Joe that sounds real good with SSB ablative paint but I am worried since you ordered more than a month ago and still not received it.
I will need it in the next 2-3 weeks as I am launching May 1-2nd weekend.
So besides SSB where can I get something comparative over the counter? Also how many gallons do I need for 2 coats coverage.
George,
When I ordered the paint I mailed a personal check to them. My friend Wayne used his credit card and he received his paint from SSB last week and we ordered the paint about the same time. I think that you can get away with one gallon of bottom paint for one coat and have some left over. The first time I used SSB paint I gave the hull one coat, the rudder, centerboard, and the inside of the keel slot, two coats and I had enough paint to do a coat around the water line, plus all the leading edges of the keel, rudder, centerboard and Etc. What some guys generally do is paint the hull with for instance a green ablative paint this year. Then two seasons later they'll paint it with a different color like blue. After a period of time the ablative paint begins to wear off as the boat goes through the water, and when you can see traces of the green paint, you know it's time to re-paint the bottom again. I really don't know too much about other paints. I'm relatively new to using bottom paints myself. The SSB including shipping by postal service is about $145 a gallon. If they ship UPS, they tack on another $20 for a hazardous waste handling fee. The key to getting bottom paint to stick to a bare fiberglass hull is to remove all of the mold release wax from the hull. As old as your boat is, it still has the mold wax on it from the factory. You can always call or email SSB and ask them about the shipment time.
http://www.supershipbottom.com/ Check out Defender Marine for their bottom paints. If worst comes to worst, you can always buy it at "Worst Marine."
Just remember that some bottom paints require a primer coat on bare fiberglass and some don't.
Joe