|
|
02-05-2017, 07:23 AM
|
#1
|
Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
|
Hard or Ablative Bottom Paint?
We spend 7 months in Florida and 5 months traveling up the east coast to the NE. Had two sailboats. One with ablative and one with Hard. The Hard lasted longer. 4 years.
Now we have a Tug.
What is the better bottom paint to use?
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 08:39 AM
|
#2
|
Guru
City: Fort Myers, FL... Summers in the Great Lakes
Vessel Name: Slow Hand
Vessel Model: Cherubini Independence 45
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 12,817
|
What speed will you cruise at? Ablative worked poorly for me at 7 knots. Have much better esults with the same paint on my charter boat at 15 knots.
Ted
__________________
Blog: mvslowhand.com
I'm tired of fast moves, I've got a slow groove, on my mind.....
I want to spend some time, Not come and go in a heated rush.....
"Slow Hand" by The Pointer Sisters
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 09:22 AM
|
#3
|
Guru
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,119
|
There is no better, it is what works for you.
Unless you find a boat in very similar use, such as location and cruising speeds, it's a really a crap shoot what is best for you.
2 marinas just a couple hundred yards apart can have different fouling. Say one up a creel and the other on the ICW.
A knot can make a difference.
Manufacturers can make a difference.
I prefer Interlux ablative over Petit. I had 2 Petit ablative that didn't.
I had a friend 2 slips down using Seahawks ablative and never moved the boat and had similar results as my ablative that I only cruised 6 months. I am using Interlux Fiberglass Bottomkote NT. When I sat, I had similar results as him but the 6 months moving I was clean as a whistle. My sailing friends used hard paint and looked like mine when they hauled every year. Medium growth. So even then results are hard to interpret.
The only paint that I ever recommended above all others were the tin based ones...they REALLY worked till illegal for most of us in the US.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 10:35 AM
|
#4
|
Senior Member
City: Watch Hill RI
Vessel Name: Puffin
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 32/34
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 172
|
Agree with the "crap shoot" when dealing with bottom paint. Travel speed, frequency of use, temperature and salinity of water, seasonal hauling, bottom prep, all will have an affect on bottom paint.
My NT32 came from the factory with a single coat of Micron CSC. Bottom was not prepped properly, and paint started flaking and chipping off after first season. Feathering chipped areas and application of light coat of CSC each season (boat hauled for Winters in New England). Moored in a brackish cove, CSC was marginally effective, mostly with slime. While CSC is considered ablative, being solvent based, it will build up over the years. For the past 6 seasons, I've been using Pettit's waterbased Hydrocoat. It's easier to apply in our cold Springs, doesn't build up as much (more ablative), cheaper and more effective against slime. With 11 seasons, at some point, I may have to sandblast the hull. We power wash the hull when hauled in the Fall. Right now, I annually orbital sand with 80 grit, feather and prime any bare spots, and roll on a light coat of Hydrocoat. This year will be different since my new slip is in a freshwater river.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 12:22 PM
|
#5
|
Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
|
Most of our cruising is done at 7-8 knots.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 12:24 PM
|
#6
|
Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by O C Diver
What speed will you cruise at? Ablative worked poorly for me at 7 knots. Have much better esults with the same paint on my charter boat at 15 knots.
Ted
|
7-8 knots
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 01:38 PM
|
#7
|
Guru
City: Gig Harbor
Vessel Name: Kinship
Vessel Model: North Pacific 43
Join Date: May 2015
Posts: 9,046
|
I am clueless on paints but... I like to use a diver to keep my bottom clean. Because of that, it is my understanding that hard paint will last longer. Also, in WA we can't scrub a boat with ablative paint.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 02:30 PM
|
#8
|
Guru
City: Fort Myers, FL... Summers in the Great Lakes
Vessel Name: Slow Hand
Vessel Model: Cherubini Independence 45
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 12,817
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pgitug
Most of our cruising is done at 7-8 knots.
|
I will be switching to hard paint in the spring. My boat gets scrubbed as needed by a diver and feel the hard will last significantly longer.
Ted
__________________
Blog: mvslowhand.com
I'm tired of fast moves, I've got a slow groove, on my mind.....
I want to spend some time, Not come and go in a heated rush.....
"Slow Hand" by The Pointer Sisters
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 02:51 PM
|
#9
|
Senior Member
City: Seattle, WA
Vessel Model: Willard 47' Dover Trawler
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 124
|
This is not really a crap shoot. Practical Sailor does extensive and rigorous testing of bottom paints (and a lot more). A subscription is worthwhile even if one is not a "sailor" as better than half of the content is related to paints and varnishes, electronics and other stuff that goes on powerboats.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 03:08 PM
|
#10
|
Guru
City: West Coast
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,789
|
In my experience (west coast of North America), ablative works best but hard lasts longer, particularly on fast (20+ knot) boats. I use ablative on my current boat and get 2 -3 years out of a paint job, though I rarely exceed 10 knots. In southern Cal / Mexico, a diver cleans the bottom every month.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 06:34 PM
|
#11
|
Guru
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,119
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveD
This is not really a crap shoot. Practical Sailor does extensive and rigorous testing of bottom paints (and a lot more). A subscription is worthwhile even if one is not a "sailor" as better than half of the content is related to paints and varnishes, electronics and other stuff that goes on powerboats.
|
Do their tests involve 10 different boats in 10 different locations used 10 different ways and include all the available paints being scrubbed 10 different ways wirh 10 differerent intervals by divers?
