I have never owned a boat but just bought a little Hunter 19. I don't intend to sail it until next year so I have time to do some maintenance on it. Since I am new to boat ownership I have some basic questions. I have searched through various forums and articles but don't seem to find many answers to elementary questions. First question regards bottom paint. Is it required? The boat is 12 years old and has been well cared for. It has been in fresh water during the summer and stored on it's trailer in the winter. The hull appears to be in good shape but should I consider having it painted? It's never been painted. The other question concerns the balsa core hull. There seems to be a lot of negative articles on the web about this. Did I buy myself a problem? I will be taking the boat to a boat shop for inspection. In my part of the world people own powerboats, and look at sailboat owners sideways, but I assume a good shop is a good shop regardless of whether it's power or sail. Thanks for your replies.
Is bottom paint required, etc...?
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Well, I hope this helps
Bottom paint depends on your sailing locations. If you are planing on leaving the boat in salt water for the season, YES you need to bottom paint. Buy a good ablative paint. Don't be cheaps! If you keep it in fresh water you don't have to bottom paint but if you don't slime will stick to the bottom of your boat. It will stick with bottom paint too but it is easier to get off. If you have a 19 year old boat, I'll bet you have water in the core! Not a real probelm! Walk around you deck and look for spongy spots. Look at you hardware mounted in the deck. You looking for brown spots near the screws penetrating the deck (wood rot). Recaulk any hardware where you find these spots. IF YOU WANT to paly it safe end seal all hardware penetrations (this is a lot of work and in my opinion not worth it). If you do nothing you boat may last another 20 years with spongy decks. I don't like to work with boat shops. I perfer to do the work myself. They are expensive and prefer to do only the large jobs that pay lots of money while they let your boat sit and rot. Bottom line relax and enjoy you boat!
Bottom paint depends on your sailing locations. If you are planing on leaving the boat in salt water for the season, YES you need to bottom paint. Buy a good ablative paint. Don't be cheaps! If you keep it in fresh water you don't have to bottom paint but if you don't slime will stick to the bottom of your boat. It will stick with bottom paint too but it is easier to get off. If you have a 19 year old boat, I'll bet you have water in the core! Not a real probelm! Walk around you deck and look for spongy spots. Look at you hardware mounted in the deck. You looking for brown spots near the screws penetrating the deck (wood rot). Recaulk any hardware where you find these spots. IF YOU WANT to paly it safe end seal all hardware penetrations (this is a lot of work and in my opinion not worth it). If you do nothing you boat may last another 20 years with spongy decks. I don't like to work with boat shops. I perfer to do the work myself. They are expensive and prefer to do only the large jobs that pay lots of money while they let your boat sit and rot. Bottom line relax and enjoy you boat!
Not Needed if on a Trailer
You really only need antifouling bottom paint if the boat is going to be in the water constantly. In a clean water freshwater lake stuff grows slowly and can be wiped off a couple of times a month. I used a hard antifouling paint on my trailerable sailboat. The dirtier the water and the longer it is immersed the more you need antifouling paint and most use an ablative type of paint. Even then you need to scrub the hull once a month or so. If the growth stays on long enough it deposits calcium making the hull very rough. Then you can use muiriatic (hydrochloric acid) to clean off the calcium. An easy way to clean a hull on a trailer is to power wash at a car wash. I used this method regularly on my old Mac 26. Everytime it came out of the water we made a quick trip to the closest car wash. We kept the boat in the water at a lake but routinely would haul it to other lakes for a long weekend of sailing in different waters. Your choice...paint or wash more often.
You really only need antifouling bottom paint if the boat is going to be in the water constantly. In a clean water freshwater lake stuff grows slowly and can be wiped off a couple of times a month. I used a hard antifouling paint on my trailerable sailboat. The dirtier the water and the longer it is immersed the more you need antifouling paint and most use an ablative type of paint. Even then you need to scrub the hull once a month or so. If the growth stays on long enough it deposits calcium making the hull very rough. Then you can use muiriatic (hydrochloric acid) to clean off the calcium. An easy way to clean a hull on a trailer is to power wash at a car wash. I used this method regularly on my old Mac 26. Everytime it came out of the water we made a quick trip to the closest car wash. We kept the boat in the water at a lake but routinely would haul it to other lakes for a long weekend of sailing in different waters. Your choice...paint or wash more often.
