Bottom Paint...Trailer Sailor Style?

[Bad Obsession]

What do you guys use for bottom paint on your boats?

I am in brackish water that is high fouling. I intend to splash the boat in May and pull it at the end of September. Previously I was using West Marine paint that was on the higher end...but that was for a boat that stayed in the water for 2-3 years straight.

5-6 months in and that is all for my trailer sailor. I am thinking that I can get away with a cheaper paint and I don't need the slime buster on it.

Any economical suggestions?

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

much has been written on this subject in the archives. I would still suggest Micron CSC or the West Marine equivalent that is a softer paint but will still keep its anti fouling properties even out of the water when others will only last 60 days.

 

[fstbttms]

If you are in truly high-fouling waters, you need a high quality, high copper ablative paint for your trailerable. Cheaping-out will always come back to bite you in the ass.

 

[RichH]

It probably wont be very long until zebra muscles are in the Potomac ... that will change your ideas about what to use. Theyre already starting to show up in the head of the Chesapeake at Harve de Grace and the Susquehanna Flats area.

The similar problem avoidance with goose barnacles, as fstbttms advises, is a (freshly applied) super high copper content ablative. Better if its got an anti-slime compound in it - to prevent the barnacles from attaching in the slime, even on high copper based bottom paint such as Micron, etc.
10-15 years ago VC and Baltoplate were the 'best', no longer the case since the brackish portions of the Ches. became grossly turbid.
Even plain Micron is no longer working in the upper Ches due to the increase of slime and the barnacles getting a 'foot down' when the bottom becomes fouled with thick slime (as in late July and August). At the head of the Ches., now one really needs Micron-Extra or equiv., especially if the winds are primarily from the west instead of south westerly and the bay doesnt continually get 'turned over' and the deeper salt water never mixes with the fresh water stratified on top of the salt water.

 

[Bad Obsession]

I have about a half gallon of West Marine PCA Gold Antifouling Paint with Irgarol from my other boat. Would that be enough for 1 coat?

I kind of hate to go with it in a way because it is red and I like the black bottom paint that is on there. It would save me a pile of money though.

 

[Kermit]

I have about a half gallon of West Marine PCA Gold Antifouling Paint with Irgarol from my other boat. Would that be enough for 1 coat? I kind of hate to go with it in a way because it is red and I like the black bottom paint that is on there. It would save me a pile of money though.

Saving money vs. being happy. That's the worst money you can save.

 

[Bad Obsession]

Good Point Kermit.

What do you do with old bottom paint that you won't use?

 

[fstbttms]

What do you do with old bottom paint that you won't use?

Take it to your local Household Hazardous Waste disposal site.

 

[Bad Obsession]

I guess. It is a shame because someone may want it.

It would be neat if there was a way to donate it to someone who needed it or could use it.

 

[dscribner]

Consider Hydrocoat. Easy on, easy cleanup. Multi-season.

 

[Bad Obsession]

Some of the other guys on the Compac forum said that Hydrocoat was a no-go. It was not working as well as it use to.

I am leaning towards a gallon of West Marine PCA Gold in black. It worked well in my area before and it says that it is okay for boats that frequently haul out.

Nice news is that other people are still getting multi-seasons out of their bottom jobs when they trailer out in the winter, but they just clean and touch up between seasons.

 

[dscribner]

I guess I was thinking of true trailering. We tow-n-step every weekend. The Hydrocoat has held up really well for three years even with this on-again-off-again relationship.

 

[Bad Obsession]

No way I would want to do true trailer sailing with the Compac 23. She needs about 4' of water to launch so I have to watch and plan around the tides. I also have to remove 3 stays and adjust the rig each time I step the mast. Oh yeah, and the mast is heavy on this boat.

 

[rgranger]

I guess I was thinking of true trailering. We tow-n-step every weekend. The Hydrocoat has held up really well for three years even with this on-again-off-again relationship.

Hmmmm...

The longest I leave my boat in the water is 2 weeks at a time. So I don't have your situation. I usually never have any growth on my boat.... I have plain old (out of the can) rustoleum on the bottom of my boat. No anti-foul of any kind. I pull into a car wash and spray the bottom on the drive home... I'm more concerned about salt than anything else.

...but...

I wonder if you did use a cheaper bottom paint if you could use the money you saved to buy a portable pressure washer. Then put the boat on the trailer once a month and sprayed the bottom .... 20 min. job... won't need to step the mast.... just pull up the ramp a bit, spray and splash... given the time frame you might get away with doing this only two or three times a season.

 

[finding41]

I use AquaGuard water based. My boats are in for many months at a time. I do have a slippery scum layer that I power wash off when I pull out. (We have a club power washer...)
But I could get away with my soft car wash brush and a bucket of water. Some of the guys at the club sail up to the beach area and just hop out and give there's a quick scrub before regattas.
I find the AquaGuard is really tough stuff! It has lasted 2 seasons and still going.
I probably will put a new coat on this spring. Mostly so I can be sure it is thick. (This boat is going into charter in the spring. I'm not sure how much growth I will see in the North Channel. )
I have blue on now so I plan to the next coat to be black. When I see blue spots in the future I will re-coat it black.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

bad obsession;

On the bottom paint, you answered what was most important. What works for your area and many missed that point. I have always said to check with the locals first that would fit your bill.

 

[CloudDiver]

I second that... I have the same issue as the OP, I need the correct bottom paint to use on a trailer sailor for the fouling conditions in my waters. I talked to Interlux tech support and they gave me the number for my local Interlux sales rep. (they work directly for Interlux, not a retail location so they are not trying to 'sell' you on anything in the traditional sense, just make sure you get the right product for your application, as long as its Interlux or Awlgrip, lol). For my area he suggested Micron CF; good enough anti-foul properties and hard enough for trailering, does not degrade in open air.

bad obsession;

On the bottom paint, you answered what was most important. What works for your area and many missed that point. I have always said to check with the locals first that would fit your bill.

 

[Rob H.]

Needing an anti-fouling paint for an aluminum hull (no copper ingredients) we were directed to e-paint by some other metal boat owners. It's a "hard" finish water-based paint that does not lose any effectiveness out of the water. It worked so well, that I now use it on all 3 of our trailer based sailboats. http://www.epaint.com/index.php?id=16&prod_id=7

 

[Steve21790]

Up on the Rappahannock (near Tappahannock) I used Micron CSC Copolymer ablative (sloughing)bottom paint. It ain't cheap but I kept the boat in for a month at a time from may to sept only taking it out to trailer to races, or a slip in Hampton or the Piankitank for a month, here and there. Sat on the trailer sept. to april. Two coats lasted three years. It took a Gallon on my 26 MacGregor. I did buy an extra Quart on clearance at West Marine to touch up spots and where trailer bunks rubbed

 

[fstbttms]

Up on the Rappahannock (near Tappahannock) I used Micron CSC Copolymer ablative (sloughing)bottom paint.

FYI- ablative and sloughing paints are not the same anti fouling systems and the names should not be used interchangeably.