Bottom Paint

[HomeyD]

I am new to having work done at a marina. Up till now I did most of the work myself. I just had the marina wet blast the bottom of my Catalina 22 and apply several coats of barrier and top coat.They sandblasted the kiel as well coated it. My question is this. They tell me they did this without removing the Kiel from the boat. I am skeptical as to how well they could get at some areas. Has anyone had experiance with having similar work done?

 

[Rich Stidger]

I have never heard of anyone removing the keel to refinish it.
Question: By "wet blast" do you mean just pressure wash or do you mean removal of old paint down to gel-coat? If it was just pressure washed with water, applying barrier coat and then anti-fouling is wrong IMHO. However if the old paint was removed to the gel-coat, and then barrier coat and anti-fouling applied, that sounds correct.

 

[HomeyD]

Old paint removed. Thanks for the input, I feel better.

 

[Richard19068]

It has been a long time since I had a Catalina 22 but as I recall the keel needed to be worked on in both the lowered and raised positions to get full coverage .

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

@Richard19068 is correct assuming the keel is a swing keel.

Was the swing keel cleaned to the gel coat or was it stripped down to the bare cast iron. If so, how long was it till the barrier coat was applied? Former retired Catalina dealer

 

[jssailem]

I just had the marina wet blast the bottom of my Catalina 22 and apply several coats of barrier and top coat.They sandblasted the kiel as well coated it.

Did you observe the process? Do you have a sense of reliability that the marina workers know what they are doing? Does the finished product look like paint coverage is even and smooth?

If the finished job looks acceptable then you are left to assume they did a professional job.

They tell me they did this without removing the Kiel from the boat. I am skeptical as to how well they could get at some areas.

If I was uncomfortable with the process, then I would inspect the areas of concern. I would visit with the appropriate person and have them explain the issue and how they accomplished the task. You have a reasonable expectation that the paint will protect your boat and that the boat will have a service life. The professional should be able to explain how there work performs and warranty that performance.

 

[Rich Stidger]

It has been a long time since I had a Catalina 22 but as I recall the keel needed to be worked on in both the lowered and raised positions to get full coverage .

Oops, I assumed that the keel was fixed and not a swing keel. My answer in #2 above would be different for a swing keel. Of course the keel should be lowered to adequately clean and recoat it.
Sorry for the wrong answer.

 

[Ward H]

Hard to believe they can get to the whole swing keel without dropping it especially if it was blasted clean to the metal.
That would be my concern.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

@jssailem

Catalina swing keel could have oxidized depending what was done

 

[jssailem]

If you were not able to watch the work you have to talk to the workers. Confirm their warranty. Confirm their Best Practice work procedures.

 

[HomeyD]

All good questions? I do not know of the marinas reputation at this point. I am in NH and the Marina is in VA. We are moving to the area and I have reserved a slip at this marina. It is a small place, family owned and when I spent a little time with the service manager I left with the fealing he knew what he was doing. SInce I was unable to do the work myself I thought it a good opportunity for them to show themselves. I have not seen the finished product yet. I will be headed down on 11/10 to stay and plan to work on the riging and wiring myself. So we shall see. Thank you for all your input. It seems we have similar concerns.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

What is the name and location of the marina?

 

[HomeyD]

Not the issue here. This is about weather it is necessary to remove the kiel for this work to be done well.

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Not the issue here. This is about weather[SIC] it is necessary to remove the kiel [SIC] for this work to be done well.

Yes, it is necessary to ensure complete access on a swing keel.

 

[JBP-PA]

Not the issue here. This is about weather it is necessary to remove the kiel for this work to be done well.

Did you specially ask them to remove the keel? If not, they probably just lowered the keel using the normal winch and did the areas they could reach. This is not a bad thing, it gets most of the keel. I would think it qualifies as "done well" unless you specifically asked for and paid for them to remove the keel.

Removing the keel completely is much more work than simply lowering it and they would rightly charge you more to completely remove it. But the only way you can know is to ask them or inspect it.

 

[Justin_NSA]

If they gave you a full description of the work performed in the estimate/contract, you might have some recourse if it was executed poorly. Would have been best to observe the work.

 

[jssailem]

Observing the work is always good assurance. Trouble is it is not always possible.

 

[Siamese]

You should have had a specific discussion with them in advance as to how you wanted the keel handled. Those Cat 22 keels are a big chunk of iron, coated with gelcoat, and can get very nasty over time. If I was having all the paint removed on the hull in preparation for a barrier coat and a top coat, that would be the time I would instruct them to remove the keel and specify what I wanted done to it. I'd also want to address any wear in the swing pin/mechanism.

At this point, you can just assume they did a decent job on the bottom. If they're the kind of marina that can't get that simple job right, I would say good luck with getting them to fix it. Use your boat as is, and keep an eye on the keel from season to season. You can always remove the keel sometime in the future and restore it independently of the hull.