Inflatable Bottom Paint

[RoyS]

Thinking of painting the bottom of our inflatable this year. Have been storing it inflated on deck while in the slip to keep it free of grass growth but tired of hauling it up. What kind of paint will work well enough so that I can leave it in the water and survive a seasonal roll up as well?

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Consider the fact that once you put any type of bottom paint on it, you will never be able to put it on deck. Any bottom paint will rub off on the deck.

 

[All U Get]

Years ago we used a bottom paint for our roll-up and left it in during the summer, we carried on deck upside down so the paint wasn’t an issue when we cruised.

 

[John T1594]

For many years I used the inflatable bottom paint from Pettit available at West marine. I think it only comes in black. I would put a fresh coat on the dinghy each spring and splash the dinghy for the season. I did this for ten+ years. We kept it in the water behind the boat in the slip and towed it wherever we went. Our sailing waters in Barnegat Bay, NJ are mostly salty but the river where our slip was located was on a river with brackish water. At the end of each season I would haul the dinghy and use a low level power washer to clean the scum off the bottom. There was some scum but not much and maybe a few small barnacles - much less than was on our sailboat itself when we hauled it at the end of the season. I would deflate the dinghy and roll it up but used a thin plastic tarp as I rolled as to not scuff the topsides with any of the black bottom paint. Although there was some paint layer build up, it did not seem to crack or flake off despite years of rolling and storage.

 

[RoyS]

Thanks all, I think I will paint her this year and leave her in the water.

 

[Mark Maulden]

Never heard of bottom paint that inflates. Does it work well?

 

[Bob J.]

I've had good luck with Aquaguard made specifically for inflatables.

 

[chuckwayne]

I use Aquaguard too, works really well on my inflatable that stays in the water on the dinghy dock all season. It comes in a nice gray as well as black and holds up well. I like the idea of using a plastic dropcloth to roll it up - will adopt it this year

 

[Captain Larry-DH]

For many years I used the inflatable bottom paint from Pettit available at West marine. I think it only comes in black. I would put a fresh coat on the dinghy each spring and splash the dinghy for the season. I did this for ten+ years. We kept it in the water behind the boat in the slip and towed it wherever we went. Our sailing waters in Barnegat Bay, NJ are mostly salty but the river where our slip was located was on a river with brackish water. At the end of each season I would haul the dinghy and use a low level power washer to clean the scum off the bottom. There was some scum but not much and maybe a few small barnacles - much less than was on our sailboat itself when we hauled it at the end of the season. I would deflate the dinghy and roll it up but used a thin plastic tarp as I rolled as to not scuff the topsides with any of the black bottom paint. Although there was some paint layer build up, it did not seem to crack or flake off despite years of rolling and storage.

According to a Pettit technical rep, that paint is just a rebranded Hydrocoat (same formula). I've used Hydrocoat on my RIB for may years and it holds up well. You need to degrease the Hypalon or PVC with a compatible solvent and dewax the fiberglass bottom before you apply. A light sanding of the fiberglass also adds some "tooth" for mechanical bonding.
The paint does form some fine cracks from the expansion/contraction and flex of the inflatable tubes, but it stays on.