bottom paint

katie Marie III · Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 8:12 pm Post subject: bottom paint

Hi, I pick up my new c-dory in March. I will be putting her in a marina. I've had a bought before and in a marina, but it was already painted. My question is about the prepping. Do I apply a primer to the gelcoat before the anti-fouling paint. The dealer says that the quality of the hull is superior, never had blister problems. So you do not need to put down the base primer. So i am asking for feed-back. Primer? or just bottom paint? Xmas Eek

Chris Bulovsky · Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 10:40 pm Post subject:

Pat-Pat-

Yes, you should put down a primer paint before your anti fouling paint. The stuff I used was a two part paint and took 2 coats. The primer justs sticks better to the hull VS straight anti fouling paint. Its a messy job and may be worth it to have it done by someone else. Be sure to clean the hull to be painted from all wax. I used castro super clean to dewax my bottom. It works very well and is reasonably priced at most auto parts stores. Also less toxic than the other de-waxing agents ,you still should use gloves with the stuff. I would hope for logistics that you have a roller trailer for this operation. Mighty tuff to paint under bunks.
Good luck
Chris

katie Marie III · Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:07 pm Post subject:

Chris, Thanks for the info. I am leaning toward Interlux 2 step system. Wink

. Is Pettit in the same league?

Sneaks · Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:29 pm Post subject:

Have you considered the Air Dock boat lift? I'm waiting for a slip myself, but hate to paint the bottom. The boat lift costs about 2X what a good bottom paint job costs, and one doesn't have to periodically scrub the bottom OR re-do it.

I looked at some shots of Sawdust's boat lift setup and it sure does seem easy and convenient.

Sawdust · Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:46 pm Post subject:

Pat,

You are close enough to EQ to talk to Les on the bottom paint. They are pros at this -- a State certified system -- and Les or Karl would be happy to give you advise.

I've had several boats painted there over the years, and all have done well WITH NO BLISTERS. Until they get more worker bees they won't be doing any bottom painting!! They sand the bottom thoroughly before applying paint -- and I'll guarantee you that it ain't no job for the faint of heart -- and virtually impossible on a trailer. BTDT!

The last time I checked, the factory does use a barrier coat -- if I were faced with bottom painting and not Air Doc, I'd be negotiating with the factory to have them do the job. I said it before, but dude, this is one labor-intensive task.

I've gone to the Air Doc, and you are sure welcome to come down to Cornet Bay and take a look. Son-in-law Larry uses the Air Doc and seems quite pleased. Mine is still a virgin cuz the boat is not quite read for its first bath, but soon -- I hope soon.

Dusty -- who has spent many unpleasant days sanding and preparing boat bottoms for paint.

Lynn Marie · Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 9:17 pm Post subject:

I'll chime in here with the others and say let the pros do it. Having some boat building background I do know that get all the mold ralease/wax off is very, and I mean very, important. The next big issue is the primer and that is assuming you're not sanding the complete area to be painted. This is important if you want the material to get a "bite" into the gel-coat, which you do. If you plan on sanding the area that too will give a good bite for the paint to hold. If you use primer some will tell you to apply within a certain time frame as the primer looses it's ability to help the paint adhere if allowed to dry to much. Best advise here is to follow the manufactures directions. My best is still to let the pros do it the first time and then plan on doing the re-coat or touchup work down the road and always watch what type paint goes over what has been applied before as this too can be tricky.

Tim

Chris Bulovsky · Posted: Thu Feb 17, 2005 8:39 pm Post subject:

PAT- PAT-
I USED INTERLUX BRAND PRIMER AND PAINT. RECOMMENDED BY MY LOCAL BOAT REPAIR GUY. SO I CAN'T TALK SMART ABOUT THE PETTIE BRAND STUFF. I DID DEEPEN THE COLOR OF THE PAINT TO MATCH C-DORY GREEN BETTER. I PAINTED THE THE UNDER SIDE AFTER REPAIRING THE HULL THAT WAS BANGED UP. EPOXY DOESN'T LIKE GEL-COAT ON TOP OF IT. PAINT WAS THE CLEARLY THE WAY TO GO. IF YOU DO THIS JOB YOURSELF PLAN ON A WEEKEND OF THIS. FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS, AS THIS THIS STUFF IS TIME SENSITIVE. A FELLOW CAN DO THIS YOURSELF IF YOU HAVE THE DESIRE AND DETERMINATION. I FIGURED I CAN BUY SOME PRETTY NICE ELECTRONICS WITH MONEY SAVED BY DOING IT MY SELF. IT WAS AROUND 250 IN MATERIALS.

Chris

katie Marie III · Posted: Thu Feb 17, 2005 9:05 pm Post subject:

Thanks everybody, I will look into the Air Dock System. First, I have to ask the Marina for permission. I do want to stress that I am going to let a professional do the intial coatings this year. I really like the black bottom of the boat now. It looks real sharp, but who sees it in the water?