Time to paint?

[Ed Schenck]

It is that time of year again. Due to travel plans we hauled Ladylove(1979 H37C) almost a month early. Here she sits just before I tried to clean up the topsides. For some reason each rough outing, beating into vertical three and four foot Lake Erie waves, added to the gelcoat discoloration seen in the photo. One old timer suggested that the gelcoat is so thin that the color is actually in the laminate. I have posted some pictures in the Photo Forum, closeups showing an attempt to clean it. Maybe it is time to paint the old lady.

 

[Ed A]

I sure would do everything i could not to paint

Ed I would do everything i could to avoid having to paint it. In most situations the paint gets messed up in no time then your in the cycle of repainting every 4 or 5 years. Every nick and ding shows up, and every fault in the boat will stand out like a sore thumb.Try this Wet sand the gel coat in a small area very lightly with 600 grit paper and then rebuff the boat with a fine polish before you paint it. You dont have a lot to loose. The different cleaners that have been used thru the years compined with the sun can break down the finish and make it more it chalky and allow it to absorb the stains. If you resand it and then buff and wax it it could help. It is easy to cut thru the gelcoat and expose the laminate, and that aint good. then you have to paint it, cause its too expensive and difficult to re-gel the entire boat.

 

[Ed A]

another idea

Lots of long distance cruisers come in here with stains on the bows, i cleaned up mine pretty well with a product used to clean rust stains off the house, got it at home depot. just sprayed it on and let it dry. worked very well. I will look up the name, if your concidering painting it, you may as well try it first.

 

[Paul Akers]

Try Mary Kate On/Off

Have you tried Mary Kate On/Off? This is a good cleaner that removes organic build-up such a yellow discoloration from minerals in the water. Brush it on and the coloration disappears. Wash & wax. I've seen it work wonders on boats.Other than that, I've had discoloration on my boat (1988) that came out with Maguire's 50 Cleaner Wax. I have used it for nearly 10 years and very pleased with it's results.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Thanks guys.

Keep those ideas comin'! I will try those products. Not sure about the sanding Ed since "Magic Eraser" is nearly a 600 grit I think. I really think I need some kind of chemical reaction.And I appreciate that painting is a last resort. But do you think there is an upside? A good two-part would forever seal all those pores. Essentially it would make the boat waterproof again since I already have five layers of epoxy barrier-coat. Just thinking out loud here.One more frustration is the time I took this past spring cleaning and waxing. And I used a respected 3M wax.

 

[Brett19305]

ICW Smile

This looks similar to the famous "smile" that many boats plying the ICW wear. The Chesapeake Bay area is prone to this discoloration as well. We use Y-10 cleaner which is a gel that I believe contains oxalic acid. FSR (Fiberglass Stain Remover) is a similar product. You apply the gel, wait a while, then wash it off. It does not seal the pores, but does remove the stains.

 

[Seattle Scott]

Is the stain on, in, or under

the gel coat? I would do some 200 grit wet sanding to a small area to find out whether the stain is "on" the gel coat. If you go as deep as you are willing to go with the sanding and have not removed the stain, then you have to go to plan B. I don't have a suggested plan B. Seems though, that if you solve without paint, that some sort of sealer (unknow to me) would be called for.Oh, here is a plan B: paint some graphic over only the affected area.

 

[Carl Foster]

One Word

SnoBol

 

[Gene G]

try Behr deck cleaner

Try the Behr deck cleaner sold at home depot, among others. At $10 a gallon, it'll do the whole boat a couple times. Works like FSR, only at a fraction of the cost. It's mostly oxalic acid. It'll brighten up the decks as well. I just put it in a 409 type spray bottle and spray it on several times, then wash with a rag. I've removed the type stains you have a number of times that way.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Thanks again.

More good ideas, thanks guys. When I get back from running around the country visiting kids and grandkids I will play "practical sailor". I will try each of the aforementioned products on different areas and report the results complete with pictures. Stay tuned.But still wondering if painting is not a viable option?

 

[Gene G]

painting is a tough project.

Ed, painting would certainly be an option, but I can tell you that it's not fun. You'd need to use something like Awlgrip, and those paints are both pricy and dangerous to use.A friend in the San Francisco area priced having his h37 cutter painted and it was a god-awful amount. I can't recall, but I believe it was over $10,000. That was just for the hull. Seemed high, but the paint alone would be in the order of $1000 or more.I painted my boom with Awlgrip about 2 years ago and got extremely sick (for nearly a week) from the fumes. They say on the cans that the ingredients are very dangerous, and they are not kidding.I can't imagine that you really need the hull painted. The gelcoat is gone on my decks in places from weather and wear, but the hull is still very thick.Keep us posted. I'm curious to learn at your expense!By the way, the "deck cleaner" I suggested is for wood decks, but works well for our purpose.Gene GruenderRainbow Chaser

 

[Ed]

Repaint

Ed, I second the motion on On-Off...We sell a ton of it in the WM I work in..Works well...Just don't ge any on ya!Ed

