Prior to painting the deck

[JOHN]

I have a catalina 30 1977. The overall deck surface is in good condition. There are some small spots that are missing gel coat due to waear and tear. I plan on painting with a primer and then a coat of Interlux Toplac or similar. Do I need to use gel coat or can I use West epoxy to cover up the nicks and missing gel coat and then paint over?Along the toe rail, there is crazing but I thought I would clean it up by sanding and then apply a coat of epoxy and then paint. It is in the curvature of the rail where it meets the deck. Also, around the cockpit there are nicks and gouges and missing gel coat. Can I fill in and build up with epoxy and thickner, then finish sand and paint? Thanks for the info.

 

[Doc B]

deck refinish

Do not use gelcoat to repair the worn areas if you intend to paint -- use epoxy exactly as you suggest.Painting on a coat of epoxy over spider cracks will not work -- the cracks will soon expand through the thin overlay & paint to reappear. If the spider cracks really bother you, widen them with a small triangular tool (a can opener works well) or dremel them so that they have tapered sides, clean with acetone, wet them with uunthickened epoxy, then fill them with filler-thickened epoxy (putty), and fair sand before priming.While Toplac is a fine paint, it lacks the hardness and durability of a two part linear polyurethane (e.g., Awlgrip, Interthane, etc.), and therefore, will not last long in a deck application where wear & tear is an issue.Good luck with your project.

 

[Bill18593]

UV attacks

I'm not sure I'd use epoxy as a "finish coat" on exposed areas. I seem to recall that it is vulnerable to attack from UV and would need some kind of protection from the sun to be effective. That protection might consist of a clear or colored top coat over the epoxy with something that would be UV resistant such as an acryllic finish or UV-resistant paint.

 

[John]

Thank you

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Bruce Niederer]

deck repair

Doc B has has described the repair as well as I could, including his paint recommendation. I painted my entire deck, including creating a new non-skid surface, entirely using Awlgrip 2 part paint. The entire project is described in detail on our web site <www.westsystem.com> Follow the 'Epoxyworks Magazine' tab to back issues, then the story starts in issue #19, and finishes in issue #20 and includes a list of all materials.