Interior Paint Prep

[BriRich]

Hi Folks

After a year of refit we're getting to the fluff. When I bought the boat a year ago the hatches and port lights leaked. We've replaced the hatches and put new gaskets on all the port lights. The interior teak veneer is damaged in many places and we're thinking of painting a lot of the interior. My question is what is good to use as a fairing compound to smooth out the areas where we'll remove the veneer and in some places a bit of rot beneath.

Can we use drywall mud, bondo or what??? We'll probably use an enamel paint for top coats.

Thanks

[Canibul]

Boatlife "Git Rot" Penetrating Epoxy has worked well for me. West Marine carries it. You can find it on Amazon, too. I'd suggest you look into that and see if it might do what you are trying to do.

A year, huh? We just seriously started a few months ago and I think I am almost to the point where I have removed everything I want off the boat. She floats four inches higher in the water than on the day we bought her.

[BriRich]

Originally Posted by Canibul

Boatlife "Git Rot" Penetrating Epoxy has worked well for me. West Marine carries it. You can find it on Amazon, too. I'd suggest you look into that and see if it might do what you are trying to do.

A year, huh? We just seriously started a few months ago and I think I am almost to the point where I have removed everything I want off the boat. She floats four inches higher in the water than on the day we bought her.

Gotta laugh when you talk about floating four inches higher. For sure Amihan is way higher than when we started. Pile upon pile of junk and 30 years of bilge goop are gone.

I may use some of the gitrot but I'm also looking from something to use for fairing besides epoxy fillers etc.

[Canibul]

What do you mean by fairing? Are you talking about the edges of plywood? Teak? Mahogany trim?

My impression of the task was that you were looking to replace rotted wood before painting over the brightwork. The Git Rot brand also has some putty options for filling in missing wood.

One thing I have just recently learned here is to be careful what's in the product you use. A lot of the new, improved, "homeowner safe" fillers have cellulose in them. In a non-toxic matrix safe for Joe Homeowner who'd too stupid, basically, to wear a respirator or ventilate an area or shut off the electicity when using the good stuff with flammable solvents.

Termites LOVE cellulose. We have a friend here who just wrote me about an old Prindle catamaran a neighbor just gave to him. He opened up one of the hulls to fix a leak, and found that the boat was literally full of termites....living happily on the foam floatation someone had pumped into the boat from cans they bought at a hardware store. He sunk that hull in seawater for two days, and says there were still a few hundred thousand live termites in it when he brought it up and started removing the foam. After two days flooded underwater.

I know of at least three boats that have totally destroyed interiors here because of Formosan termites. This invasion started here on this island about two years ago. And it's pretty serious. I'm just mentioning this because of where you live, and beccause you're replacing wood products. Choose wisely. It's pretty sad to see a 46 ft. motorsailor here that you literally cannot enter because it is unsafe to walk across a deck. Someone in it's history used plywood that termites consider candy.

On the weight issue, we figure we have taken about 2500 lbs off the boat since buying it. The accumulations of almost thirty years and three previous owners. And their guests.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Post us a picture....

If it were me, I would be replacing panels, if not just sections....

If I needed to go your route and fair for paint... I would be using an epoxy fairing/filler

[BriRich]

Thanks guys I'll post some pictures. Been traveling.

[gonesail]

depending on the depth of what you remove .. you may need to fill with something substantial. i would think carpenters exterior wood filler would be fine for non structural stuff .. easier to sand than epoxy for sure. not sure about spackling compound. use the best enamel and brushes you can afford and keep sanding until smooth

[roverhi]

To steer the subject in a slightly different direction, what kind of paint to use?? Painted my old boat with an Interlux Eggshell interior paint. Gave a nice low gloss finish. That paint is no longer available. The only thing I see is Brightside enamel and it is definitely bright, way too shiny. Can add a flattening agent but how much. Don't really want to add a little of the flattener, paint it on and wait for it to dry to decide if it's the proper sheen. Repeat till I put too much in and have to throwaway the can and start over. Like the Hatteras White so color is not a problem.

Latex would be an easy way to get the proper sheen but hate that stuff. All the latex I've run into turns to goo if you try and sand it so you can't feather in the inevitable repairs that will be needed.

[forsailbyowner]

Ive been working on mine for a while. Im going for a level 5 finish. Its a tough thing to obtain. First i go over it with coarse sandpaper, then a good sealer, ive been using kilz oil base, then a polyester filler. Bondo and resin and phenolic microballoons have both been used, the bondo is much easier to sand. By now you should be down to just scratches to fill. then another coat of sealer, there are some sealers made especially for level 5 finishes that have quite a bit of fill ability to fill scratches. A light sand to knock anything raised like paint lumps, then a skim over the whole surface with drywall mud which should only be filling small fine scratches and giving the whole surface an even absorption rate, Then a sandable primer, block sand, then finally the topcoat of gloss enamel paint. Sometimes followed by block sanding and scuffing and again. A level 5 finish isnt for everyone, when i was in the construction business I always put the best finishers and painters on any areas that required level 5. BTW level 5 refers to a finish that will take a gloss paint in severe cross light conditions and show no imperfections or flashing. Its by far the easiest surface to keep clean, fingerprints, even oily ones wipe right off.

[wsulli]

I purchased Teak veneer on ebay you could clean up the substrate and reveneer as I plan to, just my 2 cents worth.

[Cheechako]

If it's just cosmetic filling, nothing wrong with easy sand Bondo. You could use any number of Polyureathane household fillers/sealants. But I would lean toward bondo. If it's good enough for your car fender, potholes all weather and 70 mph it oughta last in there! You likely will want to lightly "paint" resin in the fill spots first for best bonding with bondo. No mud!