Thoughts on Non-Skid... Repair or Kiwi Grip?

[CloudDiver]

Making my final plan for paint and I need to make up my mind about what to do with my non-skid. I wish I could just clean it and call it a day but the color is very faded and any repairs to it will contrast sharply. I've posted a pic below of my pattern on my C-22 (actual pic of my deck, not the mold example from Flex-o-mold website).

So I'm trying to choose between a few options and looking for thoughts and experiences from others;

1. I can buy the flex-o-mold pattern for $50 and do repairs with gelcoat. None of the areas of repair are large, mostly just a few square inches here and there. Then de-wax and paint with 10% thinned Interlux Brightsides in a tan color with the powdered non-skid addative.

2. I can sand down all the non-skid to bare glass and start over from scratch, building new non-skid in a fresh coat of Camel Color Spectrum gelcoat. From my online shopping I can only seem to find that color in the gallon size for $215, when I am sure I could get away with doing all the required work with one quart. I have some small interior cabin repairs to do in the same color, so it seems I'll need the gel-coat regardless.

3. I can sand down the non-skid to nothing and just go with Kiwi Grip. My only hesitation on that product is that I hear it is not friendly to the bare feets or knees, and not too comfy when sitting on it either (bare or not, ). I am fairly certain Kiwi Grip can be tinted yes? As far as I know you can only buy it here in white.

4. Similar to 3, I can sand down and start over just using Tan Brightsides with the non-slip addative, making just 'Flat' non-skid areas. This seems to be the 'easiest' option, but I'm wondering about the actual grip and durability.

5. Somewhat similar to 3 & 4, I can sand down to bare, then using the flex-o-mold re-build the pattern with epoxy slightly thickened with silica and maybe also tinted as well. Is that a crazy idea?

 

[Stan Breaux]

It's probably more than you want to spend, but you coul look at covering it with one of those closed cell foam products.
I think the company is called Seadek, but not sure.

 

[CloudDiver]

I had that stuff on my Sea-Doo jet boat back in 2007-2008. It was super nice for a ski-boat but I'm not sure its such a good idea on a sailboat. They make pre-cut patterns for popular skis and power-boats but those are very expensive. For a sailboat you'd have to get the standard sheet and cut to fit. Not my cup of tea on this particular deck, but thanks for the suggestion.

It's probably more than you want to spend, but you coul look at covering it with one of those closed cell foam products.
I think the company is called Seadek, but not sure.

 

[gettinthere]

I'm 3/4 of the way thru my kiwigrip job on a 42' boat. Found out that all the paint stores have switched to some new enviro paint mixing system per epa requirements. Making tinting of the kiwigrip much more complicated. And I'm gett8ng a lot of popped bubbles in the paint over time because I put it on too thick but I don't see how I could put it on thin and get good even coverage. It takes a while to cure too. We let it sit for 2 weeks and then tied a bike to the rail and the bike tire lifted the paint. Did plenty of the prescribed prep of washing with a degreaser ajd scrubbing with a green scotchbrite pad.

Lots of very positive reviews out there but not from me :-(

 

[njlarry]

Thanks for starting this thread. I face the same job this spring. I am going to do just the cockpit floor while the pedistal is out for powercoating. First attempt will be sanding off the non skid gel coat, replace with tinted gel coat and flex mold for the non-skid texture to duplicate the orginal. If I mess it up, will sand all that off and use a roll on non-skid like kiwi. Based on the results will decide how to handle the rest of the deck next year. Rest of the deck is fine but PO smeared some sort of goop over three small areas that mar the otherwise sound decks.
I know many say that gel coat is much harder to work with but it is also harder as in lasting much longer.

 

[rardiH36]

By your pic, aside from you comment about aesthetics, your non-skid looks to be in great physical condition.

In my opinion, would be a great mistake to sand/grind it down.

I had a similar quandary about 5-6 years ago. My non-skid looked old, but it had no damage. The original factory stipple pattern was just fine.

Rather than a one-part product such as Kiwi-Grip, I instead decided to use 2-part Interlux Perfection, mixed with their flattening agent to reduce the gloss. And I further added Interlux's anti-skid granular product. 2-part polyurethane's are similar to the paint on your car. Extremely durable and long lasting.

Six years on, my job looks virtually the same as when I painted it. It is impervious to damage by (say) acidic bird droppings that might remain on the surface for weeks at time.

One key consideration I think about painting non-skid is not to change the underlying color by much. Because when your new coating on the highest parts of the original factory stipple does wear down due to foot traffic, then you won't even notice.

One problem with paint products is you've got to accept what the manufacturer offers. In my case, I wanted a very subtle natural gray which Interlux did not offer. My color "inspiration" was the deck of the new 36' Catalina that occupied the berth next to me. Although Interlux's instructions advise against tinting Perfection, I did so anyway. I started with a Mediterranean White. Then using just a few drops of Black tint and also Brown tint that was formulated for gelcoat, I obtained the color I desired. I figured such a small amount of tint really didn't violate the manufacturer's instructions. Considering how long and beautifully my non-skid has endured over the years, it seems that my intuition was OK.

Attached is are a couple of pictures of my deck taken over the last year or two as painted with Interlux Perfection and the flattening agent. One is close-up and one is from a further distance.

My eventual concern with using Perfection for this purpose is the eventual repainting. 2-Parts are notorious for not accepting very well a second coat unless well sanded. Sanding is a difficult to do on a non-skid without taking out all the original stippling/relief. I am hoping that when my re-coat is necessary, years of surface oxidation in the sun and weather will cause enough natural "pitting" of the surface that sanding won't be necessary. For this reason, I don't apply wax to my Perfection non-skid.

