Let's Talk Hull Painting

[SuW]

I took these photos in 2016 after we painted our boat with Interlux Perfection. Roll and tip. It still looks great!

The boat had been painted previously with 2-part paint, which was worn out and had some large areas that had been poorly patched.

We used Interlux 2000E barrier coat, 3 coats. Sanded in between coats using 3M guide coat to get a perfect surface. (A bit messy but very effective.) The results you get are only as good as the surface you paint.

Then 3 coats of Perfection.

It took about a month of hard work in July, it practically killed us, and we swore we'd never do it again!

[Creedence]

Originally Posted by gamayun

I can't wait! I've been waiting since I bought the boat to paint the topsides. This thread makes me want to do it now, but first I have to pull off the toe rail and stanchions because whatever adhesive/caulk was used is oozing out and I would go apoplectic if it does that on new paint. I'm happy to live vicariously for a bit longer through your experiences

The one thing I can do, and I’d be happy to post pictures and updates of my progress is the deck. I’ll remove as much as I can and will tackle the glossy bits first. My plan is to maintain a single wet edge but to give the projects several days allowing for a different section each day. I plan to start at the bow and work my way back as I get more experience. I figure by the time I’m approaching the cockpit, I’ll have a couple weeks worth of experience and lessons learned. That should keep the worst of the goof ups far forward where I spend little time.

Once the gloss is done, I’m going to go with cream colored KiwiGrip for the nonskid. The nonskid areas should be good, they are all large and completely unobstructed by deck hardware.

Temps just started backing off this week. I’ll get some tarps strung up at the foredeck and will start prepping the surface of a small area this weekend.

[coopec43]

I've always been told not to paint any of the deck "glossy"

"Mix a flattener into the paint. A flattener will take the gloss off the paint, which is advisable because the sun can reflect off a high-gloss deck and make it difficult to see."

Deck Painting Tips

https://www.boatus.com/magazine/2015...nting-tips.asp

[SuW]

Originally Posted by coopec43

I've always been told not to paint any of the deck "glossy"

It's not particularly complicated. We painted the non-skid areas with white KiwiGrip and the relatively small surrounding areas of the cabin sides etc. with off-white Brightside gloss. No issues with glare at all. None of the shiny parts are really large or facing upwards anyway.

The major work was dewaxing and then sanding the gelcoat. And the masking tape took a long time. Painting was a joy by comparison.

[SuW]

Originally Posted by Creedence

The one thing I can do, and I’d be happy to post pictures and updates of my progress is the deck. I’ll remove as much as I can and will tackle the glossy bits first. My plan is to maintain a single wet edge but to give the projects several days allowing for a different section each day. I plan to start at the bow and work my way back as I get more experience. I figure by the time I’m approaching the cockpit, I’ll have a couple weeks worth of experience and lessons learned. That should keep the worst of the goof ups far forward where I spend little time.

Once the gloss is done, I’m going to go with cream colored KiwiGrip for the nonskid. The nonskid areas should be good, they are all large and completely unobstructed by deck hardware.

Temps just started backing off this week. I’ll get some tarps strung up at the foredeck and will start prepping the surface of a small area this weekend.

Good plan. One tip about KiwiGrip: remove the masking tape immediately before it gets to cure completely. Otherwise it will not come off cleanly and you'll have a ragged edge. Take time to get nice curves at the edges with your tape.

The stuff is the consistency of thick cream and you can use a palette knife or plastering tool to spread it, then a rough nylon textured roller (I used a 3 inch roller). KiwiGrip sells these rollers on Amazon but you can get a 9 inch roller of the same stuff at the hardware store and cut it in half (or thirds).

Wipe up any splashes or spills quickly too. Water-soluble.

[capiton]

Awlgrip is a very good choice !!!

[Creedence]

Okay, so here we are some 8/9 months later, and it’s finally time to take this discussion from the realm of academic discourse to reality.

I’m finally hauled out, and work has begun. So far, it’s not letting me down- it’s turning into the can of worms one might expect.

I wasn’t really sure what to make of the grey material that was on my hull. You could literally drag a fingernail across it and scratch through to the white underlayment. It turns out that it was a coat of Awlgrip applied over gelcote some time before the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The prep work has begun and I’ve included a couple pictures. I’ll continue to post updates as work progresses because I always enjoy living vicariously as others hemorrhage money, and now it’s my turn to be the poor sap footing the bill.

My hull has ridges that run the length of the boat... I dunno, to make it look like it’s wood maybe. Job 1 was to grind those back down as they had worn thin over the years.

The next step- currently underway is to hand-sand the grey coat off. I was really surprised to see a reasonably serviceable gelcote surface underneath which makes me think whichever previous owner did the Awlgrip actually wanted to have the Captain Ron aesthetic. For reasons unknown to me they opted to cover up the gelcote rather than sand it down and wet sand it. But we’re beyond that now, so we’re on a seek and destroy mission to identify problem spots, grind them out glass them and fare them down.

