Hull painting

[sailnoproblem]

I know this has been asked before but, I will be painting my hull in the spring. I have a painter that has used the roll and tip method. The yard does not allow spray.
I will use Interlux, and want to change the hull color from light blue to emerald green. It is going over the original gel coat.
When I purchased the boat I had to wet sand and compound to get the original hull color to come through the oxidation.
After compounding and waxing over the past few years the hull is looking pretty shabby. I plan on lightly sanding and wiping down the hull to remove the remaining wax.
I will prep the hull for paint, to save some cash.
Point is are there any suggestions out there from owners who have gone through this process?

 

[jviss]

Prepping is the absolute most important aspect. Might want to do a lot of research on this, or let a pro do it. I. myself, would want a paint job where the painter takes responsibility for the entire paint system, including it staying on the hull. If you "help," you let him off the hook.

 

[sailnoproblem]

Prepping is the absolute most important aspect. Might want to do a lot of research on this, or let a pro do it. I. myself, would want a paint job where the painter takes responsibility for the entire paint system, including it staying on the hull. If you "help," you let him off the hook.

I think your suggestion has a lot of food for thought. The individual that is doing the job suggested that he completed the job from start to finish.
I have known him for man years and is a personal friend. I have seen his work and it is impeccable. Given more thought I will take your suggestion and have him complete the project without me getting involved.

 

[jviss]

By the way, your boat looks nice in the pic, and I actually prefer a gelcoat hull to paint. My new one has paint, and I know its only a matter of time until a costly re-paint. Are you certain your gel coat can't be restored? Youve' seen MaineSail's tutorial?

 

[agprice22]

Be sure you remove the wax BEFORE sanding. Otherwise, you will drive the wax into the pores of the gelcoat. You will then get "fisheyes" in your paint. That will suck.
Use a dewaxer.

 

[VanIslandGuy]

If you are going to go to all this work, be sure to use a 2-part paint as it will be much longer lasting and have better abrasion resistance. Interlux has a good 2-part paint made for roll and tip application.

 

[Allan12210]

While we were hauled out last week some painters were prepping the boat next to us for painting by that method. We weren't there for the final color coat (it was going to be green as well) but they showed me it was an Interlux product. What I did see was after they prepped the hull, they put a gray primer on (2 coats). I didn't catch what that was.

 

[Justin_NSA]

How do you paint around the pads for a consistent look?

 

[Allan12210]

How do you paint around the pads for a consistent look?

We never have gotten that consistent look on the bottom paint. We have them put the boat on the slings just before the yard guys go to lunch. We put two quick coats with a roller on the bare spots and it goes back in the water still pretty soft. I've never seen any additional growth in those areas and it doesn't wash off while still drying. The solvent based paint (ZSpar B-91) doesn't seem to be water soluble. We try and get them to put the pads in different places each time just so we can get the old spots sanded down again every other time or so.

 

[jviss]

How do you paint around the pads for a consistent look?

This isn't about bottom paint, I don't think! It's about topsides paint.

 

[Justin_NSA]

This isn't about bottom paint, I don't think! It's about topsides paint.

My bad. I knew that, I had a senior moment and thought some pads make contact above the waterline.
Now returning to our regularly scheduled program...

 

[Allan12210]

This isn't about bottom paint, I don't think! It's about topsides paint.

I knew that too, but couldn't leave Justin NSA hanging.

 

[sailnoproblem]

Thanks for all the advice. I would love to just keep the gel coat. But when I purchased the boat it was in real bad shape (Hull) I wet sanded it for a month, the compounded it, and applied 4 coats of paste wax. After several
years of light compound and wax the color has faded and there are areas of white clouds showing.
I will check out the MainSail tutorial.

 

[Pirate Dave]

I've done a couple of boats with great results. Wash down with Interlux 202 before and after sanding. While sanding you will be upclose and personal with the hull and now is the time to decide if you need to fill and fair any cracks or blemishes. Look for a two part like Interlux Perfection or Pettit EzPoxy and the new performance enhancer which turns it into a two part paint. Use a six inch foam brush and roll and tip the paint in. From a distance of two feet, you will see imperfections once you are done but once in the water you will be please. If you are two feet from the hull in the water, you probably have a lot bigger problem then the paint's finish

 

[kampuniform]

A number of things. This isn’t the optimal venue for obtaining accurate information regarding this subject.
You were a little too aggressive on your hull with all that sanding and compounding, and if you choose paint, it will never stand up to that kind of treatment.