 

[chet p]

FSR

FSR works great on the stain but beware of using sno-bowl...it will work but dilute it 50/50 with water and use a garden sprayer to apply it and becarefull...it is acid of some kind and will burn your skin...have a hose near by and after the cleaning process the pores of the jellcoat will be open and need to be sealed with the sealer of your choice (ie wax ) FWIW

 

[Gary H]

Goof Off

Ed,That Lake Erie water is tough on boats! I don't know if there is a correlation or not, but I found scuff marks on the hull from fender rubs, and discovered that wax buildup was holding the offending dirt. Removing the wax cleaned it right up. I had purchased "Goof Off" as a wax remover for the X-C skis, and it took the hull wax off in one stroke. It also does a great job of removing landlubber shoe marks from the deck.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Thanks Gary, but. . . .

it is definitely not in the wax. I originally thought that also. But I guarantee that the "magic eraser" takes the wax off. And fast. It is almost like sanding. So much gelcoat was coming off that I quit using it.No, I think the guys are right. It is a chemical reaction with the gelcoat and will take an acid or a bleach. I could certainly be wrong and I will post the results of my product testing when I get home.The 3M rep who gives me the wax lives next door. So I really hope it is not the wax.

 

[sabalo]

PolyGlow

Take a look at the product called Poly-Glow. I have used it twice on my H-36 (82) after trying just about every other wax and cleaner. This product is fairly easy to apply, and comes with a cleaner that will probably take off the stains, but I generally use SnoBol (toilet bown cleaner)first. The application of the finish coat, PolyGlow, goes on fairly easy and is considerably less expensive than awlgrip. It lasts for about a year in the Florida sun, and if you touch it up before it starts to wear off completly, it ends up as less work. The end result is a high gloss finish without the effort of waxing and polishing. you might just want to try it out on the transom first. Up close it will not look as good as an Awlgrip finish, but from a distance it is hard to tell the difference. If you do not like the end result, just let it wear away and try something else. Practical Sailor ran an article on this type of coating some time ago.Ernie

 

[Ed Schenck]

Ernie, strange that. . .

you should mention PoliGlo. I have had the kit in my basement for three years, maybe four. Also the complete Island Girl kit. It is a long story as to why I have not gotten around to using these products. But it looks like I have no choice but to give them a try. Time, or lack of it, is my biggest excuse.

 

[Richard McDonald]

IG and Poly Glow Cleaners and process

Hi Ed,I did have some similar discoloration on Rhapsodie (Ladylove's sister ship), but much less than you have. If you remember she had sat for 6 years on her cradle outside with no TLC, so the gelcoat was terribly oxidized, stained, etc. Since I did not want to paint and needed to try and give the gelcoat new life, I first tried (last year) Island Girl with mixed results and switched to Poly Glow this year with great success.My conclusion was that the cool and wet spring temperatures in WI just did not allow easy application of the complete IG process. I did however like the there cleaner. So this is what I did:Year one: I used the IG Sea Glow with a soft scrub to clean and remove all of the oxidation and stains. It is a long process but this product really did a fantastic job. I then sealed the gelcoat, as recommended, with Silken Seal. After that I tried to apply the Simply Brilliant on the port side of the hull but the cold temperatures were a problem. After calling IG, they sent me a new SB-Catalyst for use in colder climates (below 65 degrees F) but in the end, I had the port side finished with IG and the starboard side waxed and buffed with 3M. At the end of the season the 3M side had held up better.Year two: I used the Poly Glow cleaner (diluted as recommended) to clean the gelcoat on day one, let the hull dry overnight and finish with 5 coats of Poly Glow on day 2. It is very important to clean the gelcoat well since any discoloration or stain will just get sealed over with the Poly Glow. As of today PG has held up very well and that includes one 11 hour crossing of lake Michigan in some very rough conditions.Since you have all of those products at home, test the Sea Glow on a small area (6" X 6"). Apply the product, give it a few minutes to soften the gealcoat and scrub gently with a fine synthetic soft scrub. Then use paper towels with more product to soak up the stain and oxidation. I may take several wipes with clean product soaked paper towels to clean each section. I think I used about 18 to 20 rolls for the complete boat.Hope that works for you.Richard

 

[Ed Schenck]

Thanks Richard.

This has been a most helpful thread. Maybe I can save the old gelcoat after all. Thanks again guys.The reason I have not done IG or PoliGlo is because of the state of my topsides. I have so many scrapes and dings that need fixed. Also some crazing around the bow fittings and even low on the bow near the waterline. Every spring I run out of time. Last spring there was still plastic taped over gelcoat repairs when they splashed the boat. I never sanded it the entire season.If I get some warm weather yet this October I will try all of these suggestions. But probably wait until spring to finish a proper PoliGlo application.

 

[Josh]

Hee Ed

hey Ed,Good luck; that's a pretty massive project. Give me a call, I dropped my phone in the Bay and lost all of my phone numbers. Josh