bottom paint for trailerable boat used in both fresh and salt water

May 28, 2021
25
Catalina 315 Ithaca, NY
I've followed the thread for bottom paint, but didn't see any post that speaks to my situation. I will be using my new (to me) trailerable 21' sailboat for 6 months in salt water and 6 months in fresh water, pulling it out onto the trailer after each sail. I'll also be towing the boat/trailer 1,150 miles every 6 months (yes, we're snowbirds). Any advice on bottom paints that will work under all these conditions?
 

Tedd

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Jul 25, 2013
745
TES 246 Versus near Vancouver, BC
If I understand what you've said correctly, the boat will be on the trailer (i.e., not in water) the overwhelming majority of the time. If that's the case, I wouldn't use bottom paint at all. My trailerable sailboat was 25 years old and had never been painted. The bottom was pristine.

However, if there's already bottom paint on the boat then you might be committed to doing something.
 
Apr 5, 2009
2,774
Catalina '88 C30 tr/bs Oak Harbor, WA
A lot will depend on how long the boat will be in the water (especially salt) at any given time. If it will only be in the salt water for short periods, you might think about VC-17 because it is tough and not damaged by the rollers or bunks. Ablatives as noted above can handle being out of the water for significant time but they rub off when you slide the boat on the bunks and rollers.
 
May 24, 2004
7,129
CC 30 South Florida
He said it is pulled out of the water after each sail. Like Tedd indicated it would not need bottom paint, the chances of marine growth are nil. Now if there is already paint on the hull, I would use a hard paint as it will last significantly longer than ablative and will give protection against road debri while trailering. It does not matter if it sits out of the water as the loss of potency for the control of marine growth is not something to worry about if the boat is taken out of the water everyday.
 
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Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
You don't need bottom paint. If it has paint you may want to think about sanding it off to a nice smooth and fast bottom.
 
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Tedd

.
Jul 25, 2013
745
TES 246 Versus near Vancouver, BC
If it has paint you may want to think about sanding it off to a nice smooth and fast bottom.
This is one of the advantages of trailerable boats that often gets missed. When I first got mine I was surprised that I seemed to be regularly passing boats that I thought would be faster, especially in light wind. And then I started to notice how gunked up their bottoms were, while mine was always shiny clean.
 
Jul 1, 2010
962
Catalina 350 Lake Huron
If you're daysailing it and putting it back on the trailer each day, as others mentioned, don't waste the time and money painting it. I see you're from Ithaca. If you are looking for a decent ablative for a boat on a trailer, we had good luck with Blue Water Copper Shield 45 from the Bottom Paint Store. It's a little harder ablative than Interlux ACT, so worked better with the trailer bunks, and worked just as well for us on Cayuga Lake. We also used the boat for short periods in Maine and Rhode Island, and did a 3 week trip last year on Charlotte Harbor area of Fl. The boat was due for another coat at the time but no buildup there either. We no longer keep that boat in the water for long periods of time, so I'm not planning on repainting unless I have issues with the short trips we're taking with it, or it starts flaking off and gets ugly.
 
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Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
If the trailer is not galvanized or aluminum it will not survive six months of dunking in and out of saltwater.
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,027
-na -NA Anywhere USA
@Bill Russell

a lot of good responsives but two questions for a better response. First is trailer galvanized, aluminum or what? Secondly, are you planning to keep the boat in the water or simply put it into the water each time?
 
Dec 28, 2015
1,837
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
spend your money on something cool for your boat. It doesn't need bottom antifoul paint.
 
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May 28, 2021
25
Catalina 315 Ithaca, NY
@Bill Russell

a lot of good responsives but two questions for a better response. First is trailer galvanized, aluminum or what? Secondly, are you planning to keep the boat in the water or simply put it into the water each time?
Crazy Dave - the trailer is galvanized and the boat will be hauled out after each sail.
Bill
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,027
-na -NA Anywhere USA
When anyone posts a question, the more information we have, the better we can respond

wash off the hull and trailer afterwards each time of usage in salt water usage
 
Jul 12, 2011
1,165
Leopard 40 Jupiter, Florida
Fully agree with leaving the bottom bare :cool:. For future reference, when I had a trailer sailor that was stored in a slip for months on end, but trailered for trips occasionally, I did this research and found that Pettit's Vivid (a hard paint) would tolerate periodic drying with no loss of anti-foul potency. That's not common for hard paint, and it comes in cool colors too.
 
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Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
Fully agree with leaving the bottom bare :cool:. For future reference, when I had a trailer sailor that was stored in a slip for months on end, but trailered for trips occasionally, I did this research and found that Pettit's Vivid (a hard paint) would tolerate periodic drying with no loss of anti-foul potency. That's not common for hard paint, and it comes in cool colors too.
I had Petit Vivid on my Mac26S and it worked well. I used Henry Ford's paint color advice
 
Feb 26, 2011
1,428
Achilles SD-130 Alameda, CA
...I did this research and found that Pettit's Vivid (a hard paint) would tolerate periodic drying with no loss of anti-foul potency. That's not common for hard paint, and it comes in cool colors too.
Vivid is an ablative paint.
 
Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
You are both right
Its hybrid technology incorporates the benefits of both ablatives and hard paints. So, when you choose a clean, bright Vivid color, you also get a powerful, multi-season, dual biocide antifouling, a Pettit antifouling that is, simply, as effective as it is beautiful.

 
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