keel box repaint

[unclejack3]

Hi.
Any tricks on how to clean and repaint the inside of the keel box.
I am currently using a wide belt sander belt, 600 mm long around a piece of plywood, this allows me to have a flat and long surface to reach the top, it's seems to work but can't really put that much pressure on it to remove the barnacles but it's better than what it was... As for painting I assume spraying is the go, straight gel coat..
Any ideas..
Thx

 

[shemandr]

If there are barnacles up there I would want bottom paint i.e. anti-fouling.
On dingy bottom I used to use epoxy with a graphite additive instead of anti-fouling paint which didn't stand up to the beaches very well. The epoxy/graphite was abrasion resistant and resisted barnacles from forming. I wouldn't know anything about spraying it.
I don't think straight gel coat would do anything for you in the anti-fouling department.
I don't know this boat, the size of the keel box or the access you have. But I wonder if you could fashion a scrapper out of a scrap of steel like a chisel but long enough to reach the upper surfaces of the trunk. It would need to be stiff enough to not bend. That should knock the barnacles off and reduce the time with the sander which sounds like it suc... isn't fun!

 

[unclejack3]

Hi.
It's a trailer sailer so no need of antifoul. Catalina 22, ..I made a device from poly styrene with sandpaper wrapped around it, did the job... It's not perfectly clean or even but will spray acetone in there and then spray thick ish gelcoat...