Add Powered Copper to Bottom Paint

[meridian28]

Since bottom paint continues to have less and less copper, has anyone just added powered copper to a gallon on bottom paint?

[Hudson Force]

I believe cupric oxide ( CuO ) is the black powder that is typically the paint additive and cuprous oxide ( Cu2O ) is the red powder. You may be considering just the ground metallic copper, but I don't believe this to be the best choice. I am just making a guess here, I have no background in bottom paint chemistry.

[Pete7]

If it worked I think everyone would be doing it and chandlers the world over would be selling it in little bags.

That said I did try VC Offshore once and only once. The tin comes with a lid containing a little bag of very fine copper which you add to the paint. For me it didn't make any difference and the performance was rubbish. Even worse was nothing else would stick to it the following year so it all had to come off.

If it does work please let us know because a tin of emulsion paint and a bag of copper will cost a lot less than a tin antifoul paint.
Pete

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Hudson Force

I believe cupric oxide ( CuO ) is the black powder that is typically the paint additive and cuprous oxide ( Cu2O ) is the red powder. You may be considering just the ground metallic copper, but I don't believe this to be the best choice. I am just making a guess here, I have no background in bottom paint chemistry.

All the paints have an easily Googled MSDS. You can see the % of cuprous oxide listed.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by meridian28

Since bottom paint continues to have less and less copper, has anyone just added powered copper to a gallon on bottom paint?

No doubt someone, somewhere has done this just as some people have added cayenne pepper to bottom paint. I think the paint companies have done the testing to produce the best formulation for each price point. You would do better to just buy a higher grade of paint.

[Cheechako]

Copper does kill eventually.... but I don't think it retards growth. You'll just have a bunch of dead attached critters instead of live ones... if you leave it uncleaned very long.

[meridian28]

Unfortunately, paint companies put in what the government allows them to.

[capt-couillon]

Look up coppercoat epoxy for a commercial system as you described... Not sure of the efficacy of adding powdered metallic copper to std bottom paint.

Not cheap, but Sea Hawk TropiKote is still 75.8% copper content in all colors. Had to choke on the price, but what I am using for the bottom job next month. Always had luck with Trinidad Red when it was still 60% copper (in the olden days) so figure it will do me for two seasons till I can get back to St Maarten for several gallons of (Slips Into Asbestos Flame Suit) .... Islands 44

[gonesail]

i remember my grandfather using the red lead paint on his boat. nothing grew on that stuff but yeh i know it's poison.

[S/V Illusion]

Originally Posted by meridian28

Unfortunately, paint companies put in what the government allows them to.

Would you cite the specific regulation(s) which do so?

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by Pete7

If it worked I think everyone would be doing it and chandlers the world over would be selling it in little bags.

This.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by S/V Illusion

Would you cite the specific regulation(s) which do so?

Anti fouling paint is considered a pesticide and is regulated at both the federal and state level. Each product has to undergo review before it is allowed to go to market, but to my knowledge, there is no comprehensive list of what is, or is not allowed in anti fouling paint.

[capt-couillon]

Originally Posted by S/V Illusion

Would you cite the specific regulation(s) which do so?

International or by Country?
U.S. or Other?
If U.S.
Federal or State or County?
metallic biocides (eg copper, tbt) or metal augmented biocides (eg Omadine, Econea)

Regs are all over the place depending on what place you might be... Opinions are at even wider variance, depending on location, degree of political correctness required, and economic impact of hull fouling vs species impact. (Insert additional jargon and buzz words here)

{rant} As an un-reformed, semi-ludite, politically incorrect, eco-unfriendly, self centered goon I will stick with my metallic biocides until they pry them from my cold dead hands. With full automatic, 50cal TBT being at the top of my list... As long as they make it, I will use it, just like Panama still uses DDT {/rant}

Besides as a former chemical engineer (MS UC Berkeley 1972) words like chlorophenyl, cyano, bromo, trifluoro scare me... Oh wait, thats our new saviour biocide Econea (2-(p-chlorophenyl)-3-cyano-4-bromo-5-trifluoromethyl pyrrole)

[Sailor_Hutch]

Originally Posted by S/V Illusion

Would you cite the specific regulation(s) which do so?

Just like house paint. The government has a maximum on mildewcide for a gallon of paint. But, almost any paint store will have the little packets of mildewcide that you can add to your paint. They can't tell you to do that though. Nothing stops the customer from walking out with 10x the limit, but he/she would be doing something illegal.

Since they aren't doing this (providing "packets" for anti-fouling), maybe the regs are tighter (not allowing the equivalent of the little mildewcide packets in paint stores) - or it requires a process beyond just dumping it into the paint vehicle (maybe a catalyst, or higher temperatures, dangerous, etc)

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by Sailor_Hutch

Just like house paint. The government has a maximum on mildewcide for a gallon of paint.

There are no government-imposed limitations for copper or zinc content in anti fouling paint. Not in this country anyway.