Hunter 216 ACP Hull maintenance
- Thread starter Hunter216
- Start date
Hunter recommends, and I use, Interlux ACT. It is solvent based, but it's apparently compatible... I would think, but haven't read the labels for this, a water based paint like hydrocoat would also be OK.
I’m thinking that if the VC17 has been on the bottom for many years and it still floats it’s not something I’m going to try to get off to put something else on. I looked at the Interlux VC17 and ACT spec sheets and without being a chemist it’s pretty hard to know what it means other than they are both hazardous to apply!!!
I’ve seen many boat owners re-coat the entire bottom every year with VC17 or their product of choice and end up eventually with a bottom surface where some areas flake off back to the original hull layer. BIG mess they have to get off the bottom to start all over again. My theory is to lightly touch up any small spots in the original layer where the hull material might be showing a little. Lot cheaper and less likely to result in a major maintenance chore.
I’m fortunate that where I moor is flowing water so I don’t get a lot of marine growth compared to boats sitting at a marina for days on end anyway.
Hopefully with a good coat of wax (thanks Dave and BobbyFunn for the recommendations) I can minimize the tea stain effect on the white hull. My previous sailboat had a dark bottom and red sides with only the waterline in white so nothing showed. Power boat I keep on slings when I’m not using it, other than one season where I had it at a slip, took me hours to get the staining off! I make sure since then that I have wax on it and any little stains I get are relatively easy to get off.
I’ve seen many boat owners re-coat the entire bottom every year with VC17 or their product of choice and end up eventually with a bottom surface where some areas flake off back to the original hull layer. BIG mess they have to get off the bottom to start all over again. My theory is to lightly touch up any small spots in the original layer where the hull material might be showing a little. Lot cheaper and less likely to result in a major maintenance chore.
I’m fortunate that where I moor is flowing water so I don’t get a lot of marine growth compared to boats sitting at a marina for days on end anyway.
Hopefully with a good coat of wax (thanks Dave and BobbyFunn for the recommendations) I can minimize the tea stain effect on the white hull. My previous sailboat had a dark bottom and red sides with only the waterline in white so nothing showed. Power boat I keep on slings when I’m not using it, other than one season where I had it at a slip, took me hours to get the staining off! I make sure since then that I have wax on it and any little stains I get are relatively easy to get off.
Plastic polish look up Novus 1 and 2.
I have used that on pinball machines and to do final buff on a Chexx hocky dome. Did some experimenting on my H170 hull and it cleaned and polished just like I thought it would. Took off the oxide surface and the greyness on the sides.
Works with a pad on a drill or the foam pads with a proper polisher.
I have used that on pinball machines and to do final buff on a Chexx hocky dome. Did some experimenting on my H170 hull and it cleaned and polished just like I thought it would. Took off the oxide surface and the greyness on the sides.
Works with a pad on a drill or the foam pads with a proper polisher.
I think that Novus plastic polish actually has 3 versions, with the first two versions coming in squirt bottles & the final step being in a mist dispenser.