DIY Man Hours to Sand and Paint a 36' Boat?

[Tibor]

I recommend that before you start you get yourself a good orbital sander so that the sanding is a much easier and shorter experience. I am doing a complete refit and paint job on my boat and this saved me heaps of time. You should manage the sanding in a day or maybe two.

[Terra Nova]

It's a helluvalotta work to create a yacht quality finish. Even then there is only so perfect one can make it. Where most go wrong is in not taking the time it takes for each step, before moving on to the next. And there simply is no way to overstate the skill level of the elite among yacht finishers, a trade that seems to lead to too many short lives.

[JPA Cate]

It's a shame your wife isn't interested to help on this. Maybe she'd go for a trade, she puts in the 6 hr. days with you, then later on you give her those six hrs. of yours for some project of hers?

Just my opinion, but I think the time schedule is really tight unless you're willing to live with a poorer finish than you expect.

There will be fairing, it is essential to a good finish, and that means the dreaded long-boarding, called torture boarding, here. If you're not in top shape, that can be a killer...and a potential time consumer. If you judge by the post by the guy with the timber boat finished bright, you're comparing the time for an already fair-as-he-wanted it hull/topsides, with one that you have not yet assessed. You may have blisters or delamination under water, and for sure will have "dings" that need repair and subsequent drying time.

Without blister or other repair, figure 3 days for the bottom. Any surprises at all, and it will take longer. My comments are based on about 35 yrs. of haulouts and bottom jobs, plus we had the boat hauled and the topsides done by good pros, under our supervision , one surprise below the water line, and 10 days, but if memory serves, there was one lay day for rain...however, there were 2 gophers, plus the painter.

Ann

[Terra Nova]

Ann brings up a good point regarding reserving time for (expected) unexpected issues, like corroded thru-hulls, or some such. A trusted, experienced helper would make a big difference.

[thinwater]

I always find it helps to have a bunch of little mechanical jobs I can use to fill-in time while things are curing. It makes me more patient regarding the paint; I don't mind re-fairing some small thing that's not right or re-priming, if I've got worthwhile stuff to fill out the day.

[Yeti]

The potential unknown surprises are definitely scary and worrisome. My biggest concerns are the keel.

As far as blisters I think/hope that things are ok there. When I bought the boat in 10/2011 the surveyor pointed out one (1) spot the size of a nickel that he thought may be a blister. He was not concerned. In 09/2012 when I last had the boat hauled I couldn't locate that spot or any other. The yard also didn't have any thing pointed out on the blister front. Since that haul I have been under the hull every month doing my own cleanings. Now I'm not 100% sure blisters can be seen of felt while in the water but so far I still don't think there are any problems there. I go over every bit of that bottom every month.

The cast iron keel is the one thing that does hold concern. Like I said above I go over that thing every month and there may be one area way less than a square foot that has some rust bloom. Not 100% sure. But I do think that spot may need a light "grind and prime" before the bottom paint.

The thru-hulls look good in the water. Hopefully they look good out of the water. One of the secondary goals is to replace the ball valves on the them.

Fingers crossed on all these fronts...


I'm still shooting to keep it at the 9 lay days and haul fees which in SD should be around $1500 I believe. Half of the required paint supplies are already in my possession. There will be money available for extra days/contingencies but of course I would rather keep that in my pocket.

Again thanks to all for the input. Please keep it coming.

Call me an optimist if you must...

[Yeti]

Thinking about it more I imagine that if when we pull it out and the bottom is full of problems then the topsides will have to be put off. The bottom absolutely needs to have new paint and if it need major work then that would be a priority over the topsides.

I would be pretty disappointed if I couldn't get the topsides done on the same haul but if that's the way it goes then that's the way it goes.

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Yeti

...One of the secondary goals is to replace the ball valves on the them...

I would move that priority up and replace with proper sea cocks.

