I haul my boat and paint the bottom myself every two to three years. This is a task I hate with every fiber in my body but I do it myself because I think I do a better job than the yard guys. The paint I use is a non ablative with copper that runs about $200.00 / gal. There is a more expensive paint with more copper that runs about $300.00 / gal. I would happily go with the more expensive paint if it meant I could put off the haulout another year (or two). Anyone have experience with this? Is it worth it?
Is the more expensive bottom paint worth it?
- Thread starter markwbird
- Start date
According to a friend, no.
You'll be repainting in the same time frame no matter the cost/copper.
Just repainted my hull with super-expensive ablative, and will let you know in two years.
Of course, YMMV due to location.
Not in my opinion, or that of any skipper I've discussed bottom paint with, over the last 8 or ten years. However, we are in the warn tropical waters of the Caribbean and as some bottom paints are formulated for the areas are used in, it could be different there.
Back when I lived in the Bay Area antifouling paint actually did what it was sold to do, antifoul. Not so much today, I'm afraid.
A couple of years back I got a great deal on the Sherwin Williams Sea Voyage (US$7.50 a gallon, I know, crazy huh?) and it worked every bit as well as the us$ 350.00 a gallon stuff, if not slightly better.
I wish you luck, but chances are, if you don't want to haul every year and repaint, you'll have to get a wet suit, mask, snorkel and some brushes and scrub her bottom (your boat, remember we are talking about your boat here) periodically. Neither is a particularly fun job, but the hull scrubbing is cheaper, for sure.
Back when I lived in the Bay Area antifouling paint actually did what it was sold to do, antifoul. Not so much today, I'm afraid.
A couple of years back I got a great deal on the Sherwin Williams Sea Voyage (US$7.50 a gallon, I know, crazy huh?) and it worked every bit as well as the us$ 350.00 a gallon stuff, if not slightly better.
I wish you luck, but chances are, if you don't want to haul every year and repaint, you'll have to get a wet suit, mask, snorkel and some brushes and scrub her bottom (your boat, remember we are talking about your boat here) periodically. Neither is a particularly fun job, but the hull scrubbing is cheaper, for sure.
It’s not the schedule but rather the result which counts - if it remains effective, why repaint or spend more? If it doesn’t, the extra $100 won’t buy you 50% more time.
A resounding NO to that one !
Only an honest evaluation by others will tell you which bottom paint is the right one for your area. And an 'honest evaluation" means ignore all power boaters
.From day one I had always used Interlux Micron CSC ablative with reasonable results. I painted a single coat every two years. A number of years ago a sailboater from way down the dock with an immaculately kept boat put me on to West Marine CPP Plus at less than half the price of Micron CSC. At his recommendation, I went with two coats of CPP from the first application. It turned out to be the RIGHT COAT FOR MY AREA and I was ecstatic with 5-6 years between applications. The gauge is the bottom indicator coat on top of the epoxy sealer.
Do not try this in your area unless you have it on good authority that it works.
I've had good results with Jamestown Distributors' TotalBoat Spartan Ablative bottom paint (around $175 per gal.). I applied two coats Spring of 2018, been to the Bahamas and back and now on the Chesapeake. The boat has been in the water the entire time, just had a diver clean the bottom last week and he says the paint is good for at least another season. I'll be using Spartan again!
No right answer here. First, experience varies a lot by locale. Second, newer formulations make do with less copper. Check with sailboaters locally and divers especially. FWIW, I typically get 3-4 years of very good service with a monthly dive service with my hard, high(er) copper paint. I put on whatever the Mexican yard I use has in bulk. It's usually pretty good stuff. I use an ablative copper paint on my Boston Whaler because I haul it annually, but I'm not happy with my experience with it. But, that's just me there. Practical Sailor has comparison tests but my experience is not the same as theirs; location, location. Still, it may make for some interesting reading.
I have written a lot about this subject, but I guess people are too lazy to search past posts. So, i will briefly repeat what I have said in the past. There basically are two types of bottom paints. Single season and multi-season. Single season paints are wonderful coatings until you remove the boat from the water and let the hull dry. A chemical change takes place that renders the copper biocide not so effective. Also, with single season paints, the biocide sloughs from the paint leaving the paint on the hull so that when you look at bottom paint with a single season paint job, you cannot assume that there is antifouling protection left. Multi-season paints don't have adverse results when pulled from the water and the hull dries. Also, the biocide and the paint leach away at the same time so that eventually all the paint will be gone and of course when you start seeing bare hull, it is time to recoat. Multi season paints work like a bar of soap. As you wash your hands, the bar gets smaller and smaller, but still cleans your hands. So, the nature of a multi-season paint is that like a time capsule in that it releases the biocide as the paint diminishes. This is good because you don't get a build up of paint like that of a single season paint where the paint keeps building up yet the biocide exits the application. It is recommended that more coats be applied (like 3) of the multi-season paint (and 2 of the single season paint). Multi season paints generally are more expensive than single season paints and so when you apply more coats, the cost is higher, but it lasts longer. In tropical areas, where the boat stays in the water for long periods of time, preferred bottom paints would be Pettit's Trinidad or Interlux' Ultra. They have the highest toxicant percentage and are single season paints. The more toxicant the greater the expense. It makes no sense to buy bottom paint for a high growing tropical area when you sail in a lower growing area of hull build up. That is a waste of money for sure. Things to consider when comparing paints, other than what I wrote above, is, of course color choice and the square footage any given paint will cover. One paint might be cheaper, but how many square feet does a gallon cover? VC17 is yet another type of paint, commonly used by racers, because it doesn't build up, is fast because of the smooth surface due to the nature of the paint (a teflon like component), yet it is a single season paint and must be applied annually after the hull dries for winter storage. It comes in a fresh water and a salt water formula and no one will believe me, but the formula made for the big box stores is different from the same paint made for non-big box stores. Hence they can sell it cheaper. VC-17 is particularly effective against zebra mussels, BTW, which is a growing concern for many fresh water sailors. Also to consider what affects bottom paint performance is the ambient waters the boat is kept. For example if there is a lot of industry in your area, the contamination in the water may inhibit the usefulness or length of antifouling protection you can expect. That is bottom paint 101. There are other subtleties that each have, like slime preventers, etc. Have fun painting. Wear protective clothing and follow the instructions so that you don't waste your money on a paint job that falls off because you didn't properly prepare the hull, or you put incompatible paints on top of each other. It can be a nasty job. Perhaps a boat yard is a better alternative to do the job unless you are a scrappy, hard working boat owner who doesn't care if you look like a Smurf when done.