I’m going with a sprayed application of high build primer (after the aforementioned grinding, glassing, faring), then a couple coats of one of the 42 available shades of white I had to chose from. She’ll also get a dark blue stripe along the top under the caprail as well as a new boot strip to match, then a few clear coats to make the paint job look as expensive as it’s going to end up being.

And interesting learning point for me, because of the ridges in the hull, the hull mold actually came in 2 parts that were bolted together. To break it from the mold, they unbolted them and pulled them away rather than popping it straight out. That’s why there’s a “seam” of epoxy that runs fore and aft at that joint.

While I’m at it, I also had to bottom media blasted, and we’ll do 2 coats of epoxy barrier coat with a classic (in my mind) hard bottom paint (this after a lengthy discussion and a few beers with an Interlux rep I met before going to the yard).

Once Bitcoin rebounds, I may be able to afford to get the deck done...

[SuW]

Good luck, Creedence!

It may be that there was cosmetic damage to the hull that made painting the whole thing the least worst option for the DPO*.

We found what appeared to be some serious repairs under a patch in the paint on our boat, probably due to being mashed against a piling. Only about 4 feet long, midships, port side. The inside of the hull was intact. We are fairly sure our boat was an insurance write-off at some point and was rebuilt in the mid-90s.

I have a lot of sympathy for you prepping a 43' hull. Ours was only 32' and painting that was an epic job!

*Damned Previous Owner.

[Scrimshaw4]

I highly recommend using the Sherwin Williams 2 part epoxy barrier coat. After 8 years the Interlux 2000, put on my boat when it was new, failed resulting in sever blistering. 15 years after applying Sherwin Williams the hull is still dry! As far as bottom paint goes I'd recommend using a contrasting color as your first coat and then at least 2 coats of ablative in your color of choice. This way the first coat acts as a marker to let you know when your top coat needs tob redone. JMHO

[Creedence]

Originally Posted by SuW

Good luck, Creedence!

It may be that there was cosmetic damage to the hull that made painting the whole thing the least worst option for the DPO*.

We found what appeared to be some serious repairs under a patch in the paint on our boat, probably due to being mashed against a piling. Only about 4 feet long, midships, port side. The inside of the hull was intact. We are fairly sure our boat was an insurance write-off at some point and was rebuilt in the mid-90s.

I have a lot of sympathy for you prepping a 43' hull. Ours was only 32' and painting that was an epic job!

*Damned Previous Owner.

That could be. We’ve got about 70% of the boat yet to uncover, so we’ll see if there are any major repair areas.

Sympathy belongs to my restoration guy, but he also restores classic cars so I’m pretty sure he’s a glutton for punishment. I really do have to admire the absolutely tireless work ethic it takes to not get bored half way through and start taking shortcuts.

[Creedence]

Originally Posted by Scrimshaw4

I highly recommend using the Sherwin Williams 2 part epoxy barrier coat. After 8 years the Interlux 2000, put on my boat when it was new, failed resulting in sever blistering. 15 years after applying Sherwin Williams the hull is still dry! As far as bottom paint goes I'd recommend using a contrasting color as your first coat and then at least 2 coats of ablative in your color of choice. This way the first coat acts as a marker to let you know when your top coat needs tob redone. JMHO

Sorry to hear about that, I’d be despondent if this paint job fails after all I’m investing in it. I’ll talk to him about the Sherwin Williams tomorrow. Thanks again!

[Creedence]

Surface prep is pretty much done. Sanding didn’t reveal any areas of previous damage or repairs, so that’s good to know.

The hull has been out of the water for about a month now, and with the hull pretty nicely dried out, the entire thing is going to get an epoxy primer to seal it. Up by the cap rail, it’s going to get some high-build primer first.

I’m told it’s getting the primer done this weekend, so with any luck, the next time I see it, I should be looking at a very different boat.

Once primed, it will be another week or two before the top coats start going on.

[more]

here big yacht use alexseal paint primer and topcoat.
https://www.mankiewicz.com/english/p...arkets/yachts/
possible diy job https://youtu.be/jFLsOR9riM0

[karkauai]

Just found Chotu and Gary's posts. Timely since I'm finally ready to tackle this. Yes, it is 21 year old gelcoat.

How do the Collinite products do with diesel soot?

Has anyone had experience with PoliGlo?

Thanks,

[SuW]

Originally Posted by karkauai

Just found Chotu and Gary's posts. Timely since I'm finally ready to tackle this. Yes, it is 21 year old gelcoat.

How do the Collinite products do with diesel soot?

Has anyone had experience with PoliGlo?

Thanks,

I've used something similar to PoliGlo called NewGlass. Real easy to apply. It's a similar formula to acrylic floor polish: clean, wipe on, leave to dry. Strip off with ammonia.

I've used NewGlass on a the hull of a 26' fibreglass boat and a canoe. It gives a good shiny finish. Lasted a couple of years and you can put on additional coats.

Diesel soot is greasy, so if the surface is not porous, it should come off with detergent or a basic solvent like mineral spirits. If the surface is porous you have a stain.