Best paint for inside cabinets

[JPonHudson]

My boat's cabinets have been lined with carpet that now after 50 years is disgusting and falling apart. Rather then carpeting, I was considering painting it white to make it more clean looking and more sanitary. The back of the cabinets is unfinished fiberglass the bottom is usually plywood. What is the best type of paint to use for this purpose. I am envisioning something thick that would soften up some of features of hand laid fiberglass. Is there something that has a consistency of dare I say truck bed liner that would fit this purpose and work in marine environment? Any suggestions are welcome. For example, should I consider something else, marine vinyl for example?
JP
1978 S2 9.2a

[Benz]

Any oil-based gloss paint such as Rust-oleum will do. Depending on how hard you want to work, you could do a couple smears of Bondo or other filler after you've sanded thoroughly (you'll have to sand thoroughly either way).
I'd be inclined simply to sand the areas, prime with Kirby's white primer, and topcoat with Rust-oleum

[Rucksta]

High build epoxy with peel ply finish worked for me.
Top coat with two coats of single pack LP.
Some print through but surface is smooth enough to wipe rather than scrub.

If the laminate is clean minimal or no prep sanding required.*

[PippaB]

My go-to for semi-concealed locations like this is Jotamastic 90, an epoxy mastic coating that sticks to just about anything (meaning less prep work in hard to reach places - basically make sure all grease/wax is removed), is thick enough to fill small imperfections, hard, and provides an easy to clean surface. To me, worth the $.

Jotamastic 90 product is tintable in a wide range of colours in Jotun's Multicolor Industry (MCI) system. It is specially designed for areas where optimum surface preparation is not possible or required and provides long-lasting protection in environments with high corrosivity. It can be used as a primer, midcoat, finish coat or as a single-coat system in atmospheric and immersed environments. Jotamastic 90 is suitable for use on properly prepared carbon steel, galvanised steel, stainless steel, aluminium, concrete and a range of aged coating surfaces. It can be applied at sub-zero surface temperatures.

Presuming you are located in the US, where Jotun is hard to get, I have used Benjamin Moore V160 Epoxy Mastic and found it to be very similar, but do not have nearly the number of miles on it yet to know if it lasts as long. If you do purchase it, you absolutely need to find a friendly painter with a wholesale/commercial account - the list/retail price is outrageous, but it becomes somewhat reasonable with wholesale pricing.

[Leadfree]

Interlux Bilgekote ought to do for that

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by Leadfree

Interlux Bilgekote ought to do for that

That's not a bad idea.
Tough stuff, easy to work with.

[VBsail]

Kiwigrip

[JPA Cate]

If you want to be able to clean it, I'd say you'd need something that finishes pretty smooth. We used big box store white latex paint for the insides of the cabinets, but don't know how well it lasted. [Freshened them up to sell the boat.] We used latex semi-gloss on the overhead, where it went on over a kind of paint that had grey blobs in it to distract the eye from the otherwise non-finished layup. The change from the grey blob stuff to white lightened the interior noticeably, and the semi-gloss was hard enough to hold up well for the 7 yrs or so we had the boat after painting the overhead.

What I'm reading here makes me think any oil base paint should work fine, and be good in a marine environment. Jim used Flow Coat for the shower bilge in that boat. It was cleanable, too. I have no reason to not recommend latex based paint, though. It looked good and lasted well on the overhead. But, the paint in this boat was oil based, and it's 34 yrs. old, since launching and still looks good. If the OP's boat is a "forever" boat, then my guess is that oil base will last for the use of the boat, and I don't know about the latex.

Ann

[NevilleCat]

Perhaps the carpet was also used for condensation mitigation as well as a quick cover-up?

[Leadfree]

Originally Posted by VBsail

Kiwigrip

you'd never be able to keep it clean. I didn't like KG on my decks for that reason, never mind in a cabinet...

[Johan Leopard51]

The bitch part of the job will be stripping the carpeting and getting the glue off nicely. I had to remove vinyl/linoleum floors and walls in a factory renovation and it was a very unpleasant job.

If you can figure how to do the joints, my route would be to line the inside with thin ABS sheet or even Alu. I think they go down to less than a mm thickness. So imagine a new white box inside your cupboards if I’m not explaining well.

If paint is only route, look to the food-grade paints or specialized coatings. They don’t give off odors and volatile chemicals and are made for being washed down in factories. I imagine you are talking about a small total surface area, so going for expensive/square foot is not a big issue?

[Uncle Bob]

My 2 cents worth, clean it up as best as possible after removing the carpet and use white gloss rustoleum, easy to clean and bright and shiny, after all it is the inside of a cabinet.

[rognvald]

This need not be a major project. If the surface has semi-soft glue, it needs to be removed with a scraper/wire brush and acetone/GooGone, etc. Then, use a sanding block with 80 grit sandpaper for final prep and clean again with acetone. If you want a long-lasting job, I'd use 1 coat of Petit primer followed by 2 coats of Petit EZpoxy. You'll never need to do it again as long as you own your boat. Good luck!
Rognvald

[Old Bay]

Bilgekoat. Can be found in white and gray. Tough stuff.

[thinwater]

Do you hate the carpet or just the way it looks after 50 years? Sometimes it is difficult to separate the two emotions.

By now you have figured out that it would probably be easier to go back with carpet. Change the color, perhaps. Almost certainly several times faster than
* remove glue
* fair surface
* prime
* several coats of paint
You can probably replace the fabric in a few hours.


Not sayin' I love carpet, but it damps rattling and sound and covers rough surfaces. It's pretty easy to clean with a spray of the right cleaner, a quick scrub with a brush, and a vacuum with an upholstery cleaner or shop vac with upholstery nozzle to pull out the dirt. Not hard, just a skill to learn.

It isn't really carpet, it's fabric. Front Runner is a common brand.