Bottom paint - Every Year? PNW Saltwater

carl_jarrett

carl_jarrett

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WIll be pulling my Chaparral out of the water again this winter/early spring for drive oil change and a bottom clean. I did a full coat of ablative paint last year in may, and painted the drives with their special paints as well. I figure the drives will need touchups as I get a fair bit of growth on them, but the hull seems to have quite a thick coating of the ablative paint on it even when I pull it out of the water. I know some people take the existing coat down or at least sand it down a little before adding a new coat.

Do you think its necessary to do every 12 months for the hull? I am in Vancouver, and the boat stays in a pretty clean marina year round now and gets used year round (when my oil pressure sensor isn't broken that is...)
 
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I had a 50 Gibson Houseboat that I used on the Ohio river. While the river is much cleaner than it was last century, it is still not what I'd call clean water. After being in the water a couple hours I will see a line on my fiberglass.

I used the houseboat 7 seasons. I put special bottom paint on it twice during that time. It lasted three seasons for me. In the water from May to Oct or Early Nov. So, my guess would be you are good for at least two seasons maybe three with current bottom paint.
 
Most here use a contrasting color as a base coat, and two top coats of the color of their choice. When the contrasting base starts showing up, then it's time for two new top coats, usually 3 years. I am suspious as to why your drives have growth. Interlux Tri-Lux 33 should keep them clean for at least the season. Three coats from a brush or wet coats from a spray gun so that you achieve adequate film thickness. Never had much luck with their spray cans. Cheaper to buy a quart and spray it on anyway.
 
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I had a Sig 290 with twin drives too. I used Pacifica pant, even on the props. You will get growth on the props too! Its a comes in cans, not a spray on which works better.

Every year I do a light sanding where needed and put on a thin coat of new paint.
 
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Thanks!

The props I don't mind keeping raw, as I can lean over even in cold weather with a scotchbrite pad and get them pretty much polished up within 30 minutes or so. If they were painted, the paint would just come off I imagine when I do that.
 
To each their own. All I can say, I painted the props with two heavy coats. The paint did get some thin in some spots 5 to 6 months later. I had very little build up considering the flow of water to the wear of the paint. The stuff in the spray can, only lasted a month or 2. I can't see the drives coming up that high to clean them in the water, my drives broke the surface about in inch or two. But why go though that work if you can paint them. Oh well.................

From your pics, I would bring up the water line at least 2" on the transom.

Oh, Pacifica is a high gloss paint too
 
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Oh interesting. Yeah all good points. I'm. Not familiar with that paint. I'll have the boat out in the next 6 weeks or so to have another look and do the painting. Gotta replace my seacocks too unfortunately.
 
carl_jarrett said:
Oh interesting. Yeah all good points. I'm. Not familiar with that paint. I'll have the boat out in the next 6 weeks or so to have another look and do the painting. Gotta replace my seacocks too unfortunately.
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You might want to take off the plastic intakes off the drives and clean inside. I found that I had junk growing inside there too.
 
carl_jarrett said:
This is what they look like after 12 months in the water. This year will be better as I got in the water and cleaned them up a few times, but still..

service_may_21_03.jpg

drive.google.com drive.google.com

And this is what they look like after a bottom paint and drive paint pass:

service_may_21_25.jpg

drive.google.com drive.google.com
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My hat goes off :tiphat:to all of you guys that have to dock your girls, both salt and fresh water.
A lot of caring and hard work goes into properly maintaining maintaining them.
In all my years of boating, I have never seasonal docked. (size does matter)
I do not have to do near what you guys have to do, and I still put in a good 40 hrs. on her during the off season.
For me the plus side is, the way I put her away, is the way I find her when I come back. ( no outside elements).
Since 1992, my girls bottom has never been washed. LOL
IMG_2161.JPG
 
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Denny said:
My hat goes off :tiphat:to all of you guys that have to dock your girls, both salt and fresh water.
A lot of caring and hard work goes into properly maintaining maintaining them.
In all my years of boating, I have never seasonal docked. (size does matter)
I do not have to do near what you guys have to do, and I still put in a good 40 hrs. on her during the off season.
For me the plus side is, the way I put her away, is the way I find her when I come back. ( no outside elements).
Since 1992, my girls bottom has never been washed. LOLView attachment 1489
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Making me jealous! Wish I could. Keep the boat that clean, but that only exists for about a day before she goes back in the water yearly!
 
