Bottom Paint in the Gulf of Mexico

[fstbttms]

The fact remains, efficacy is measured by how long it works, not a calendar.

You're right. The real problem here is semantics. For one owner, a boat that has to be scraped with a metal blade every month has paint that is still working. For the rest of us however, that doesn't meet the definition of "effective anti fouling paint.".

 

[fstbttms]

i have a suggestion--instead of bashing those of us experiencing magical powers in our oldass paint-- come down to each one of us at your own expense to visualize the effects personally

I have a better suggestion- why don't you post a few pix of your bottom as it looks right now? That way everybody can see just how effective your ancient anti fouling paint is. Put your money where your mouth is.

 

[zeehag]

i donot have an underwater camera--and it is you who is charging folks -not just me--with lying--i think you need to fly around the planet to see and discuss your allegedly professional findings...

what kind of degree is it one needs to become a bottom diver...do you gain certification from a university for this lowly job or can one just go out with a nice PLASTIC scraper and do it....do not use metal scrapers on any of my boats. plastic works just fine. i have used plastic scrapers on my dead paint on boats since 1990 without any problems.....i also donot allow scrubbing with 3m pad on my waterline--is unnecessary,a si found scraping with a plastic scraper is able to thoroughly clean anything off that may have grown in 4-6 weeks of sitting in summer comfort in huricane land, here in tropics......

 

[fstbttms]

On second thought- it doesn't matter. If you believe that you are getting good anti fouling performance out your paint for many, many years- hey, that's great. I don't have to clean your boat, so why should I care if it's horribly foul or if it's clean as a whistle, right?

My main intent in this thread was to present the realities of the way anti fouling paints work. If you disagree with my professional observations and what the paint manufacturers themselves claim for their products- that's OK too.

 

[spraygun]

Well I'm glad I did not add that I never clean the bottom.Well I did once back in 2006.I should add that I am between Clear Lake and Galveston bay.Pretty swift tides daily. I guess that is my secret. Mother nature scrubs it for us.When we took our boat to Rockport ,Texas to have it hauled some for some work. I asked the Yard Man to pressure wash the propeller and shaft . Then I asked him to pressure wash the slime at the stern of the boat where the waves were creating slime on the paint . We were staying in Corpus Christi for a while.And the wind was creating waves against the paint job on the boat .The rotor blaster took the slime of the paint and cleaned the propeller and shaft. But when he got it to where the bottom paint meets the gel coat he stripped the bottom paint off. We figure we got our money's worth out of it. The only place I could take that bottom paint off was all around the waterline . everywhere else it was still hanging on to the very end clean and black. But despite the naysayers. It really did look good and held on to the very end. I am not a tightwad or a cheapskate. But for us, no barnacles no, no slime no new bottom job until it needs it. I can't even believe I'm having to justify this to people. Very discouraging. Unless the fastest bottom man in California travels the whole world to inspect all bottoms.(20, 000 bottoms) I don't know how you could know what goes on in the Galveston Bay complex.

 

[fstbttms]

Look, I didn't say your bottom wasn't clean. I said your paint had leached out all it's biocide years before you repainted. That's just the physics of the situation. If your bottom truly stayed as clean as you say it did, then your boat lives in a region of very low fouling.

 

[spraygun]

One last thing.to the original poster.Mr bpolf531. You bring yourself and your boat down here to Texas. Not only has God blessed Texas. He has blessed the water and the bottoms that sit in it. Have a good day.

 

[fstbttms]

Here's what I want to know- if spraygun is getting nine years out of his bottom paint, why isn't everyone getting nine years out of their bottom paint? He isn't using something the rest of us can't get.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Question for fstbttms

One of the posts/replies mentioned that he was moored in an area with fast currents.

While I agree on the "chemistry of bottom paint" side of your posts, could the fast currents have anything to do with having a seemingly clean bottom, and, if so, how and why?

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

To add to Stu's question if I may, what constitutes a "fast " current?

 

[fstbttms]

Yes- what's a "fast current"? I can tell you that here on the Oakland Estuary, the boats that foul the fastest and heaviest are those at the southern end where the waterway narrows and the current reaches several knots on a regular basis.

 

[Stu Jackson]

You mean closest to the Park Street Bridge? The estuary does run east west though.

 

[fstbttms]

You mean closest to the Park Street Bridge? The estuary does run east west though.

Yes, near the bridges and beyond. Lets call it the southeast end.

 

[fstbttms]

A yard manager I know once uttered a very profound statement -
Bottom paint lasts as long as you leave it on.

Upon further reflection, this statement doesn't even make sense. Using your yard manager's logic, if you never hauled for paint your anti fouling would last forever.

Again, just because there is still paint on the hull doesn't mean it is working as an anti foulant.

 

[Johnnie Walker Black]

You sprayed your bottom?

 

[spraygun]

Yes. I sprayed it myself. With an airless rig.Anymore arrogant naysayers on here care to debate spray equipment used to apply bottom paint. Maybe I should have used the Wagner power painter instead Maybe debate spray vs rolling? That should make for real good thread hijack . One man asked a simple question about an area that I happen to live in and know well. It's just the same old tired argumentative couple of people. What can I possibly have to gain by telling a story about bottom paint. I don't even sell or work for a paint co. What do I care?

 

[fstbttms]

Here's what I want to know- if spraygun is getting nine years out of his bottom paint, why isn't everyone getting nine years out of their bottom paint?

Bueller? Bueller?

I guess I'll have to answer my own question (although most of you already know the answer): The reason everybody isn't getting nine years out of their bottom paint is because nobody is getting nine years out of their bottom paint.

 

[Johnnie Walker Black]

You mean you would actually debate spraying BOTTOM paint vs rolling?

Dorothy... I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

 

[Chris Patterson]

Well, the man only posted one post, with a question of what kind kind of paint would work in the Gulf.
I'm not sure if this was touched on much, but I've got a sneaky feeling......
that we may not see post number two...

So the answer may have looked somewhat like:

"Sir, buy any brand name ablative paint that seems to fit your budget. Put on two or three coats, and you can probably expect a couple of years out of it with a little maintenance".

 

[ITMaster]

And then......

There is the Coppercoat 10 Plus year Anti Fouling System and others besides the Trinidad that have longevity.

I have known of many types of paint systems that have lasted well over 3 to 4 years Sir.

What I have found though is that no paint will keep the bottom of the boat clean. It still requires either being cleaned while in the water or by being hauled and washed. And the methods used to clean the bottom have an impact on the longevity of the paint.

Other factors include the prep work and environmental conditions like temperature and humidity when the paint was applied and length of time to splashing after application.

There is a big difference between Ablative and Anti Fouling paints and the length of time they last. Clearly an Ablative paint is designed to leach off and fall off which the manufacturer's design it to do, whereas the Anti Fouling paint is designed to be a hard paint that lasts and is to be exposed to cleaning from either divers or haul out. Constant cleaning of an Ablative paint will certainly shorten its' life; I would say one would be lucky to get it to last two years and still do what it is designed to do.

Same with autos, many auto paint systems last for as long as they are taken care of; years, 20, 30, 50 or more. Yet, there are some that are neglected and exposed to harsh environmental conditions and the paint falls off of the car inside 4 to 5 years.

Perhaps a more convincing argument would be to include more facts and less generalization in presenting one's case in order to help the poster be able to get some information to help make an informed decision.

Just my humble opinion, but I'm no expert