How To Bottom Paint Your Boat
If your vessel spends the majority of time in the water, it will most likely need a fresh coat of paint every season or two. The process may seem overwhelming at first, but it is relatively easy and can be accomplished over a weekend. The following are some tips to make the job quicker and smoother.
While your boat is still wet, use a biodegradable boat cleaner like Boat Wash from Wise Solutions. Follow this with a pressure washer to further clean the bottom of your boat. If there appears to be any chipping paint, ensure that the area is pressure washed thoroughly enough to remove any loose paint flakes. The next step is to strip the old paint from your boat’s bottom; Molecular-Tech Coatings Inc. of Canada manufactures an eco-friendly marine paint stripper called EFS-2500. As always, read all manufacturers’ instructions thoroughly before proceeding.
After the chemical stripping, you need to sand the bottom of your boat using an 80 grit paper. We encourage the use of a random orbital sander so you won’t cause the damage that a standard belt sander frequently does. A vacuum hose connector will make the job much less messy; however, if you don’t have vacuum hose connector to remove the dust, consider using plastic tubing which can attach to the sanders dust bag mount and then can be directed into a vacuum. Proper safety equipment including a respirator, gloves, and earplugs during the process is a must. Once the sanding is finished, the boat should be washed again with an environmentally friendly cleaner. During this process make sure that any remaining chips and the dust is removed.
Hopefully you have purchased a color paint that is a different color from which your boat bottom is already painted so that it will be easy to recognize when it’s time to paint again. Many different eco-friendly anti-fouling, solvent-free, and copper-free bottom paint are available. You should also consider having extra paint rollers available before you start.
After taping off the waterline, use a paint shaker before applying the paint. Use a short-napped roller with an optional extension handle to apply the paint to help ensure being able to reach the entire boats bottom surface. Try to work quickly as many bottom paints dry fast; check the paint specifications to see if a second coat is required.
Remember that you are likely to need to remove the stands that are holding the boat to complete painting the entire surface. Read the paint manufacturer’s directions to determine how long your new paint needs to dry before being placed back in the water. Typical drying times are 12-24 hours.
For more information, tips, and Florida boating resources visit BoatFlorida.com. For real-time yacht fuel prices also visit MarineFuel.com.
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