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Is color important?

5K views 42 replies 28 participants last post by  PaulinVictoria 
#1 ·
Have you refused to look at a boat because the wrong hull or dodger color?

It is a kind lame excuse, but changing color of the hull is not cheap and looking at her everyday if it is not easy on my eyes will become problems. :)
 
#2 ·
A dodger that is to light a color can be hard on the eyes (too much glare).
 
#5 ·
tommays - wow. love it. Shiny. And prettier. Amazing how a stripe (in the right place) can raise whole appearance.

FWIW, I agree with Siamese. Life's too short to own an ugly boat. I would only buy a boat that raises my spirits - not depresses me! And while you can repaint, the right color of gelcoat will last a lifetime; paint won't.
 
#6 ·
I love the look of a deep navy hull, teak decks with a deep red or burgundy bottom....but down here in Texas that would be super hot in the summer. White is hot enough but at least tries to reflect some of it....So, visually it would have to be some super horrible color for me to reject it...Feel the same way about a car but at least my car has AC.....
 
#28 ·
I love a navy blue hull too, but a friend, whose boat is dark navy, told me last weekend, while I was gazing at a navy boat longingly that they are a whole lot more work to keep looking nice, fade quick and show imperfections easily. He was kind of longing for white topsides, although his boat is beautiful.
 
#7 ·
I won't have green anywhere on my boat - not the hull not the stripes and definitely not the canvas

Why? Don't know, I just won't
 
#8 ·
my boat is turquoise. I wouldnt have picked it but wasnt about to pass up a fresh water boat in great condition. And here is what I can tell you about it after an 8 month cruise in the caribbean

- it didnt seem noticeably hotter than other boats.

- when on the boat you never have to look at your own hull. you only see the deck

- it was easy to pick it out in crowded anchorages.
 
#12 ·
when on the boat you never have to look at your own hull. you only see the deck

- it was easy to pick it out in crowded anchorages.
My boat is white with a Pacific blue sail cover. While I'm really happy with the color scheme (and I really wouldn't like a green or yellow hull), there is something to be said for being able to pick out your boat at a distance without trying to remember where you "parked."
 
#11 ·
I'm slowly turning the canvas on mine from dark blue to grey. I only have the bimini to go. Blue is so ordinary to me. Then I'll do some grey strips with a red accent strip and black bottom paint. With the white hull, I think it'll look sharp and just slightly different.

Like JoeDiver, I love a navy blue hull. I really like it with cream colored decks. But here, the difference between cream and white decks is several degrees down below. Can't imagine the heat from a dark hull. Maybe when I move some place a little cooler, I'll have my navy blue hull. :D

As far as color, well..if the price was right and I could send her to the paint shop right after getting the title, I'd buy it. If I had to live with it, chartreuse and pink are out.
 
#14 ·
Personally, I really love the look of dark hulls - red and blue in particular (beautiful boat, Tim). However, I don't think I would buy one. I've seen too many relatively new boats with dark hulls that really show the oxidation. I know that problem can be avoided through proper maintenance, but white does a nice job of hiding the flaws. Just my 2 cents.
 
#15 ·
I've seen too many relatively new boats with dark hulls that really show the oxidation. I know that problem can be avoided through proper maintenance, but white does a nice job of hiding the flaws. Just my 2 cents.
Even though that is the original custom gelcoat color that shortly turned pink, what you see now is paint(Dupont Imron).

I also would steer away from dark colored gelcoats. Most quality builders will only do gelcoat in white and everything else is painted.

Remember the 70s when you could buy a Pearson or a C&C in one of those hideous oranges or yellows? Yellow is not all that bad but orange?
 
#20 ·
My boat was red and it has oxidized so now it is pink (including the mast). I will probably repaint one day when I have more time. I checked with the local boat yard what they would charge to paint a 34 footer from the water line up to the deck and the deck. The cost $25K. Guess I'll be doing it myself. Does this price sound realistic? The price did include removing all deck hardware before painting.

Man boats can be expensive if you do not do the work yourself.
 
#21 ·
I have never done nor do I recommend the following, However I have seen what I thought were crazy people do the following:
Painted their white hull (Columbia 28 I think) RED using brushes and rollers while in the slip. First couple days you could see the brush and roller marks, then it cured and I'll be darned if it didn't look halfway good. Appeared to have some orange peal but shined in a semi-gloss kind of way and later someone bought it.
I've seen people use Latex house paint and latex house non-skid porch and deck paint on boats. The deck paint filled in some of a cracked crappy unsaveable deck on an inexpensive boat.
Just saying, if it couldn't look any worse what's it gonna hurt, it hopefully ain't your last boat.
"A vision impaired man on a fast horse won't even see it"
 
#22 ·
Malspectraphobia?

Well I guess some of us have to be colour coordinated, I am one of them. I like the royal blue with white or pacific blue with white. My hull is blue but topsides and elsewhere is white so I made sure all canvas and cloth accessories are pacific blue. I even went further to ensure all lines to be white, blue or blue with white trace or white with blue trace or similar combinations. Every thing is colour coordinated.:D She sure looks pretty like that!
 
#29 ·
Well I guess some of us have to be colour coordinated, I am one of them. I like the royal blue with white or pacific blue with white. My hull is blue but topsides and elsewhere is white so I made sure all canvas and cloth accessories are pacific blue. I even went further to ensure all lines to be white, blue or blue with white trace or white with blue trace or similar combinations. Every thing is colour coordinated.:D She sure looks pretty like that!
If your topsides and everywhere else is white, how can the hull be blue? You mean the part underwater? I suspect that the topsides are blue - defined as the part between the deck, and the waterline.
 
#26 ·
I think hull color depends on where you cruise. If you are in snowy or arctic or antarctic areas, a red hull looks great. Forest area or Pacific Northwest- hunter green. Dark blue for New England. Next color for me will be very light grey- tropics.
 
#27 ·
Navy blue and darker is popular in my neck of the woods but I have had discussion with folks that have them and they appear by and large to regret the choice.

Apparently the maintenance is high not just from oxidation but just simply trying to keep the boat clean and looking nice.

My boat is white with blue stripes top and bottom - easy to keep clean :) nearly impossible for SAR to find in a turbulent sea :(
 
#40 ·
White as a deck colour in areas of continuous sunshine (most cruising grounds) will have you either wearing really dark shades or squinting the whole day.

My decks are a combination of white (surfaces seen from off the boat to fall in with the hull colour) and biscuit (surfaces seen from on board). The biscuit is soft on the eyes and not bad on the feet.
 
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