Is so, I will give the a better benefit of the doubt.
And in my estimation.....it is still a crappreciate shoot.
I used to get the publication till I got more experience and was able to determine better sources of info...kinda like solely relying on consumer reports for stuff. Good when I was 20 to 30...not so much anymore, even without the internet.
|
|
|
02-05-2017, 09:47 PM
|
#12
|
Guru
City: Mt Crested Butte
Vessel Name: Artemis
Vessel Model: Cheoy Lee 67
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 551
|
Did lots of tests years ago, where I liked the abaltive, the problem was swimming from the boat, people getting on board and had touched the bottom etc. So switched to hard. Here in the Caribbean I use trinadad pro 87% copper. Normaly works well except if I leave the boat in a warm shallow bay for a few months ( tThe lagoon in St Martin ) for instance, and then suffer with lots of mini barnacles. On the whole I like the paint and get a good couple of seasons out of it.
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 08:08 AM
|
#13
|
Guru
City: LI or Fla
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,148
|
Hard paint will build up and after 12-15 years chips..
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 08:17 AM
|
#14
|
Guru
City: North Charleston, SC
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 4,869
|
The major paint manufacturers have paint selection guides on their websites. Answer a few questions and you get their recommendation. Of course you have to do this for each manufacturer.
Another resource is your diver. Divers see all the different paint types and can tell you what works best in your location.
As a general rule, most trawlers don't move fast enough and often enough to make an ablative paint effective.
On the other hand, some paints must stay wet so if you haul your boat for the winter (or summer), you have to rule these paints out.
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 08:50 AM
|
#15
|
Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Martin J
Did lots of tests years ago, where I liked the abaltive, the problem was swimming from the boat, people getting on board and had touched the bottom etc. So switched to hard. Here in the Caribbean I use trinadad pro 87% copper. Normaly works well except if I leave the boat in a warm shallow bay for a few months ( tThe lagoon in St Martin ) for instance, and then suffer with lots of mini barnacles. On the whole I like the paint and get a good couple of seasons out of it.
|
I forgot that when we stayed at Fernandina Beach for three weeks I had a pot load of Barnacles on our newly painted hard paint. Maybe Ablative is the way to go.
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 09:25 AM
|
#16
|
Veteran Member
City: Marblehead,Oh
Vessel Name: Castoff
Vessel Model: 77 Heritage West Indian 36
Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 54
|
We boat in freshwater only. Bottom paint is (almost) a mute point. No matter what you use, you're gonna get slimed. Only a scrubbing will keep you clean. Even the 40 plus kt boats grow a layer. I used to use Vc 17 hard Teflon. It was awesome to be able to coat a 37' sailboat hull in 30 minutes. But the cost for the stuff is more than I can take now. So with the trawler it will be the cheapest ablative I can find. We have to pull for the winter so I've found that the best way to go is to just touch up the spots that need it and hit the water. Ablatives keep the crud down till I can hop in and scrub once a month. Also on a sailboat, a slime coated bottom would drop boat speed by 1/2 a knot, sometimes even more. So there's quite a lot of drag with even just slime.
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 09:44 AM
|
#17
|
Veteran Member
City: Punta Gorda
Vessel Name: Encore
Vessel Model: 1988 Albin 40 Sundeck trawler
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 54
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pgitug
We spend 7 months in Florida and 5 months traveling up the east coast to the NE. Had two sailboats. One with ablative and one with Hard. The Hard lasted longer. 4 years.
Now we have a Tug.
What is the better bottom paint to use?
|
Where do you cruise to in the NE? Our old cruising grounds were Long Island Sound out to Martha's Vineyard, if it weren't for the long winters and relatively short summers, it would be ideal.
Wondering what you've found is the best brand of paint to use down here. I've tried ablative before, but reading your findings on hard paint, I'm intrigued. We plan on keeping our Albin for about the next 10 or 12 years and while I don't want to plan too far into the future, that would mean that I'd only really have to paint the bottom two or three times, and I REALLY like the idea of that.
Jim
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 09:58 PM
|
#18
|
Guru
City: Punta Gorda, fl
Vessel Name: Escapade
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 37 2002
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,231
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by VJameslanza
Where do you cruise to in the NE? Our old cruising grounds were Long Island Sound out to Martha's Vineyard, if it weren't for the long winters and relatively short summers, it would be ideal.
Wondering what you've found is the best brand of paint to use down here. I've tried ablative before, but reading your findings on hard paint, I'm intrigued. We plan on keeping our Albin for about the next 10 or 12 years and while I don't want to plan too far into the future, that would mean that I'd only really have to paint the bottom two or three times, and I REALLY like the idea of that.
Jim
|
We have been to MV and Newport. Maybe Maine this year.
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 11:07 PM
|
#19
|
Guru
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveD
This is not really a crap shoot. Practical Sailor does extensive and rigorous testing of bottom paints (and a lot more). A subscription is worthwhile even if one is not a "sailor" as better than half of the content is related to paints and varnishes, electronics and other stuff that goes on powerboats.
|
But aren't their tests of bottom paints on sailboats?
|
|
|
02-06-2017, 11:09 PM
|
#20
|
Guru
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
|
We're in Fort Lauderdale and use hard. We're in a very high growth area and find that we get good results with a hard paint and with monthly bottom cleaning. We also use Prop Speed.
|
|
|
|
|
Thread Tools |
Search this Thread |
|
|
Display Modes |
Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
|
» Trawler Discussions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|