Bottom Paint

[Dave Emery]

$22 A Foot

I pay $22.00 a foot. This includes hual out, lay days, sanding / prep work, paint, and labor to apply paint. $22.00 x 45 = $990.00. If they had to strip the old epoxy paint prior to the new paint, that's a different story.

 

[Steve Dion]

Overcharged for the Paint too.

John:They sort of got you on the paint too. W/M is selling this paint for $175/gal. So I'd estimate that they charged you about $125 too much for the paint too.By the way. What was wrong with the Copperepoxy that was on the boat? I suppose in retrospect, nothing!

 

[Ron]

They're Nuts!

We pay $27 a foot all inclusive. If they needed a tent it wasn't your responsibility. How much would the job have cost if they needed a new lift? I'd take them to court. Anything over $1500 and they could kiss my...... If you need estimates from other boat yards I will be happy to get one from down here in TX... Ron/KA5HZV

 

[Rob R.]

Jeez... $50 bucks a foot down here...

I wish we had more competition! My C-27 cost over 2000 to have done last year. Few guys to do it on the lake down here, so they can charge what they want. Sad.Rob

 

[Steve Dion]

sounds closer to $75/ft to me.

Rob:This sounds more like $75/ft to me. $2000 divided by 27 is about $74.07/ft.What could these guys be charging for?

 

[Doug T.]

Competition

When you figure the cost based on LWL -- the length that's meaningful for a bottom job -- these two guys (27' & 45') are paying $91 & $100 per foot, respectively!!!How can I get in on this action???

 

[Steve Dion]

In defense of these high seas pirates....

In defense of these high seas pirates, I do not think that charging strictly by the foot is going to get it. For the pull, the wash that is okay. But let me tell you, If you have to paint a 19ft Potter vs a 38ft Hunter there is going a difference of more than double for the Hunter. We need to consider the sq. footage and the type of paint that was applied. West Marine bottom paint can be had for $50-60/gal. The newer SR paints are more in the $150-200/gal. range.These guys need to make a profit so charging retail for their paint is reasonable. Marking it up over MSRP is really not.What amazes me is the number of instances where this happens. I guess I do not understand why the manager of these yards would just proceed ahead when they must know that there is going to be a shot heard "round the world" when this owner gets the bill. Why don't the call the owners and explain this before they proceed with the work.I guess it all goes back to the fact that you must "GET AN ESTIMATE"!

 

[John Visser]

Go legal

I would recommend, John, that you get an attorney, and you suggest to the yard that in the case of your authorizing work without an estimate that you have a resonable expectation that the cost will be reasonable and customary; that if your boat was to cost more than usual, they had an obligation to inform you beforehand; and that in this situation, they have an obligation to attempt to mitigate the situaiton. I would further ask for documentary evidence of what their customary charge for this work is this season. I would also recommend that you seek estimates from other yards nearby to establish comparable values for this work. In short, I think you were taken advantage of, and you shoudl fight them. p.s. I got a quote last year for a "scrape and sand as necessary and re-coat" job for $14.50/foot (South coast of MA).jv

 

[Steve Dion]

If he gets an attorney...

John:If he gets an attorney, this job may cost him $5000-6000 by the time they get done. There is no guarantee that this is going lower the fees. I think that there are a few points that should be discussed with the yard.1. THE TENT! (could almost live with the rest of the bill)2. The number of hours charged.3. The amount of paint used (unless that is what he ordered).4. The price that they charged for the paint.The hourly rate of $60 is reasonable.

 

[David Underwood]

Have any of you ever done a bottom before........

I have... twice now. Believe me, starting at the bow, it might take about an hour per foot to sand, but wait till you get to the middle of the boat. Mine is a H-33, when I get to the middle of my boat where the beam is 10 feet, it will take me 3 hours or so per foot and that's not the keel, the keel is a day's work on its own. I have done mine twice, each time had a friend or two to help. Let me tell you, its the dirtest, prob. most dangerous job you will ever do with respect to your health. I may be the dumbest guy on this site for "doing my own" bottom. I am about to do it again, but I'm alot older than I was the last two times and it really makes it appealling to "pay the pirates" and save my health. I know you wear all the protective clothing and mask and all, but believe me.. some dust will get past all that. The tent is excessive for sure, I would think they could have just taped plastic around the hull for about a dollar a foot and maybe an hour or two of labor. Say $300 includes tip on tent.

 

[John Visser]

Yes, I have...

I did the bottom of my C-36 last year. Chipped off the entire coat of sloughing paint, left the coat of hard bottom underneath. Some spots needed belt sanding. Took my wife and me three days of shipping, one day to paint with two coats of ablative bottom paint. Very dirty job. jv

 

[LaDonna Bubak - CatalinaOwners.com]

I second that!

It's a filthy dirty job and I've done it twice myself but I had blisters to repair. Just the sanding/roughing of the old paint takes one person the better part of a day (I know this first hand) and then half a day to paint. No WAY that yard spent that many man-hours sanding & painting.LaDonna

 

[Steve Dion]

Never been sanded in 15 years!

I have a question for y'all. Why do you sand the bottom? I have had my boat for 15 years and the bottom has NEVER EVER been sanded. I gets power washed when it comes out of the water and any bad spots get cleaned up. They apply a coat of paint, let it dry and in the water it goes. We have the bottom redone about every 2-3 years.

 

[Rob R.]

Fuzzy Math!

Steve D. - Good point! Forgot to mention - several blisters found, and the haul was included, including a scrape job down to the gel coat. Still, very expensive stuff! A friend just bought a trailer for a C-27, and that will be the preferred method of hauling and painting next year. Take Care -Rob

 

[Wanderer138]

It's still no fun on the trailer

I just spent the better part of four months on my H23 with the boat on the trailer. I had a fair number of blisters (the four months did NOT include drying out time) and had to grind, prime, fill blisters, sand then apply five coats of epoxy barrier coat (sanding between coats) plus two coats of tie coat and three coats of antifouling. In the process, I wore all the protective gear but still got eyefuls and lungfuls of epoxy dust and fiberglass dust.I don't plan on doing this EVER again. However, I do agree that four grand does sound steep.PeterH23 "Raven"

 

[Perry Martin]

Honest boat yard

We just had our 40 foot pulled out of the water in Islamadora, FL. It was in the yard for 45 days, bottom sanded and blasted, panted - cost $1,100.

 

[D Berube]

Sixty bucks an hour!

Yes that is what they get in the state of Conn. too!

 

[Mike]

Boy, do I feel guilty...

The bottom of my boat (Oday 23) needed painting this year (I use multi-season ablative). Aside from a couple of barnicles in the centerboard well, no heavy sanding was necessary. I was given the number of a local kid who paints bottoms (recommended by someone I trust). He gave the bottom a light sanding and put one coat of new paint on. Time: about 2 hours. Price $20, plus one gallon of paint $90 (on sale at West Marine), sandpaper, a couple of brushes and rollers and some masking tape, $25. He did a nice job. I hope I can find him in a couple of years.