I am startig to get the deck ready to repaint. The best I can tell is that on top of the original gelcoat is a older off-white paint - painted everywhere - then a gray paint where for the non-skid. So, the non-skid is applied OVER this off-white paint. The off-white paint is peeling lightly in areas. As the picture shows the non-skid is really peeling on the port side walkway - but for the most part no where else. My question and concern is that I used a scraper/putty knife to scrape this damaged area and it worked well - but as I kept scraping in different directions I was able to keep removing the paint(both the non-skid and the off-white beneath it). It came off easily in some areas, harder in others. I am now worried that all the off-white paint is junk and the entire deck needs to be stripped down to the gelcoat. I spent 2 hours with 60 grit on a powersander on the foredeck and thought it would be good enough since I saw no signs of peeling. BTW the 60 grit did not do much to the grey paint and just barley thinned it out....I would have thought it would sand it off quickly and I would get down to the gelcoat. Any thougths? Would a powerwasher be worth a try since the paint is peeling anyways? I would REALLY rather not use a chemical stripper. I just don't want to sand the prime and paint onto a surface that may peel. Many, many thanks for any advice on this frustrating task that has only begun!