just went through this
hello Charly(?).just purchased my first sailboat this year and went through the same things . being in Regina i couldn't get a definitive answer on bottom paint from any one locally. i would think your boat will be in the same water conditions as mine and if so and you are trailering the boat you just need to clean and wax your hull . if you are leaving your boat in the water you have choices --as Tom said and what some do around here is to pull the boat out occasionaly and wash it .-- leave it all season and spend more time in the fall cleaning the hull .-- or bottom paint . i went with bottom paint as our lake is quite green and the boat had always been coated .no hair on the boat yet. another option i would suggest would be bottom wax .i dont have the a brand name handy if i have time i,ll post it later ,its economical ,easy and i understand enviro friendly . ultimatly it will come down to the quality of the water your boat will be in and your wallet ,good bottom paint isn,t cheap (cheap bottom paint isn't cheap). as to painting your hull if your boats only 12 yrs. old and in good shape,buff it up and put on some good wax .my 32 yr.old hull looked like it was freshly painted after an evenings work.the original gellcoat will always be the best finish try to keep it . balsa core , if your boat has been cared for you should have no problems . again if it was me i would rebed all thru hulls and deck fittings. use a good quality bedding caulk not kitchen and bath silicone . don't be stingy with the caulk and don't just goop it around the fixtures remove them and bed them in it. i am not familiar with your boat, mine was a lot of work but now its as dry as a bone and i know where i have some future repairs to do . have fun and take care of your boat , hope this helps Mike
hello Charly(?).just purchased my first sailboat this year and went through the same things . being in Regina i couldn't get a definitive answer on bottom paint from any one locally. i would think your boat will be in the same water conditions as mine and if so and you are trailering the boat you just need to clean and wax your hull . if you are leaving your boat in the water you have choices --as Tom said and what some do around here is to pull the boat out occasionaly and wash it .-- leave it all season and spend more time in the fall cleaning the hull .-- or bottom paint . i went with bottom paint as our lake is quite green and the boat had always been coated .no hair on the boat yet. another option i would suggest would be bottom wax .i dont have the a brand name handy if i have time i,ll post it later ,its economical ,easy and i understand enviro friendly . ultimatly it will come down to the quality of the water your boat will be in and your wallet ,good bottom paint isn,t cheap (cheap bottom paint isn't cheap). as to painting your hull if your boats only 12 yrs. old and in good shape,buff it up and put on some good wax .my 32 yr.old hull looked like it was freshly painted after an evenings work.the original gellcoat will always be the best finish try to keep it . balsa core , if your boat has been cared for you should have no problems . again if it was me i would rebed all thru hulls and deck fittings. use a good quality bedding caulk not kitchen and bath silicone . don't be stingy with the caulk and don't just goop it around the fixtures remove them and bed them in it. i am not familiar with your boat, mine was a lot of work but now its as dry as a bone and i know where i have some future repairs to do . have fun and take care of your boat , hope this helps Mike
epoxy bottom paint
one word of caution I didn't see others mention - if you do decide to bottom paint it, don't use epoxy as ut is intended only for boats whiich stay in the water. If it dries out, it losses it's efficacy. If you do paint it, use only a paint such as most ablatives which can dry out and still be effective.
one word of caution I didn't see others mention - if you do decide to bottom paint it, don't use epoxy as ut is intended only for boats whiich stay in the water. If it dries out, it losses it's efficacy. If you do paint it, use only a paint such as most ablatives which can dry out and still be effective.
My 2 cents
My situation is similar to yours. Kept on the trailer most of the time. Since it had previously been bottom painted I felt committed to do the same but had to take it down to the gelcoat. I used Interlux ACT and was very pleased with the results. They have a good chart on their website which helps you select the appropriate paint based on your use conditions. The ACT rolled on fairly thick and covers well. Durability has been very good. BTW for my 22 footer it only took about 1/2 gallon at the most.
My situation is similar to yours. Kept on the trailer most of the time. Since it had previously been bottom painted I felt committed to do the same but had to take it down to the gelcoat. I used Interlux ACT and was very pleased with the results. They have a good chart on their website which helps you select the appropriate paint based on your use conditions. The ACT rolled on fairly thick and covers well. Durability has been very good. BTW for my 22 footer it only took about 1/2 gallon at the most.
rebedding is not the same as sealing
I politely debate the idea that it's not worth the work to seal then rebed. If you are only going to use the boat a few years and then 'thro it away', then not much is needed. If you want to keep the boat in good repair, then you need to epoxy seal, redrill and then caulk all fittings that go into or thru the balsa? cored deck. Also dig out as much rot as you can. Don Casey has a book on this and you can view the info on the web.
