Non Slip Deck Paint on Steel Yacht

[FUTURE DAYS]

wanting advice on mixing washed river sand with deck paint to create a non-skid surface....any offers!

[boden36]

We used 2 pack poly paint. Put the first coat on fairly wet, make a sand shaker out of a container with holes punched in it and shake the sand evenly over the wet paint as you go.
At the appropriate time ( paint spec) apply a fairly generous second coat.
The sand should be clean and dry (cook it in an electric oven).
Ours was done in 1986 and is as good as new.
Regards,
Richard.

[sobraon]

G,day Future days,

I am not a fan of sand or any other grit mixed in paint as a non skid. I have watched a number of "experts" mix non skid beads, sand and even model railroad ballast into paints and I still haven't seen one process that looked good or was easy on the knees nor easy to repair.

When we painted I had a lot of suggestions and even went as far as buying the expensive Intergrip beads from International.

Another boat in the yard at the time was painting his decks with Emerclad. When I saw the ease at which the process worked and the great finish I was sold.

Emerclad is sold in Aus as a roofing waterproofing membrane. It is similar to the much more expensive "Marine equivalents" Tread Grip and Flexi deck.

We have had the Emerclad on for 5 years and a lot of sea miles now and it still looks and works great. We are going to refresh the decks in the next few weeks with another coat. This is purely for cosmetic reason as the surface is still in very good condition and we have never had a problem with slipping.

Garry
sv Spirit of Sobraon
Home Page: Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log The...

[FUTURE DAYS]

Thanks for the advice Richard, what temp do you suggest for the oven and how long in there? Will give it a go when this weather eases!! Where on the Central coast are you?

[FUTURE DAYS]

Thanks Garry, sounds great...is the application mixed with the deck paint or applied separately, and is it 'friendly' with a steel deck? ps love your website!! makes me wanna go cruising now and painting later...!!

[sobraon]

Our decks are glass, however the Emerclad was painted straight over the Jotun Epoxy Highbuild so I can't see a problem with the Steel. I have seen a number of steel boats with it.
I rolled and tipped the edges of the pads with Jotun Emperite Polyurethane then masked up and rolled it on with a normal interior roller. It leaves a slight texture on the paint that provides the non slip texture. it only took a morning to paint the entire deck. The surface is soft to touch but extremely durable and the clean up is easy.
I was going to go down your planned route however 5 years on I am really happy with the product. We bought a 20 lt drum and still have about 17 lt onboard. That is the main reason for the new coat. Wendy wants the space in the guests cabin for other things.

I have been meaning to finish the painting page in our Projects and Maintenance page to include the decks. I will take a couple of photos to show you what the deck looks like after 5 years.

Fair Winds
Garry
Home Page: Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log The...

[boden36]

To dry the sand, you will need a temp just a little higher than the boiling point of water and keep turning the sand over with a fork or similar.
Regards,
Richard.

[minaret]

The material of choice. Griptex by Awlgrip.


AwlGrip GripTex Non Skid Additive


I like to mix fine and medium griptex together. If you spray it from a 2 qt pot with an HVLP rig and a PB 69 gelcoating tip it comes out absolutely even and lap free, though regular backflushing is required. Looks incredible and is much more durable than sand. The problem with sand is it gets encapsulated in paint but eventually grinds it's way free. Griptex soaks up the paint and becomes one with it. The easiest deck material to do repairs on that I know of as well.

[Ray Perry]

I have a steel H36. I have used two methods for non skid
(a) Use whatever paint that you are happy with. Purchase silica sand (only) and wash and dry it first. Make up a salt shaker that will allow you to sprinkle the silica sand evenly. Do a test run first. After you apply your paint with a small mohair roller and before it tacks off sprinkle (heaps of) the silica sand on the wet paint. Allow the paint to dry completely and then wash off the excess silica sand with fresh water. When dry apply a THINNED top coat of your paint. When you need to freshen up your non skid in a few years time just wash down with a good cleaner and apply another coat of your THINNED paint. It works like a dream.
(b) I have just tried a water based paving paint called Hardpave from Phoenix Paints in Western Australia and it appears to be perfect. It was recommended to me so I am giving it a try. So far (6 months) it is just what I want and SO easy to apply and clean up.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by FUTURE DAYS

wanting advice on mixing washed river sand with deck paint to create a non-skid surface....any offers!

That's the way our Pretorien was done. The boat was previously owned by Hal Roth and it was his preferred method. It takes a little getting use to and you certainly don't was to fall on it but then again you aren't likely to slip. Hal's answer to critics who said it was too rough was ..."well, I've never slipped."

He lays out the procedure in his book "How to Sail Around the World" but its pretty much like boden36 outlined above.

Now that we are use to it we really like it.