Bottom Paint

[seadaddler]

I just sailed my Hunter 36 from NY to east coast Florida,I am
leaving on the hard until I sail over to west coast Florida.
Before I put her back in the water what bottom paint do you use.

[mstern]

I buy whatever multi-season ablative paint is on sale. I have used West Marine CPP and the Micron equivalent with equally good results. However, I sail in New England where my boat is out of the water for seven months of the year; Florida might require different paint.

[bwindrope]

Endless postings and magazine articles on this, but since you ask, and may sincerely not know...I'll say having read everything including the latest Practical Sailor test I went with West Marine PCA Gold at my haulout this month.

Even though I avoid shopping at West Marine if at all possible (lots of local businesses I'd rather support), the PCA Gold ablative is really Petit Ultima SR rebranded, and sells for $185 instead of something over $250. Great paint and way cheaper than the alternatives. Super tenacious stuff I must say. Whereve I accidentally got some of this stuff, it has proven just about impossible to get off without a chisel.

Good luck weeding through the advice.

[Fstbttms]

Petit Trinadad SR. Nothing better on the market.

[bshipp]

I'm a big fan of multiseason ablatives. I use Micron Ultra. It's a wee expensive and makes a hell of a mess when you power wash it, but the stuff works. And best of all... a light sanding in the spring and you're all set to go.

[bwindrope]

I should add that I just covered Petit Trinidad SR, which I was generally happy with. I had it on for two years here in Puget Sound, but for the last 6 months I had a pretty serious algae/slime problem. We use Aeolus very often, so it wasn't a matter of it growing while sitting at the dock.

Part of the reason I went with an ablative this time is that I didn't want to deal with building up layers of the Trinidad SR. The other reason was that I am hoping, still to be seen, whether an ablative will do a better job of keeping slime down as our frequent sailing will give it opportunity to slough off whatever small amount grows.

Both paints use Igarol as their anti-slime agent, I think.

Buddha knows there are as many opinions on bottom paint as there are bottom paints, but I wanted to add that I had OK experiences with Trinidad SR up here in the NW, but nothing so dramatic it makes me feel wedded to it. Plus, it would have cost over $200 more on my boat to coat with SR, and that is getting pretty close to the cost of hauling out again!

May everyone's bottom paint be non-toxic to marine life, last forever, and be as slick as teflon.

[Fstbttms]

Originally Posted by bwindrope

I went with an ablative this time...

No bottom cleaning for you, Washingtonian!

[kjango]

will have to haul & bottom pain in the spring....when you folks say " multi-season " what do you mean ????

[mstern]

Originally Posted by kjango

will have to haul & bottom pain in the spring....when you folks say " multi-season " what do you mean ????

The paint retains its anti-fouling capabilities even after being out of the water. You can paint the bottom, then haul the boat out for the winter and not have to repaint again in the spring before relaunching. Aside from touch ups at the bow, keel and rudder, I don't think I've put a whole coat of paint on the bottom of my boat for four years. the only multi-season paints are the ablative type; they protect by wearing off as they move through the water, exposing "fresh" anti-fouling material. The hard shell paints will last awhile too, but they lose their anti-fouling capability if they are exposed to air for any length of time.