Rolling and tipping is the stumbling country bumpkin method of paint application that guarantees dismal outcomes.

Spraying and polishing is the only way to go

In effect, you are asking us if there is a way to apply paint professionally by bypassing all the effort and years necessary to accumulate the experience to do a professional job.

No, there isn’t.

If this is your first time doing this, the results will be reflected in the finished product.

 

[jviss]

That's a really rotten reply! It wouldn't be so bad if it was all correct, but it is in fact, wrong in many ways.

First of all, regarding venue: there are many knowledgable, experienced folks on here.

Sanding and polishing: read MaineSail's tutorial on this. You can get incredibly good results, a better than factory new finish.

Rolling and tipping: I personally know a guy who ran painting operations at Little Harbor, and painted some incredible yachts, including many multi-million dollar yachts. He says one can get good results tipping and rolling, and people do. It's all about time and money and available facilities.

As far as "painting and polishing," given the dominant products out there, Imron and Awlgrip, I don't think you know what you're talking about when you add "polishing" to that.

 

[agprice22]

Hmmmm....
1. Yes. You will get better results spraying IF you know what you are doing.
2. No. You do not NECESSARILY have to get poor results with roll/tip.
The key to roll/tip, as in spraying, is thinning (reducing). You must get the paint reduced properly for the conditions and the application method. Properly reduced, you will have ZERO brush marks in your painted surface.
Spraying is not hard, but spraying WELL takes learning. Do you want to learn on your boat? Do you have a warehouse in which to spray? Do you have quality spray equipment: gun, hose, paint filter, regulator, line drier, compressor, dust suits... throw in a dekups system, and you are talking a lot of money, not including the cost of pain.
Prepare your surface: dewax, sand, fill / fair, sand to specified grit for priming, prime, sand to specified grit for top coat. At this point, you can spray or roll/tip. I have done both.
By the way, the ROLL in roll/tip speeds up the process. It adds a new row of paint quickly. More importantly, it also reminds you to pull paint BACK into the wet area rather than into dry, unpainted surface. If you pull paint from wet into dry, you get valleys and drags in your paint because you are dragging paint away. Pulling paint BACK into the wet area helps build the layer and lets stroke marks smooth out.

Interlux sells excellent products: paint, converter (hardener), and reducer (thinner). Awlgrip also sells excellent products.
When you have a big job, spraying goes FAST. But get a run or a sag, and you will be bummed.

 

[sailnoproblem]

A number of things. This isn’t the optimal venue for obtaining accurate information regarding this subject.
You were a little too aggressive on your hull with all that sanding and compounding, and if you choose paint, it will never stand up to that kind of treatment.

Rolling and tipping is the stumbling country bumpkin method of paint application that guarantees dismal outcomes.

Spraying and polishing is the only way to go

In effect, you are asking us if there is a way to apply paint professionally by bypassing all the effort and years necessary to accumulate the experience to do a professional job.

No, there isn’t.

If this is your first time doing this, the results will be reflected in the finished product.

Thanks for your opinion. The original process which I used to bring my hull back to life was recommended by my friends who are professional Yacht builders in Bradenton Florida.
As for the roll and tip process I agree I would rather Spray. However in the great state of New Jersey (pun intended) you would need a approved shed, with proper filtered ventilation. For me that is cost prohibitive.
The individual who is going to do the job has done several that I have seen, all of which are of high quality. Basically roll and tip is my only option, as my hull is getting a little shabby looking.

 

[jviss]

Burr Brothers in Marion, MA, have recently built a new metal shed, with radiant heat, concrete floor, and inside that they have built a positive pressure, environmentally controlled spray booth that will take a huge yacht. But, I would guess painting the topsides of a 34' boat would get you above $10k.

It's all about available facilities, time, money, and the inevitable tradeoffs.

 

[jviss]

And by the way, you can get lousy results spraying, too. I know a yard that tries it, and routinely screws it up. They shouldn't be spraying bug spray, let alone Awlgrip. Your mileage may vary.