Paint Coverage

Ross · May 12, 2012

Most of the time the paint can label will detail the coverage per gallon one coat. A 16 foot long boat with a midships girth of twelve feet would have a surface area of less than two hundred square feet. For house paint 100 square feet per quart is standard coverage.

finding41 · May 12, 2012

I just painted the bottom of my Mac 26D today. I used almost 1 Qt. That's it!
I would get 1 Qt of primer and 2 qt of paint. (prime once paint 3 times.) You can judge the top paint from your bottom experience. Have fun.

John Nantz · May 12, 2012

Can you avoid painting the bottom?

At 16 feet is there some way to get the boat out of the water between uses?

If you keep it in the water and have a dock handy, if you can have a float that slopes into the water then it should be possible to pull it up on the float. Cover it with some indoor/outdoor carpet where the keel/bilge rubs. Maybe a roller near the leading edge.

It'll sail faster without the bottom paint if it can be "dry sailed".

If it's trailer-sailed then unless it's in the water for some length of time there shouldn't be enough growth or it can be washed off.

If there is any way to avoid painting the bottom it would be good.

Bottom paint.... ouch!

finding41 · May 12, 2012

No the difference between frist and latter coats is not like walls. It's not going to absorb into the fiberglass. Put it on thin with a small roller. I used a fuzzie 6" weenie roller today with my boat. The interlux primer and bright side is very thin, IE watery. It will go a long way on a smooth surface.
THIS IS IMPORTANT. Make sure you wipe it down first with the recommended product from the primer can to remove any residual wax or gunk. Follow the instructions. It will seem kind of silly to wipe in one direction once with one part of the rag then fold and repeat but it makes a big difference in the kind of job you get in the end.

Ross · May 12, 2012

When you paint a wall you should prime it first. Then the wall will be ready for finish coats just like your boat. Fiberglass is a great substrate for paint but you still need to follow good painting practice and the paint makers instructions.

Joe · May 13, 2012

Two suggestions........ recalculate your coverage... and forget the bottom paint.

Joe · May 13, 2012

matt6669 said:
Joe the reason I was going to use the primekote is because my get coat has some spider web cracks in it, and interlux's website says it'll fill and seal these so I figured I would use that.

Are you thinking I should just put the VC performance on and go for it?

NO! Just the opposite. I'd seal the cracks with primekote and paint the entire bottom and topsides with regular polyurethane topside paint. Perfection if you're patient, Brightside if you want a less expensive, simpler application. Follow the manufacturer's prep instructions diligently to get the awesome finish you're looking for.

Why are you considering VC performance epoxy.... I thought that stuff was for powerboats.... besides it only comes in white. Are you thinking of VC 17? http://www.wholesalemarine.com/pc/I...-17M+Extra+Antifouling+Boat+Bottom+Paint.html
Unless you're leaving the boat in the water you don't really need an anti-fouling bottom paint. The boat will perform a lot better with the straight epoxy paint finish.

As far as coverage.... primer and 2/3 coats of polyurethane topside paint will get it done... I'd figure about 80 sf for the topsides and another 50 for the bottom... http://www.defender.com/html/paint_guide.html

here's a good price on a gallon of brightside http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|10918|296162|10919|311501|613758&id=738023

Turning the boat upsided down will make the job a snap.

wflowe2 · May 14, 2012

I painted my bottom this spring. Used Hydrocoat and it took about 3/4 gallon for one coat on my Catalina 320.

tommays · May 14, 2012

It took 24 oz of two part topside paint mixed 2:1:1 per coat for the topsides on a Cal 29 hull ,which is = to (about 17 or so

16' hulls

The mix yielded 48 oz of paint ready to roll and tip and it goes a really long way

The problem is a quart should be plenty of finish coat BUT learning to use it is a science experiment as

It is unlike any other paint and a bit off on humidity or temperature or technique and it turns to crap

Joe · May 18, 2012

matt6669 said:
I was under the impression that Brightside could only be used above the water line?

Though if what your saying is true, it would save me a lot of money.

The reason I was using the VC Performance was because according to the rep at interlux leaving it in fresh water would not create any problems, and it's ideal for sailboats. Also with VC performance I can also trailer the boat with no problems as well. That was my whole thinking process for the VC.

If your saying to just do primekote on the bottom and then cover the whole boat in brightside that would save me over 200 bucks.
Matt

Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying..... but if you are still unsure.... talk to other dinghy owners.... they don't have to be rebel owners.

Matt, above the water line gets wet too. Just paint the entire hull the with the same paint. It'll look better... If you're jonesing to use VC performance.... go for it .... but paint the entire hull with it... don't waste your time trying to create a separate bottom area... Here... look at the boats in this link and try to make your boat look like theirs... do you see bottom paint on any of them? http://www.rebelsailor.com/ClasInfo.html

I'm just curious, what were the problems you were trying to avoid by using VC performance that would be present if you used a regular polyurethane paint?