I politely debate the idea that it's not worth the work to seal then rebed. If you are only going to use the boat a few years and then 'thro it away', then not much is needed. If you want to keep the boat in good repair, then you need to epoxy seal, redrill and then caulk all fittings that go into or thru the balsa? cored deck. Also dig out as much rot as you can. Don Casey has a book on this and you can view the info on the web.
bottom
There are options for your bottom. Look into VC-17 or Scatt. They are harder than bottom paints and provide a slicker surface for better performance for your sailboat while giving you some minimal protection against growth. Designed for trailerable boats.
There are options for your bottom. Look into VC-17 or Scatt. They are harder than bottom paints and provide a slicker surface for better performance for your sailboat while giving you some minimal protection against growth. Designed for trailerable boats.
Bottom Paint
I'm with those who say don't paint. I sail the Great Lakes and find that an occasional brushing keeps the slime at bay. When you pull the boat for the season use "Slimy Grimy" on the bottom. It's amazing stuff. If the previous owner(s) did not see the necessity in 12 yrs why whould you want to do anything different?
I'm with those who say don't paint. I sail the Great Lakes and find that an occasional brushing keeps the slime at bay. When you pull the boat for the season use "Slimy Grimy" on the bottom. It's amazing stuff. If the previous owner(s) did not see the necessity in 12 yrs why whould you want to do anything different?
The skinny on bottom paint
Welcome aboard. Bottom paint is probably one of the most discussed topics among sailors..except maybe how to make a good cup of coffee on board). Let's see if I can help... The primary purpose of antifouling (aka "bottom") paint is to keep pesky marine (saltwater) animals like barnacles from growing on ("fouling") the underwater parts of your hull. Most antifoulings sold in the US contain copper in some form. Here's where it gets tricky... Algae, slime and other aquatic plants also like to grow on the hull, and most copper-based antifoulings have little or no effect against them. As a result, most manfacturers add algaecides and other ingredients to their paint to repel non-animal growth. Those ingredients are rarely found by themselves, so you have to buy the paint. But wait, there's more.... The amount and type of growth on an untreated hull depends on several factors, including water salinity, temperature, clarity, availability of nutrients and dissolved oxygen, the intensity and duration of sunlight and even the location on the hull and its depth below the water surface. Most boatyards in areas with heavy fouling will know which paint is most effective in that area. Here's the bottom line. If your boat is being trailered and won't be in the water for more than a week at a time, you probably don't need bottom paint. If you're in fresh water for more than a week at a time and you can scrub the hull periodically and within an hour or so after hauling, you don't need bottom paint (unless you're in an area with zebra mussels, and again your local boatyards will know). And of course, if the boat is always in salt water then you definitely need bottom paint. I hope that helps. Happy sailing. Peter H23 "Raven"
Welcome aboard. Bottom paint is probably one of the most discussed topics among sailors..except maybe how to make a good cup of coffee on board). Let's see if I can help... The primary purpose of antifouling (aka "bottom") paint is to keep pesky marine (saltwater) animals like barnacles from growing on ("fouling") the underwater parts of your hull. Most antifoulings sold in the US contain copper in some form. Here's where it gets tricky... Algae, slime and other aquatic plants also like to grow on the hull, and most copper-based antifoulings have little or no effect against them. As a result, most manfacturers add algaecides and other ingredients to their paint to repel non-animal growth. Those ingredients are rarely found by themselves, so you have to buy the paint. But wait, there's more.... The amount and type of growth on an untreated hull depends on several factors, including water salinity, temperature, clarity, availability of nutrients and dissolved oxygen, the intensity and duration of sunlight and even the location on the hull and its depth below the water surface. Most boatyards in areas with heavy fouling will know which paint is most effective in that area. Here's the bottom line. If your boat is being trailered and won't be in the water for more than a week at a time, you probably don't need bottom paint. If you're in fresh water for more than a week at a time and you can scrub the hull periodically and within an hour or so after hauling, you don't need bottom paint (unless you're in an area with zebra mussels, and again your local boatyards will know). And of course, if the boat is always in salt water then you definitely need bottom paint. I hope that helps. Happy sailing. Peter H23 "Raven"
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