When to remove bottom paint.

[AKPilot]

So here is a quick question for all of you bottom coat experts out there...

My boat is currently on Lake Erie. It has been pulled out and put away for the winter already. It is time for a complete removal and reapply of the bottom paint as it is flaking off, cracking and just generally looking really rough from the previous owners years of just slapping on another layer of VC17.

I plan to bring it to the Bahamas next year but do to job requirements I have to do it in sections. I will only be able to get a month off and make it as far as New York via the Erie Canal this coming spring. I plan on hauling it out during the summer as I will be 1000s of Miles away working all summer. Then come next October I can re splash and continue my trip south for the whole winter. The boat will then be left in Florida for the summers.

So should I go ahead and do the complete removal of the bottom coat, make any necessary repairs to the haul & rudder, and reapply a bottom paint better suited for the Bahamas before I splash this spring? Or should I focus on other projects this spring and have the yard in New York tackle the bottom in the summer?

[sailorboy1]

You are hauled out now, so I would start stripping the bottom before it gets cold. I would apply a the paint you have chosen for the Bahamas, it most likely will work fine in the north waters. But if it doesn’t and the boat is in the water you can just have it cleaned.

Or just use an inexpensive single season paint and next haul decide.

[Paul L]

Not many antifoul bottom paints are compatible with over coating VC17. If it's in poor shape then you are probably stuck with removing it. Once you go this far you might as well put a new barrier coat on it. Then go with a good ablative for long term saltwater cruising.

[AKPilot]

I’ve already decided that I need to remove all the VC17 and then start over fresh from there. The question I keep asking myself is if I spend all the time and $$ on it before I launch in May and then back out in June, will the bottom paint still be good sitting on th hard all summer or will I need to do another coat before I relaunch in October.

The other thing I was thinking is not doing really anything to the bottom since I will only be in the water for a month. And then soda blast or sand it off this summer and apply the new stuff just before relaunching.

[Paul L]

If you are going all the way down and putting on a barrier coat, the whole process can take some time. Sometimes you need to let the hull dry out before barrier coating, which can take a long time.

The major costs are in bringing the hull down and barrier coating, along with haul and yard costs. If you use it for awhile, haul and then relaunch it isnt much to put one new coat of abalitive just before launching if it looks like it needs it.

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by AKPilot

I’ve already decided that I need to remove all the VC17 and then start over fresh from there. The question I keep asking myself is if I spend all the time and $$ on it before I launch in May and then back out in June, will the bottom paint still be good sitting on th hard all summer or will I need to do another coat before I relaunch in October.

The other thing I was thinking is not doing really anything to the bottom since I will only be in the water for a month. And then soda blast or sand it off this summer and apply the new stuff just before relaunching.

If you don't have to go back ever to the VC17, this plan in the quote above makes sense to me. Plus you can look forward to how slippery the boat will be, going through the water with her fresh, smooth bottom.

Personally, I would not recommend an ablative paint when the boat will be sitting 6 months at a time. Biofouling will get their little "feet" into it, and the bottom will grow an amazing collection of stuff. No matter what you use, the boat's bottom will have to be cleaned, at a minimum, before you take it out to go sailing. If you don't mind a suggestion, I'd suggest you bag the prop before you leave it: it will save you scraping it.

Ann

[Unity]

Interesting idea bagging the prop - never thought of that. Would you wax it first, or use silicon gel packs in the bag or any other recommendations?

[sailorboy1]

you know, its fairly inexpensive to have the bottom cleaned when it has been sitting a long time

[icemate]

Originally Posted by AKPilot

So here is a quick question for all of you bottom coat experts out there...

My boat is currently on Lake Erie. It has been pulled out and put away for the winter already. It is time for a complete removal and reapply of the bottom paint as it is flaking off, cracking and just generally looking really rough from the previous owners years of just slapping on another layer of VC17.

I plan to bring it to the Bahamas next year but do to job requirements I have to do it in sections. I will only be able to get a month off and make it as far as New York via the Erie Canal this coming spring. I plan on hauling it out during the summer as I will be 1000s of Miles away working all summer. Then come next October I can re splash and continue my trip south for the whole winter. The boat will then be left in Florida for the summers.

So should I go ahead and do the complete removal of the bottom coat, make any necessary repairs to the haul & rudder, and reapply a bottom paint better suited for the Bahamas before I splash this spring? Or should I focus on other projects this spring and have the yard in New York tackle the bottom in the summer?

I used VC Offshore that is not available anymore but cleaned hull and applied West Systems Barrier Coat before applying two coats of bottom paint. Each coat a different color. I snorkel and divers mask along with a green scrubby will clean the hull with little effort. I did this all in three days with one helper while on the hard. Never had a blister and when first coat started to show, it was time for another. No guessing.

[Mithril Bham]

I am far from an expert but will say that twice I applied bottom paint, left boats on the hard, and the bottom paint seemed to deteriorate faster out of the water than in the water. Cold water. PNW.

[David B]

Originally Posted by AKPilot

I’ve already decided that I need to remove all the VC17 and then start over fresh from there. The question I keep asking myself is if I spend all the time and $$ on it before I launch in May and then back out in June, will the bottom paint still be good sitting on th hard all summer or will I need to do another coat before I relaunch in October.

The other thing I was thinking is not doing really anything to the bottom since I will only be in the water for a month. And then soda blast or sand it off this summer and apply the new stuff just before relaunching.

If you have decided to remove all of the old ablative, then frankly it would be crazy to start the process all over again by putting more back on. We have Coppercoat on ours - seven years on we have not touched it other than a pressure wash or scrub from time to time. If it was me, after all the old stuff was removed (been there, done that), I would apply two fresh coats of epoxy, then Coppercoat - you will be laughing for 10 years or more .

[gamayun]

Check the directions on the stuff you plan to use. I think it's recommended to put the boat back in the water soon after applying with some types of paint.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by gamayun

Check the directions on the stuff you plan to use. I think it's recommended to put the boat back in the water soon after applying with some types of paint.

That's right with some paints but with Micron CSC you can pull your boat out and leave it on the hard for a few months if you want. You just have to reactivate the paint before launch.

I just finished the bottom of mine (mid December) but will still not launch until maybe 1 March unless we have a day or two with temps near 50 degrees at the end of February. (I still have to paint the keel where the blocks are when they put the boat on the lift)