Perfection, Plus the Flattening Agent, Plus the special thinners is considerably more expensive and is more complicated to mix and apply compared to just painting with a 1-part product. Much depends on how long you plan to own your boat and whether you have fun repainting every few years.

 

[Rick Templeton]

I recently recoated my non skid surface on my 340. It looked to be in similar shape to your pictures. It wasn't in real bad shape I just wanted to refresh it and slightly lighten the color. I thought about sanding and retexturing/adding non slip additives/ just recoating for color. I wound up deciding to just recoat a small section to see how it worked and was pleasantly surprised, I wound up continuing and recoating all of the non skid surfaces.

I taped the area off with 2 in painters tape and did a wash using acetone and and a medium bristle brush. I applied the acetone liberally and brushed the non skid area and then wiped it off with a clean cotton cloth. Let it dry thoroughly then apply bright side or similar 1 part using thin nap rollers. I applied 3 light coats waiting for the previous coat to set partially.

It's been 3 months now and it still looks great.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

 

[Kestle]

Go with Nuteak. Forget painting again.

Jeff

 

[woodster]

It's probably more than you want to spend, but you coul look at covering it with one of those closed cell foam products.
I think the company is called Seadek, but not sure.

i just run calcs on the sq ft cost of this stuff and it cost more than 1/4 in teak and holly per sq ft ...it looks like a nice product but i wonder about the investment cost

 

[njlarry]

i just run calcs on the sq ft cost of this stuff and it cost more than 1/4 in teak and holly per sq ft ...it looks like a nice product but i wonder about the investment cost

Also wonder how long it would hold up before having to be stripped off and replaced.

 

[CloudDiver]

RardiH36, thanks for your comments, very helpful. Talking to the Interlux Rep in my area (Frank, if you know him) also mentioned Perfection is a better choice for that application than the single poly Brightsides. The pic I included is probably one of the best areas after an acetone wipe down. If you look at the decks as a whole you'd agree that the over all fading and a few stains would warrant a color overcoat to freshen it up. Did you thin the Perfection 10%? How many coats? When I make my final choice I'll need to add up the cost of 1 quart of Perfection in Tan color, flattening agent, non-skid addative, recommended thinner plus the flex-o-mold pattern, probably just a pint a gel-coat and tinting agent... All that together vs my other options for the deck.

Thanks to the other posters as well. Nuteak and other synthetic teak decks look interesting, I saw many examples at the San Diego Boat Show this past summer. Remember this a 1982 C-22, so Synthetic teak could be way over-kill and look out of place on a little trailer-sailor.

Has anyone tried just straight paint rolled on with a non-skid powder and flattening agent? I'm imagining the result would be somewhat like mild grip tape.

 

[The Garbone]

We redid all the nonskid areas on our entire topside in KiwiGrip. Acid washed the deck before application and put it down with a paddle and notched trowel before the goopy roller and a year on no issues. We did white non tinted kiwi though.
I also replaced the cockpit floor with new glass and core material and finished with kiwi grip. It is nice as it matches the rest of the boats nonskid and the grip hides a lot of sins.

 

[Gunni]

Option #6 - Lewmar Treadmaster

 

[CloudDiver]

This looks like a really durable, good looking, and easy to install product. Defender has it on sale for $100 a sheet, very good price which brings cost per sq ft down considerably. Problem is the user reviews are not so great for pleasure boaters, they say it is very hard on bare feet and the ladies don't want to lay out it even on a towel. Suggestion is that this stuff is only good for off-shore fishing boats and commercial vessels.

Option #6 - Lewmar Treadmaster

 

[Gunni]

This looks like a really durable, good looking, and easy to install product. Defender has it on sale for $100 a sheet, very good price which brings cost per sq ft down considerably. Problem is the user reviews are not so great for pleasure boaters, they say it is very hard on bare feet and the ladies don't want to lay out it even on a towel. Suggestion is that this stuff is only good for off-shore fishing boats and commercial vessels.

You operating a sailboat, or a dock bar? Those reviewers are not real boaters - Treadmaster is the OEM non-skid of the Navy44 - official sail training vessel of the USNA.

 

[Manureva]

Interdeck is easy on the but and knee, cost is low, easy to aplly and look great, if it rub off it is as simple as a little touch up, great for me....

 

[CloudDiver]

I saw a resto thread elsewhere on the web where he used Brightsides with the non-skid addative... Didn't look from a distance like he got much texture. I think Interdeck is a good option that moving up my list in rank of possibilities. I think the key is finding the right textured roller along with good prep and masking. I might switch colors from Tan to Grey since my hull will probably end up in Steel Grey Brightsides.

Interdeck is easy on the but and knee, cost is low, easy to aplly and look great, if it rub off it is as simple as a little touch up, great for me....

 

[kito]

I thought Kiwigrip was easy on the feet since it's not an abrasive type non-skid. More of a textured rubbery type. I am about to paint my deck with it. Anyone that has used Kiwigrip please chime in.

 

[Squidd]

I'm a fan of kiwi grip for a low cost solution/alternative to trying to patch and match existing non skid especially if it's marginal or non existent..

I used it when I recored the sole of my saloon...rather than try to reuse cut out sections of non skid, I just reglassed the entire section and applied the Kiwi Grip

How "ruff" or pointy a texture you get is dependant on how much you "work" the product with the loopy roller during application...

I did a heavy coat of product and light minimal rolling to produce a non skid surface that is easy on bare feet and knees...

 

[Chris Patterson]

I've got KiwiGrip on my deck. Easy to put down, and not at all aggressive. I would do it again.