Cleaning the bottom of you boat is simple, just hose it off when you put on the trailer after a day of sailing.

Joe · May 18, 2012

matt6669 said:
I was under the impression that Brightside could only be used above the water line?

Matt

Yes... it is designed to be used above the water line, where the boat has a separate bottom finish. It is not designed for applications where hull surface is always in water and never dries out. But that doesn't decribe your boat, I think. Your boat will be stored on the trailer, or left on the beach, when not in use....... You don't need bottom paint in that scenario. You can use any polyurethane paint on the hull if it isn't left stored in the water because the hull will dry out.

As a demonstration of my point, here is a video on painting a dinghy with Interlux Perfection. It's in 3 parts, here is part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6DU1_V7jNU

Notice the commitment to prepping the hull... yours many not require as much...but the point is obivious......... they use a topside paint for the entire hull!!!

Your boat is a classic racing dinghy design. Did you know that the Rebel 16 was the first all fiberglass boat ever built? Yep... and the Nickels Boat works is still producing new Rebel 16's that can be purchased in the $12000-$15000 range.

Finally, if you look at a large number of Rebels through your google search.... you will see a few where the owners painted the bottom separately.... and they look TERRIBLE!!!. (mainly because it's almost impossible to define the waterline on a dinghy) Do you want your boat to look like that? I hope not... Paint it all one color with only one type of paint. Add a sheer stripe to jazz it up (that's the line near the deck, not the waterline) You don't need to paint on a sheer stripe, you can buy vinyl tape that looks very cool.

Joe · May 19, 2012

Your plan is not unsound....... the topsides is the area of the hull from the waterline to the deck joint. The sides, if you will, this area of the hull does not remain submerged when the boat is at rest. The bottom of the the hull is the area that is underwater when the boat is resting in the water. In the beginning, if you has said " I want to paint the hull with VC performance and the deck with brightside" this discussion would have probably never taken place... heh, heh.

So..... I believe we have been confused by the terminology..... and my point to you has been that on boats like yours it is not common to even paint a waterline, much less apply two different types of paint to the hull... bottom paint and topsides paint.

But I see now that you are thinking of the entire hull as the bottom.... your intention from the beginning was congruent to my thinking. You do not have to rethink anything. If you want to use VC performance to paint the entire hull..... I say go for it.... it will work quite well. However, if you want your hull any other color but white... you can use any topside paint.... Perfection, Brightside, Easypoxy, Awlgrip, etc........ The topsides paints polish up beautifully... whereas I believe the VC performance is more suited to the bottom of high speed vessels, such as jet skis..... and it will not display the lusterous finish you may desire. You might ask your interlux rep to clarify that, because I may be wrong.... wouldn't be the first time.

Leaving it in the water for a few days or even weeks is irrelevent to the discussion because none of the paints you have mentioned are anti fouling, they're just epoxy type paint. You will get slime on the VC just as much as the others.... If you STORE the boat in the water for months at a time (not recommended)... that's when you consider anti fouling paint.

For the DECK you can use the topsides paint, or even go with marine enamel... but the most economical strategy is to use the one part polyurethane such as brightside or easypoxy.... they have a whole slew of colors.

Joe · May 20, 2012

That's probably what I'd do..... but you'll find a soft, long handled brush will get the scum off without even tipping the boat over. The total underwater area to cover will be a foot or so on each side of the boat's centerline.... In any event, it isn't that big of deal.

If the algae gets a little too heavy........ use an acid base toilet bowl cleaner... a few cap fulls in a gallon of water will magically take the brown stuff off with very little effort on your part. I always kept a plastic bucket with a soft pot brush and qt of generic toilet bowl cleaner purchased at Smart & Final for a few bucks. Even after just a few days of sailing the Nacra... the scum would start appearing... so when the boat came up on the trailer... the brush and bucket quickly removed the algae before I even left the parking lot.

Florida is cool, where 'bouts? I wouldn't worry about changing your plan... I would just plan on not storing the boat in the water.... dry, mast up storage is nice... or maybe you can find a beach permit location.. One thing that will be very apparent is the crane and boat lifts on just about every private dock....

But Matt....... even with anti-fouling paint on the bottom.... you will still have to wipe it down on a regular basis... I have a dive service that cleans my boat bottom once a month and I have a very good quality hard shell anti-fouling paint... With small boats, it's much easier and practical to store them on the hard or some type of lift device.

Anyhow....... kept me posted.... I love sailing dinghys... an your Rebel 16 looks like a blast.... Have Fun.