Own my first Oday 25... wondering if I need to paint the bottom. Yes, I will be keeping her in fresh water all summer(June to October - Finger Lakes, upstate NY). I am a novice, so i do not know how to tell if 1. she even needs to be painted. 2. if so, how to tell what kind of paint is on there (I have read that if you use the wrong type of new paint it could react to the previous paint?) 3. How to sand it (or for that matter, if it is necessary). I think I know how to deal with painting it while she is on the trailer (with rollers)... except for getting to the keel. Starting to wonder if I shouldnt just 'pay the man' to have it done by a yard and not have to worry about all these questions (not to mention the toxic dust cloud when sanding!)... then again, I am quite the environmentalist and I cannot stomach the idea that my bottom paint will be sloughing off into the water (All that copper)... can't I just snorkle under the boat once a week and 'brush' off the slim/build up with one of those green scouring pads you use to clean your frying pan of grease????? HELP!
Paint or not to paint?
- Thread starter DPT
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- Jan 22, 2008
- 519
dive if you wish
But it will take a lot more than a green souring pad. We are talk about stuff that is rock hard. A power washer will get most of it right after haulout, IF you applied a good coat of antifouling. If you can, ask the previous owner (PO) what they used for antifouling. This information will equip you for shopping for the right kind of antifouling. I use Interlus Bottomkote, but others have used VC-17. Both seem to get decent results in our fresh water.
But it will take a lot more than a green souring pad. We are talk about stuff that is rock hard. A power washer will get most of it right after haulout, IF you applied a good coat of antifouling. If you can, ask the previous owner (PO) what they used for antifouling. This information will equip you for shopping for the right kind of antifouling. I use Interlus Bottomkote, but others have used VC-17. Both seem to get decent results in our fresh water.
Paint
I'm not familiar with what fresh water can do to a hull without bottom paint, but I do know what salt water does because I've been there and done that. Before I started using bottom paint, I'd leave my boat in the water for no longer than a week and pull it out to clean it and put it back in. I had a roller trailer back then, and it was no biggie to pull it out. If I left my boat in the water for longer than a week, the hull had so much of a build up of barnacles that the boat would not sail at all. Then, I had to get under her and use a plastic scraper and remove sheets of this aquatic stuff off my hull. Then, and only then, I was able to get her to sail. With the type of trailer that I have now, which has bunks, it's just not feasible to do that any longer. So, I bought an ablative anti-fouling about a year ago and installed it myself at the house. As Roger points out though,--you're better off with some kind of bottom paint. Going underwater to scrape the hull, gets old after a while. Joe
I'm not familiar with what fresh water can do to a hull without bottom paint, but I do know what salt water does because I've been there and done that. Before I started using bottom paint, I'd leave my boat in the water for no longer than a week and pull it out to clean it and put it back in. I had a roller trailer back then, and it was no biggie to pull it out. If I left my boat in the water for longer than a week, the hull had so much of a build up of barnacles that the boat would not sail at all. Then, I had to get under her and use a plastic scraper and remove sheets of this aquatic stuff off my hull. Then, and only then, I was able to get her to sail. With the type of trailer that I have now, which has bunks, it's just not feasible to do that any longer. So, I bought an ablative anti-fouling about a year ago and installed it myself at the house. As Roger points out though,--you're better off with some kind of bottom paint. Going underwater to scrape the hull, gets old after a while. Joe
bare bottom
Most of the sailboats in Lake George NY do not have antifouling paint. They apply a coat of wax (ie Collinite) and then power wash at end of season. My 272 does have paint (Micron Extra) since the previous owner had painted it but I wish it did not for all the reasons you listed. I cannot tell you if paint is needed in lakes with zebra mussels. If no zebras I would try a season without paint. You can always paint it next year if needed. Best of luck!
Most of the sailboats in Lake George NY do not have antifouling paint. They apply a coat of wax (ie Collinite) and then power wash at end of season. My 272 does have paint (Micron Extra) since the previous owner had painted it but I wish it did not for all the reasons you listed. I cannot tell you if paint is needed in lakes with zebra mussels. If no zebras I would try a season without paint. You can always paint it next year if needed. Best of luck!
RE:Too cold for me!
Dave (and everyone else) - thank you for the input (keep it comming everyone!). There does NOT seem to be any bottom paint on it. Looks like the rest of the boat - i.e. white. There is marine growth on it, i.e. scum, dirt, looks like dried out slime - very minimal. Came off with my wet fingers. I am thinking I am going the route of 'Collinite', after cleaning the hull very well (a previous poster suggested this might work in fresh water). I just cant stomach the idea of biocides and herbacides in the water from my boat. I will just monitor it all summer and, who knows, maybe I will get tons of growth on it and have to paint it next year. I did notice a few 'dings' and scratches... any thoughts on how to repair this? DPT PS "IMHO"?
Dave (and everyone else) - thank you for the input (keep it comming everyone!). There does NOT seem to be any bottom paint on it. Looks like the rest of the boat - i.e. white. There is marine growth on it, i.e. scum, dirt, looks like dried out slime - very minimal. Came off with my wet fingers. I am thinking I am going the route of 'Collinite', after cleaning the hull very well (a previous poster suggested this might work in fresh water). I just cant stomach the idea of biocides and herbacides in the water from my boat. I will just monitor it all summer and, who knows, maybe I will get tons of growth on it and have to paint it next year. I did notice a few 'dings' and scratches... any thoughts on how to repair this? DPT PS "IMHO"?
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