Imron paint for a moored in salt water boat?

[LouC]

I am considering having my old boat painted from the rubrail down to the waterline, it is red boat with badly oxidized gelcoat. Most of the shops here that do marine painting use Imron, I have heard that it's OK if it's just the hull sides and not the bottom, this boat is bottom painted anyway. Is it really OK for a moored boat to be done in Imron? I know the finish is great and very low maintenance when done right. But will it bilster in the water (the boat will have a boot strip to separate the hull side color and the bottom paint)?

 

[GSENT]

Imron is one of the best paints for marine use.
Dupont Imron is the only finish Formula boats have on them.

 

[LouC]

I recall reading that in a Forumla ad, so that sounds good, any other views on this?

 

[Gregory S]

I know a high end dealer /repair shop here that uses only Imron to paint with. His customers seem happy.

 

[Bill 2]

Assuming that you have no other underlying problems with the hull, you should have no problem whatsoever. Imron is not a bottom paint anyway, so no heartburn there.

The "secret" to a really nice finish is all in the preparation, so just be certain that you and the painters are on the same page, ie., your expectations.

The boot-stripe should also be done with Imron. Then, except for cleaning using soap and water, you should have no maintenance issues in the future.

 

[Bill 2]

Assuming that you have no other underlying problems with the hull, you should have no problem whatsoever. Imron is not a bottom paint anyway, so no heartburn there.

The "secret" to a really nice finish is all in the preparation, so just be certain that you and the painters are on the same page, ie., your expectations.

The boot-stripe should also be done with Imron. Then, except for cleaning using soap and water, you should have no maintenance issues in the future.

 

[Robyns Nest]

Make sure the Imron doesn't go below the waterline. Formula had some problems on some boats in the 90's where the paint went below the waterline.

 

[caltexfla]

I'll second all of the above. I think it is ideal for the purpose. My boat is in salt water 24/7/365 and cruises up and down the entire east coast. Last spring, though it didn't really "need" it per se, I had the hull cleaned up with Finesse II and then sealed/polished with Rejex. Looks great and washes up easily. Doesn't collect much of an "intracoastal mustache" as it did before, but even then it was easy to get off.
If a good Imron craftsman isn't available, an adept Awl Grip painter can repair dings and scratches to the point it is indiscernible. My boat has examples of good and not so good repairs and even the latter miss the attention of the untrained eye.

Have the yard show you some examples of their work. I'd go to the extent of having a surveyor review the reference boats and yours when it is done. Things are slow for surveyors right now so I don't see that costing you much.

Go for it!

George
Hatteras 56MY

 

[V1rowT8]

Here's what to expect with Imron. This is my 2 year old 2007 Formula. Take care of your Imron finish, and it will look like this for years. The boat is in a salt/brackish water environment 24/7. Check out the truck's reflection in it. Topsides get polish once a year, while all horizontal surfaces get polish twice yearly. Everything other than the white areas are factory painted with Imron.

 

[LouC]

Looks GREAT!
I think I'm going to pull it out early this year so I can have it done in the fall before the winter sets in.