Interior Paint Suggestions

[diamondmyk]

Hello,

I'm restoring an old fiberglass sailboat ( DIY ) and I want to paint the bare interior hull / bilge and I'm looking for suggestions on what paint to use. Basically, there was some mold issues and after cleaning everything out, I want to seal up some of the wood ( I removed most of the interior and only have bulkheads left ) and fiberglass. Any suggestions?

Thanks
Mike "Mo" - Aimless Destiny

[Faster]

Interlux Brightsides and their Bilgekote versions seem to work quite well and are reasonably priced, relatively speaking. Strong fumes though, so make sure you're ventilating as best you can... using this stuff in lockers and lazarettes gets pretty smelly. Their Interdeck is an effective non skid too but difficult to keep clean.

We've also had success inside the boat with some of the generic "liquid plastic" paints offered by Home Hardware/Home Depot etc at some minor cost savings.

[diamondmyk]

Excellent! Thanks!!!!!!

[huguley3]

We used enamel paint on our intererior fiberglass and it is adhering quite well. The original plan was to use gelcoat and leave the boat for a week but the cost and hassle had us choose plain old paint.

We used some rustoleum brand that is supposed to be geared to marine applications. i talked to a guy here in the marina who said it does not really matter though. Enamel paint is enamel paint.

[pedcab]

Why is there the common belief that only marine products can provide marine grade finishes, apearances and durabilities?

Listed bellow are a couple of products I´ve been using in Fulô's maintenance since I own it with nothing to report that other "marine brands" wouldn´t also have to:

- Hull Coating: CIN ACRTYTHANE polyurethane based enamel. This paint was originally designed to paint weather exposed industrial machinery. There are a couple of folks here in Alhandra that have keept their ACRYTHANE coatings in mint condition for up to 5 years... Not bad for a "non marine" paint being sold at about 40€ per 3,5L kits...

Inner cabin coating: Matte synthetic enamel from any DYI store... We have the habit of using it down there. Why? Well, because it has been holding on to our wooden and GRP living spaces since forever and because at 10€/750mL we find it acessible to our starved pouches...

Sealant: Sikaflex 11FC+, another adaptation. 11FC+ is used primarily for house construction and other masonry works. One day a fellow remembered to try it on boats and voilá: cheap marine polyurethane sealant for everyone!

I remember countless other examples that would surely be tedious to decribe in detail but, just to make my point, one should't buy something (and pay accordingly lots more for it) just because it has a sailingboat painted on the can. There are lots of proper quality materials hanging arround the DIY stores for pickers to get and, at least this is my policy, if I can spare 10€ in paint (without jeopardizing relyability) I can spend ten more on a sail or on a new main sheet, and I sure prefer to be caught arround in a brand new set of North Sails than on a deck painted with Hempel's Super Ultra GTO deck paint...



Regards!

Pedro Cabral

Alhandra, Portugal.

[Architeuthis]

Marine paint only seems expensive when buying in season and at retail price so best to wait for sales. I bought Bilgekote because it was cheaper than enamel paint at the paint store. After using it I really like it, though I do suspect it is nothing more than a high quality non-marine paint.

I know of a few folks who use only household type stuff on their boat and much of it seems to work quite well, some not so well, LOL.

[diamondmyk]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm just looking for functional and cost effective. I'd love to have an unlimited budget, but if I did, I probably wouldn't have bought a fixer-upper boat.

[pdqaltair]

Originally Posted by diamondmyk

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm just looking for functional and cost effective. I'd love to have an unlimited budget, but if I did, I probably wouldn't have bought a fixer-upper boat.

I did in my last boat ans was quite please. My current boat was into 6 figures, and the paint inside lockers was latex and doing very well, thank you.

[RobertKWFL]

An excellent choice on a budget is an alkyd enamel such as Benjamin Moore's Porch & Floor paint. I used it on the interior of my previous boat with great success, and I'm getting ready to do my current boat with it too. As far as I can tell it's the best option unless you go to the much more expensive one- and two-part polyurethane boat paints. Very easy to apply, generally doesn't need a primer, and can be tinted to any color.

[sailingdog]

I wouldn't use any paint in the bilge... I would use Interprotect 2000E instead. Most paints are not designed to work in the conditions usually found in most boat bilges, which are usually a bit on the wet side.