Need bottom paint for boat, see pic

[Volffas]

Hello we just bought a 1989 Carver Montego and it is desperate need of bottom paint. As you can see in the picture the bottom paint is blistered and missing. Can anyone tell me what kind of paint to use to paint it? How much it might cost? It is a 21ft boat so how much would I need? Would I be better off paying someone to do it, or can I do it pretty easily myself? Thank you.

 

[Capt. Bill1]

Ask some other boaters and marinas what kind of bottom paint is most commonly used in your area. Also be aware that some bottom paints react poorly to each other. So if you can't find out what kind of paint is on your boats bottom now, you may want to sand off the old paint before applying the new.

 

[David M]

Pretty boat.

Good Luck with her.

Can you take a cloth and swipe it lightly along the bottom paint. If it come off, you have ablative. If not, it is hard bottom.

How are you going to use the boat. If trailered, you need to either strip it to bare glass and apply a good coat of wax. If you are going to leave it in the water, you need to check which type of paint it is (see above), have it soda blasted, and reapply what paint type needs to be applied.

I just went through this in 2006. Give me the facts and perhaps I can help.

 

[blueflew]

Boats from those years are prone to osmotic blistering. Check your bottom carefully and see if you have any blisters in the bottom gel coat. The best approach is to soda blast off the old paint and apply an epoxy barrier coat and then apply new bottom paint. Yes, its a lot of work. If you don't see any blisters and you don't want to remove all the old bottom paint, you could sand off the loose stuff and paint over it with a compatible paint. Chances are if the gel coat hasn't blistered after all these years, it may not blister now, but its a gamble you have to be willing to take. If you're going to trailer the boat, bottom paint is not needed.

 

[b_arrington]

If you need paint (per excellent advice above), 1 gallon should do 2 coats. I had a 22 foot Larson that 1 gallon did nicely. Only a little left over.

The price of bottom paint varies widely depending on the type and composition. It can be as low as $80/gallon, or over $200/gallon. More expensive versions usually include some type of slime-preventing chemical (reduces soft growth as well as hard growth).

Since you seem to be new to bottom paint you should go take a look at paint maker sites like Interlux or Pettit. They have pretty good guides on the types and benefits of the various bottom paints. Then try to talk to other boaters where your boat will be. Other boaters can give you an idea of the types of fouling (heavy, light, slime, shell) so you can get the right product. Fouling conditions can vary widely even in the same body of water, so try to get info for your specific area.

Some notes on sanding bottom paint yourself. The stuff is, by nature, toxic. Be very carefully when doing any sanding. Wear a Tyvek suit, goggles, and a good particulate mask. Using a sander with a vacuum attachment is highly recommended. You don't want to breathe this stuff.

If you paint yourself, also wear the suite and goggles. You could probably get away without a vapor respirator, but the guy that paints my boat wears one. Bottom paint has a very strong odor.

 

[rduhon]

Is that a bow thruster tunnel I see right behind the girl in the photo?

 

[Volffas]

We are going to trailer the boat, and we are hoping to mostly use it in the Ohio River around Cincinnati and perhaps Lake Cumberland in Kentucky. So if I am reading the posts correct, bottom paint should not be needed to meet our needs? We could strip the paint and apply a coat of wax. Is there a certain type or kind of wax that might be better for a boat, or would plain old turtle wax do it?

rduhon, there are no bow thrusters on the boat, I think what you are seeing in the boat is a holder for a dock bumper.

Thanks for all of the great advice so far.

 

[btoran]

contrary to popular belief, fiberglass boats are not waterproof and will allow water intrusion through the bottom if left in water (fresh or salt) for long periods of time. if a boat is going to spend lots of time sitting in the water, the bottom needs to be barrier coated with a special 2-part epoxy/paint. but if the boat is always trailered and taken out of the water the same day, it may not need a barrier coat. even if a boat is barrier coated (which many are directly from the dealer), it may not need bottom paint if it is trailered because there won't be time for marine growth to take hold. however, if the boat is kept in the water, it should have bottom paint with special chemicals to prevent marine growth. this bottom paint is either a type that is applied each season (or few seasons) until it builds up and needs to be removed before repainted again, or a type called "ablative" that after applied, microscopically sloughs off as the boat goes through the water. the idea is that at the end of the season, the bottom paint is completly gone and you simply apply a new coat of ablative paint the next season without having to remove any paint buildup. you also don't experience any performance issues associated with paint buildup when using ablative paint. regular bottom paint is relatively inexpensive compared to ablative paint, which is really, really expensive. bottom condition impacts performance, as well as fuel economy tremendously, so you want to make sure there is no paint buildup and no marine growth on the bottom. the bottom paint helps reduce marine growth but if the boat is kept in the water, you may need to clean the bottom at least midway thru the season and maybe much more frequently, depending on where you boat. bottom painting is not rocket science and you can do it easily yourself. however, if there is lots of paint buildup, it's probbaly a good idea to let a pro remove it (without removing the barrier coat) before the first coat of bottom paint is applied. long answer, but it depends on where and how you intend to use your boat.

 

[alk]

It's going to be very difficult, or impossible, to get the hull stripped down and then waxed. A yard can strip the bottom for you, but that is generally done to get the old paint off, in advance of a fresh application. Once a bottom has been painted, it's always going to have a coat of paint on it. I don't think I've ever heard of someone removing the paint, and waxing up. Generally the gel coat is roughed up pretty good before the first coat was put on, so a clean waxed bottom is probably not going to happen with this boat. Then again, if the previous owners did a poor job of getting good adhesion between the first coat and the gel coat, there's always a slim chance you could strip it cleanly. I've never heard of that happening. Has anyone else? I'd be interested, because I have a trailered boat that was previously kept in the water, so has a few coats of un-needed paint.

SO what do you do now; you are trailering the boat, so don't need it painted for anti fouling reasons, but the boat will look a hundred times better with a fresh coat of black. I advise purchasing a gallon of 'store brand' ablative paint from one of the big marine retailers. It will cost you about $120. Because you are trailering, you should use an ablative, the modified epoxies need to be kept in the water or they lose their effectiveness. You could actualy use a modified epoxy, since you don't need antitfouling effectiveness, you just want to paint the bottom black. But the problem is that you don't know what is on there now. Ablative can go on top of modified epoxy, or a previous coat of ablative. The opposite, an epoxy over top of an ablative is not advised.

You can do this yourself, or pay a boatyard. It will be cheaper to do it yourself, but sometimes it's a real pain to paint a boat that is sitting on a trailer. If you do it yourself, be sure to wear a quality respirator mask when you are sanding or scraping off the loose spots from the previous coats. There are some nasty chemicals in bottom paint, and you DON'T want them in your lungs. I see guys every year in shorts, no shirt, covered with dust while they sand and scrape. Not me, long pants and shirt when I'm near this stuff.

Take a look at your outdrive(s). The original coat of paint should end a quarter inch or so from the aluminum on the drive. You should do the same with your paint job. If you have any depth sounding transducers, don't paint them.

 

[Padraig]

I have been told that after taking the old paint, it can be wet sanded if it is not going to be re-coated with bottom paint. As far as waxing the bottom .... a waste of time as it will not last long and wax does not give you any extra speed.