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If your girl sat on her trailer 99% of her days in a warm and dry building she would look just as good.
Not as severe as your elements, but the large boats up here pay the price of being left in the water also.
Owning a boat is a labor of love, and where you boat at determines what you have to do to make it possible.
 
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carl_jarrett said:
The growth is all mussels, and they don't seem to grow on the Micro CSC on the hull, just the drives and trim tabs
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Micro CSC is loaded with Copus Copper Oxide, and the Interlux Tri-Lux for aluminum use TBD Tin, and the key to that stuff is quick launch after coating (max 2 weeks) and ample film thickness. Can't use copper based paints on out-drives unfortunately. Walk the marina and see who looks best, as they have a handle on local knowledge and what works well.
 
I have to treat mine every season it goes in. I have a bottom treatment that has gone out of mfr'g for years. I think I have the very last bottle and that only has about 1/4 remaining. So easy to put on and lasts most of the season. It's gonna suck when I have to switch because the work involved putting the new stuff on will increase 4 fold.
 
carl_jarrett said:
Oh interesting. Yeah all good points. I'm. Not familiar with that paint. I'll have the boat out in the next 6 weeks or so to have another look and do the painting. Gotta replace my seacocks too unfortunately.
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I should have mentioned this. That paint is a non-copper paint.
 
When I did my bottom in 92, I used a product called VC-17 for trailable boats, it dried hard. They also made VC-15 for sail boats that would stay soft and wear off. It is copper based, it has the consistency of water. I doubt if you can buy the same product today, with all the regulations.
It was advertised to turn black, if it was run in salt water. Mine now is a dirty copper.
 
Denny said:
When I did my bottom in 92, I used a product called VC-17 for trailable boats, it dried hard. They also made VC-15 for sail boats that would stay soft and wear off. It is copper based, it has the consistency of water. I doubt if you can buy the same product today, with all the regulations.
It was advertised to turn black, if it was run in salt water. Mine now is a dirty copper.
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I still use the copper-based, VC17M product on my freshwater Sig 270 below the waterline since that was what was on it when I took ownership of her. It starts out copper coloured but turns to grey when it hits the fresh water. If you run your hand over it when dried, it leaves a teflon-like surface on the hull...very slippery. My previous boats had no bottom paint and they would come out of the river at season's end with the bottom looking like the colour of tobacco from the algae and other stuff on it. It meant using elbow grease and oxalic acid to clean it every fall. This product requires none of that! I just pull it, winterize, and put her in the garage for winter.

In fact, I don't need to give it a proper cleaning until spring. And even then its just plain old boat/automotive soap and water with a hose and a brush. The water does dissolve the VC17m a bit so some touch-up is needed every couple of springs but its very easy to maintain and becasue its so thin and wears off, you don't get much build up.

I's really easy to apply with a small roller. Just make sure to wear a comfo respirator that can filter out VOCs (Volatile Organic Compoonds) because I believe it is acetone based and the fumes can easily overpower you.
 
Sandbar said:
I still use the copper-based, VC17M product on my freshwater Sig 270 below the waterline since that was what was on it when I took ownership of her. It starts out copper coloured but turns to grey when it hits the fresh water. If you run your hand over it when dried, it leaves a teflon-like surface on the hull...very slippery. My previous boats had no bottom paint and they would come out of the river at season's end with the bottom looking like the colour of tobacco from the algae and other stuff on it. It meant using elbow grease and oxalic acid to clean it every fall. This product requires none of that! I just pull it, winterize, and put her in the garage for winter.

In fact, I don't need to give it a proper cleaning until spring. And even then its just plain old boat/automotive soap and water with a hose and a brush. The water does dissolve the VC17m a bit so some touch-up is needed every couple of springs but its very easy to maintain and becasue its so thin and wears off, you don't get much build up.

I's really easy to apply with a small roller. Just make sure to wear a comfo respirator that can filter out VOCs (Volatile Organic Compoonds) because I believe it is acetone based and the fumes can easily overpower you.
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Yes, it has a slippery feel. One of the reasons that I got it was because they advertised that it would increase hull speed. The only spots on mine that are worn are where she sits on the rollers. And that is with 1800 hrs of running.
 
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