[tinkrman69]

Hi Yeti,

9 six or seven hour day is fairly doable, altho. Can you go to work covered in Paint dust and what not? are you going to eat during those hours of work? How long does it take to drive to work? Plus you have roll out and roll up time with tools and supplies. leaving 3 to 5 hours of actual labor on the hull. that would add about 3 more days. Going with a high build primer is best for timing. you can fare out a lot of imperfections quick. But what quality is the original paint on the freeboard? will it feather out with sanding or peal more. that would eat up a lot of time. If the old paint is really oxidized sanding with 120 then sanding with 220 and cleaning will take about 5 hours sand the bottom first then wash top to bottom and start sanding the freeboard the first day ( the day after hauling and blocking and pressure washing the bottom) you'll not have time to even roll out your tools that day. then sand and wash the second day and maybe a few small filling repairs. sand those and prime the third day. then sand and maybe a blister or two ...you get the idea....if clean is all your looking for then forget most of the above, but put priority on blisters, as they will cost you dearly in the future If your not going to tip. I would suggest using a foam roller with very thin coats. that will come out the smoothest. Don't forget you'll have to lightly sand betwixt coats on some paints.

the bottom is two days hands down less blisters. Use wax paper to move the stands just before the day is finished then paint the new spots. (about an hour to move and paint. )

Hope this helps you. good luck with your project.

There is pristine - expensive- and there is looks good and functional- affordable.

[Azul]

If you are not experienced with a power sander just sand it by hand. It is really difficult to keep the sander completely level on the surface and you won't realize the damage you have done until it is too late. Then you will spend countless extra hours on prep work fixing the gouges you have put in the finish with the edge of the sanding disc.

Forget about all the complicated crap for the hull. Wet sand it with 220. Get some Rust Oleum Marine paint (it is cheap AND self priming!) Thin it with paint thinner until it flows well which will be dependent heavily on the ambient temperature/humidity and may require up to 50% in San Diego, you will see what this means when you try to roll it with a 6 inch thin foam roller. Roll it up and down with the roller, then tip it with a cheap 3 inch foam brush horizontally. Move over two or three feet and do another section. If the paint doesn't blend when you start a new section because it is drying too fast, thin it some more- just pour a little thinner in the tray and mix it with the roller. If it is too thin it will drip down the side of the boat. Work quickly. Sand it with 300 or 400. Put on another coat, it will feel slicker this time and go faster. You can probably thin it less. Put on enough coats so that it looks good and you aren't sanding through it between coats to repair ugly spots. Mine took six but looks fantastic, like a mirror after two years.

It will be so easy and look so great that you will want to do your deck right away. The hardest part of that job is taking out all of the deck hardware, drilling and filling, taping it off etc.

Use good quality edging tape to do your boot stripe or it will bleed under the tape. Boot stripe and other paint has to cure at least a day before you can put tape on it so plan accordingly.

The Rust Oleum paint looks great and if it fades a little in two or three years (or you ding it against the dock) you can roll and tip another coat on in about an hour after you lightly sand it with 600.

[Yeti]

I was able to confirm today that one person can setup, light sand, solvent wipe, lay down a (second) coat of primer, and pick up in a 4 hour window.

Tomorrow I lay on the first finish coat and I hope that with the added step of tipping I can do it all in under 5 hours. This would still allow me plenty of time to clean myself up and change in preparation for the day job.

[JPA Cate]

Yeti,

I don't know what kind of paint you're using on the topsides. If it is LPU, it will dry enough for masking tape to be applied fairly quickly. In any event, it might be a good idea to contact the manufacturer, and find out how much of a window you'll need for it to be drying before you can apply masking tape, primer and bottom paint. You have to use compatible paint systems.

Good luck with it, and godspeed.

Ann

[Azul]

Try the new 3M Edgeseal tape one inch wide. It works great to reduce bleeding under the tape and it is a little stretchy so it applies really nicely. Have plenty of foam brushes, they are cheap and the foam will break in half after a very short time.

If you are lucky you won't step in your paint tray, tip it over or have the wind blow it over. Good luck today!

[sartorst]

Reminds me of a laugh I have to this day ,once while doing my bottom I worked until dark go to a hotel when I walk into the lobby everyone looks my way then away I notice no one making eye contact but looking when they think I'm not looking
after getting to the room and looking in the mirror for the !st time all day I realize the looks a person who is blue all but around my eyes where the goggles were HA HA boat freaks!

[The Garbone]

Actually an old thread but I will add my .02.

I see no pictures. This thread requires them.....

We did our entire boat with Rustoleum just over a year ago. Funny that the primer cost more than the paint. I recall toward the end it felt as if it took we had been working on it since the dawn of time and we knew we skimped on some steps.

Semigloss and Kiwi topside.
We used a small trim roller on the gloss freeboard paint. We redid the boot and pin stripes with the Navy, very happy with the look of the stripes. A good 30ft paint job.

Looking back 1 day cleaning and taping, 2 days priming and sanding, 5 days painting. This is with 2 people. So 16 8 hour work days for a 30ft boat. 8 weekends consumed over 3 months. Ughhhh..