Coppercoat Antifouling

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Seastriker,bear in mind that the CopperCoat (brand) product used in the Seychelles will no be the same product as the Copperpoxy that you might buy in NJ. One satisfied user on high speed powerboats in warm waters with one product, is hardly an endorsement for a different product on a different type boat (comparably slow sailboat) half a world away. With four years of no further praise from anyone in between.

That's an expensive experiment, unless epoxy sealing your wood hull appeals to you.

CopperCoat and Copperpoxy are different products. Both are copper-loaded epoxies, but are different products from different manufacturers.

That being said, you are absolutely correct in your assertion that you cannot expect a given anti fouling product to perform the same from region to region. What does a great job in one part of the world may very well suck in another.

[Seastriker]

Hellosailor,

Thank you for your insights. I don't know if I want to epoxy seal the hull of my wooden sail boat but anything the reduces the long term labor of maintaining the boat appeals to me. The question and therefore the reason I am here is to hear unbiased option from others and try to separate the marketing hype from reality. I thank you for your information and if you come across and other information I would enjoy hearing from you. The product I was looking at is Coppercoat and it is available in the USA.

Tony

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by Seastriker

The product I was looking at is Coppercoat and it is available in the USA.

Don't be the ginuea pig. Ask around. If nobody in your area is using it, there's a reason.

[Seastriker]

Originally Posted by fstbttms

CopperCoat and Copperpoxy are different products. Both are copper-loaded epoxies, but are different products from different manufacturers.

That being said, you are absolutely correct in your assertion that you cannot expect a given anti fouling product to perform the same from region to region. What does a great job in one part of the world may very well suck in another.

Ergo that is why I am doing my home work. It's a small boat but if I can make life easier buy working smarter instead of harder that is way we all share our knowledge.

[edboat]

Coppercoat made by Aquarius Marine Coatings is available and sold in the US by Coppercoat USA. Coppercoat is used on a number of wooden hulls with great success. PM me for additional information.

[Mr Micawber]

Sea Striker
I seem to remember the Lyn and Larry Pardy strongly recommend against the use of epoxy on wooden boats.
They built their own boats and regularly sail between homes in California and and New Zealand. It would be worth checking their website.
It was all to do with the expansion and contraction process of wetting and drying wood boats.
For this reason I would not recommend epoxy-based anti-fouling.
They also have templates for hard-to-find pieces for wooden boats that they make available to wooden boat enthusiasts.
As liveaboards for forty years they know most problems and solutions.
Good luck
Brian

[Hkalan]

Greetings... I am in Hong Kong and have had CopperCoat on my 50 foot hull for 3 years. I was just under the vessel last week and wipe it down... The crew that put it on started with a good foundation of several coats of epoxy, and then put on the CopperCoat.

When I do dive under the vessel, I see that the smooth surfaces are clean, but any area that has an edge, there is a little growth. I am not complaining... Just saying it works great but nothing is perfect.

It is coral worm season now in Hong Kong, and I dive under the vessel every month to wipe down the edges... Never scrape like I had to with standard anti fouling.

Just adding my 2 cents to say it works well in this area.... But I know some boat yards thin the CopperCoat to earn some extra, and that will make the CopperCoat useless if not done right...

A friend has a 65 foot Dyna he had made last year. The builder thinned the CopperCoat thus it was not working at all... and he had it done right by a local marine yard last month that is a registered CopperCoat supplier at a cost that is 55% less then the builder charged. Guess that will show the way it is put on makes a big difference !!!

Al