Post Soda Blasting

[berner73]

Finally moved up to the top of the to do list, but it's been bothering me since we bought her. Wouldn't be surprised if there were a full 25+ years of paint on her bottom. Been trying to chip away at it bit by bit every Spring, but never had enough time to do the entire job right.

Decided to hire it out and couldn't be happier with the process so far. They did a fantastic job blasting and best of all, under all that paint was a near perfect bottom. Not a blister to be found anywhere. Had the keel rebed a few years ago, so they only took the paint off of it and left that barrier coat in place. Looking forward to finishing the job in the Spring.

She just looks so svelte compared to before.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

so they only took the paint off of it and left that barrier coat in place.

Should look great after it's painted, not that it'll ever be seen again . Is the barrier coat still tightly intact ? That's what's kept it blister free after all these years.

 

[Justin_NSA]

Looks great. Now to choose the right bottom paint. There are many opinions on just as many threads. I would find out what's been working in your area and go with that.

 

[njlarry]

Looks good. The same job is working up to the top of my list. Did they use soda as the medium? Before applying the bottom paint, are any specific cleaners or primers needed, or just a little sanding?
Please keep the updates coming.

 

[Gunni]

It is critical that the blaster have extensive oil-separation filters on their blast air discharge. You should also inspect their compressor gear to see if it is ship-shape. A jack leg contractor can coat your hull with compressor oil from worn equipment and greatly increase the prep effort prior to barrier coating the hull.

 

[Justin_NSA]

Ouch! On a similar note, a sailor at the club used a chemical stripper one season to prep their bottom (hull). They didn't get the stripper all the way off and it was evident on haul out that the bottom paint didn't stick properly.

 

[whatfiero]

So soda blasted and left the barrier coat intact. I'm sure it looks good but don't believe it's totally in tact. Another coat is needed interlux e 2000 barrier paint has instruction online you have to clean as described earlier I'd use acetone a good wipe changing rag often maybe soap and water then acetone but you got to hot apply epoxy barrier then three hours later install bottom paint again check instructions paint gives you a temp chart on how long for different temps. If the soda blast put pours in exist bottom you will get blisters back bad

 

[RussC]

I have no knowledge of marine coating products that may be used here, but in the automotive field NO paint manufacture will warranty their product if the vehicle has been soda blasted before application, due to potential adhesion problems. Not that it can't be done, as is used successfully all the time, but be sure to check with the paint manufacture first, and specifically ask for any special prep recomendations after soda blasting.

 

[Gunni]

This builds to a conclusion that if you are going to do a blast bottom prep you roll it up into a complete bottom job administered by a reputable service company that is insured and can provide a warranty of service. They then make the judgement as to how and when the barrier, fairing, and bottom paint are applied. Just too much time expense to be parceling out the liabilities (and resulting finger-pointing).

 

[berner73]

Just revisiting this thread.

Soda was used as the medium and they removed any existing barrier coat.

To Gunni's point above, I came to that same conclusion prior to hiring out this work. The same company that did the soda blasting will fair, barrier and bottom paint in the Spring. This way they own the whole job and will warranty the entire bottom. I had to store the boat further away this off season and probably could have had it done cheaper elsewhere, but we went with the company that has the best reputation after getting several recommendations from other sailors. Time will tell.