Just bout a 25' '85 O'day and it has a black bottom coating that comes off on your hand and I was told it was to keep the bottom free of growths.
Can I clean it, sand it off, take it off with chemicals, replace it if need be, what is it called, and where can I get it.????????.........I've tried a high pressure pump 2700psi and no luck. What are my choices? Thanks .Muskogee OK.
You could sand it off. The way you describe it, it sounds like it has a regular soft bottom paint. The newer paints are harder and are designed to wear off as the hull goes through the water. These paints are known as ablative bottom paints and unlike the paint you have on the bottom now, the ablative bottom paint won't rub off on to your clothes like the soft bottom paints.
Many years ago I bought a Sturdee Cat Boat with that old soft bottom paint on it and I wanted to remove it because the stuff was getting on my clothes and I was planning on trailering this boat in the off season when I wasn't using my 86 O'Day 222. I bought a can of paint remover at a local marine store that was made to be used over fiberglass. I used that, plus Acetone to remove all that ugly blue bottom paint from the hull.
To be honest with you, I really don't know a lot about bottom paints. I've only been using them for several years now and I have been applying them myself at the house. Prior to keeping my boat on a mooring, I had always trailered. When I decided to apply bottom paint, I bought a gallon of cheap bottom paint at West Marine and had to apply a primed coat first with a primer suggested on the can. The bottom paint was horrible. It stunk for days on end even when the boat was sitting in the water I could smell that stuff. By August, I had a thick mat of marine growth that was all over the bottom of my hull. It was so bad that my boat was sailing at a crawl. I had to go underwater and scrape it all off with a wide putty knife.
Then I did some asking around to find out what was a good paint for the money that was easy to apply and had a high copper content to fight barnacles and marine growth and a couple of my friends told me about Super Ship Bottom Ablative Bottom Paint.
The SSB will adhere to bare fiberglass and most bottom paints. It has it's own primer built right into it. All you need is one coat and they claim it will be good for three seasons. I have been getting at least two seasons out of gallon for my 22' O'Day and this year I had to do some touch up under the keel and places on the hull. I had enough paint in the can from last year to do a 4" portion of the waterline all the way around the boat, plus the leading edges of the bow, keel, centerboard and the rudder blade. I would have done more but like a dumbbell I accidentally tipped over the bucket of paint as I was turning my rudder blade around to check the other side. It's tough trying to see everything when wearing a full face respirator mask. You don't have that peripheral vision with the respirator on, but you really need it because the fumes from that paint could do a number on you. After it dries though, you can smell any odor whatsoever. Like I mentioned. The SSB has a higher copper content than most expensive paints, yet it's cheaper than most bottom paints.
So in answer to your question, you will need to sand the old stuff off. Use a good full face canister type respirator with protective clothing. I've been using a drywall sanding block on a long stick that they sell at Lowe's. This way, you can sand it without being right under it. Let the wind blow the dust in the opposite direction from you. If you plan on using this paint, you only need to remove the old heavy flaky bottom paint of your hull because this SSB will adhere to the old paint.
Joe
