purple detailing. The side that is finished is mirror smooth, no ripples or print through, looks like the pic in the post above. It was a lot of work with a longboard sander to get it like that but it looks better than any white boat could ever look.

[San Juan Sailor]

I painted my smaller boat ( San Juan 24 ) dark blue about 8 years ago. I used two coats of epoxy barrier coat under Imron LP sprayed. I used Imron because it was much less expensive than the "marine" paints, Imron being primarily an automotive paint. I have never seen any sign of print through. I don't think I could have asked for any better result from a paint and I have no regrets about painting it dark blue but I live in the NW. If I lived in Florida I would have thought twice about the choice of color. It has never gotten anywhere near what I would consider "too hot".
Dan

[Brent Swain]

Originally Posted by mesquaukee

The boat I have was constructed in 1975 in England. Black gell coat was the original finish. Ten years ago I painted it dark blue. After 20 years in the tropics I have seen no print through. The hull has never felt hot in the sun. The interior is cooler than other boats with a white hull but then it is insulated.
Now I am in the process of striping off all the paint off and applying new dark blue gell coat on the hull with a black shear plank and dark red-purple detailing. The side that is finished is mirror smooth, no ripples or print through, looks like the pic in the post above. It was a lot of work with a longboard sander to get it like that but it looks better than any white boat could ever look.

Why is it that your dark blue hull has never felt hot in the sun , while my dark green hull feels warm to the touch in sunlight, even when frozen in ice at minuis 12 degrees celcius? Is it "Karma" or just "********?"

[Highlander40]

My boat was built with flag blue gel coat and that was good for 5 years.
Unless the hull is molded in one shot and it comes out of the mold perfect-
there will be some areas that are gell coated later. These areas age much faster and show up as lighter patches.

Last 5 years same color but Awlgrip paint. Looks like new and can be repaired. Small scratches can be buffed out or larger dings sprayed and buffed out. No wax, just hose it off.

We cruise CT to Maine so a little warmth is welcome.

[Highlander40]

By the way, "print through" does not relate to paint at all.
When a hull is molded using the SCRIMP process or other vacuum bagging techniques. The fabric weave can print through to the surface and create an uneven texture.

Some builders prime, fair and paint to make a lighter hull.
Gell coat has no strength and is extra wasted weight.

[S/V Illusion]

Originally Posted by Brent Swain

Why is it that your dark blue hull has never felt hot in the sun , while my dark green hull feels warm to the touch in sunlight, even when frozen in ice at minuis 12 degrees celcius? Is it "Karma" or just "********?"

I think this whole issue is too subjective to draw any valid conclusions. As I have said before, most of the neg comments appear to be from folks who apparently don't like colored hulls or who never had one.
Although impractical, it would seem that the only way to definitively conclude what, if any increase in hull temp exists would be to measure it on a hull which has equal areas of white and dark color.
Intuitive temp measurements are meaningless.
To my mind, the only certainty here is that dark topsides colors simply look better but that too is a subjective statement.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Highlander40

When a hull is molded using the SCRIMP process or other vacuum bagging techniques. The fabric weave can print through to the surface and create an uneven texture.

Gell coat has no strength and is extra wasted weight.

And do we gelcoat in SCRIMP?

To me, gelcoat is what we use in female mold to protect the polyester laminate from water. If applied properly, it lasts, looks and delivers.

b.

b.

[Highlander40]

It all depends, you don't have to use gell coat at all.
Yes, the prime function of gell coat is UV filter and water seal.
Same as paint.

I have a guide boat (18 ft rowing boat) that is kevlar and colored epoxy.
You can see into the laminate if you look closely!

I think the points made here are ;
1. dark colors look good but aren't for the tropics.
2. gell coat will last a long time but requires steady work to stay nice.
3. Paint will stay nice with a lot less work but higher cost.

[slowshoes]

I think black or dark blue hulls look great - very classy. That said, I wouldn't want the dark colors because they do show every scuff, sratch or nick in the paint. I've been through that with a couple of cars and that was enough for me - besides, I have a boat load of varnish to keep up with.

[mesquaukee]

Originally Posted by Brent Swain

Why is it that your dark blue hull has never felt hot in the sun , while my dark green hull feels warm to the touch in sunlight, even when frozen in ice at minuis 12 degrees celcius? Is it "Karma" or just "********?"

Could be the color. Some colors absorb the light (infrared?) and heat up, some reflect the light (infrared).

The original suncover on our boat was blue. We changed the color of all the sunbrella suncovers, sailcovers, etc. to burgandy. we were almost cooked off the boat.
Now we are converting back to blue based on a simple test. We strung up three lengths of sunbrella fabric, tan, blue and burgandy and sat underneath.
The tan and blue were similar, the burgandy was extremely hot.
As for the blue hull it is warm but not hot. There is a narrow band that is black and it is hot to the touch (uncomfortable to hold ones hand on it).

[longjonsilver]

baby blue

[Three Sisters]

We are going to try a dark color topsides in flat or semi-gloss with a seperate clearcoat. As an experiment.

[Patrigo]

A steel hull painted white will die an early death, no matter how much you attempt insulation. Mine is a light gold, no insulation and no condensation.

[F10]

My boat went from faded red Awk Grip to Awl Grip "Whisper Grey" (original hull was white gel coat). Another boat in my Harbor also used whisper grey. Works real nice. Just a little off white but still looks white. Takes the glare off in the hot tropical sun. I will keep the deck white as even a slight tint of grey or color makes it hot to walk bare foot. I would stay away from red. The boat and one of my red cars is now pink after 15 years in the tropical sun. One reason I went with the Whisper Grey is that fender marks and dock scuffs do not show as much as compared to a very white hull. Even my painting imperfections are not as noticeable.

[F10]

Another S&S in whisper grey awl grip