Bottom jobs in your area....

Just curious what the yards are getting for bottomjobs in your area.* I got a serious case of sticker shock when I put my boat into the yard today.* I will get a discount(not a great one)*cuz I know some people but the retail price for a standard bottom job was $44 a foot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* And to upgrade to better paint(which I did) it was an extra $13 a foot!!!!!!!!* A total of $57 a foot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* Is that just comletely totally INSANE!!!!

I give up.* I will be doing my own next time around.* That is just total waterway robbery.* I will be looking forward to getting my speed back as my bottom was pretty fouled.* I was missing almost 3 knots!!!...or a coupla gallpons per hour....whichever way you wanna look at it.

The yard we use in Bellingham charges for paint upgrades, but only the cost difference in buying the paint. It's not done on a per-foot charge. You can also buy the paint yourself and give it to the yard to use, in which case there is no paint charge.

In the winter they run "bottom specials" which includes haul-out, power wash, prep, and painting. I foget the exact cost of this since we had a bunch of extra work done the first time we used this yard, but I believe the basic price for a GB36 was somewhere between $400 and $500 total.

So what brand of bottom paint is the buy up?* If you are going to have the yard do it make sure they do not thin the bottom paint down, and they shake it up good as the good stuff usually settles at the bottom.* The bottom paint right out of the can is thick and heavy and I have seen/watch yards thin it down. **I really dont know what it costs as I have the yard doing other things while out.*

*
Every 6 months I have a diver check the zincs, scrape the barnacles off and clean the hull rather than pull the boat. This Sunday he is coming *for the six month check up and at the same time I have him check the neighboring boats.* The bow thruster zincs seem to go the quickest on most boats as the zincs are usually under sized.* Anyway a lot cheaper than pulling the boat and keeps the bottom clean and maintained. **

We use Petit Ultima SR on our boat. Ultima SR is an ablative or sloughing paint. The "standard" paint used by the yard is a less-expensive, hard paint. The yard carries Ultima SR (and many other types of bottom paints). But because it's more expensive than the paint they use in their "winter bottom paint special," we have to pay the cost difference, which seems fair to me.

We have a dive company check the bottom of our boat, change zincs, etc. every six months but our marina no longer allows divers to wipe down or clean boat bottoms. They can knock barnacles off of rudders, shafts, props, struts, etc., but they cannot clean the bottom. The "no wipe down" policy is for environmental reasons, and I don't know if this is a state, county, city, or Port of Bellingham ruling.

Everett has the same rule about cleaning the bottom, which makes no sense as its going to wear come off in time anyway.*Now can*I help it when scraping the barnicale off that*the hull gets scraped/clean.* Darn old barnicles anyway.* (-;*

John
My bottom job this spring*was $1200, about $33 a foot. What kind of pain is it?

A couple of factors that can make it more difficult for the do-it-yourselfer are the increasing environmental regulations regarding cleaning and painting boats. In our area, and maybe everywhere, power-wash water has to be captured and cleaned, scrapings and paint drips have to be caught under the boat, and so on. Some yards make it more expensive to do your own work in terms of the haulout and storage costs.

As far as the process, the normal routine is to haul the boat, have it power-washed below the waterline, then the bottom is "prepped" which has various definitions. Usually this means a light sanding or scrubbing to remove whatever the power-washer left behind and smooth the surface, then taping, and then applicaton of the bottom paint, usually with a roller.

It's a good time to clean the shafts and props, too, which can take a few hours.

A routine bottom job is not rocket science but it can take a fair amount of time depending on how anal one is about surface prep, etc.

troy994719 wrote:

John
My bottom job this spring*was $1200, about $33 a foot. What kind of pain is it?

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Did you do*it yourself or did you have someone else do it?* They use whatever the top of the line Interlux is....I forgot the name.* A friend got quoted 36 a foot over at Clear Lake Marine(Simpson) for the standard stuff.* My boat does lose speed when it starts to foul.* If I was at displacement speeds I would have gone with the standard stuff.

It's pretty bad when you work for a company(or your SO does) and you have to go to another place to get a decent price.* This was totally my fault and I am hacked off about it.* We did Prairie Dog about a Year and a half ago at the same place for a whopping $880 bucks(I got a bottom job and the prop reconditoned for*under $1200) so I figured going in they would do me right so I didn't even ask until the boat was outta the water....real smart.* They prolly have a price for when you boat is still in the water and one for when your boat is already on blocks....

I used Interlux Ultra with biocide, seems to be what most people reccomend in our area.
I took the boat to hillmans, paid for the haul, got my own paint and paid one of the locals cash for the labor. $375 for the power wash, sanding and painting.
The paint cost more than Ramones labor!!!!!

Our bottom job back in May ran $3,800 for a 64' vessel. This was using Petit "hard"... 2 coats on the bottom and 3 at the waterline. The 1st coat was red for all, followed by black. This way, if I "see red", I know it's time to do it again soon.

Oh, and the price also included Prop Speed on the Props and shafts.

Baker wrote:

Just curious what the yards are getting for bottomjobs in your area.* I got a serious case of sticker shock when I put my boat into the yard today.* I will get a discount(not a great one)*cuz I know some people but the retail price for a standard bottom job was $44 a foot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* And to upgrade to better paint(which I did) it was an extra $13 a foot!!!!!!!!* A total of $57 a foot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* Is that just comletely totally INSANE!!!!

I give up.* I will be doing my own next time around.* That is just total waterway robbery.* I will be looking forward to getting my speed back as my bottom was pretty fouled.* I was missing almost 3 knots!!!...or a coupla gallpons per hour....whichever way you wanna look at it.

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John, where was that quote? Seabrook Yacht Services or South Texas? Since they merged, they've jacked their prices astronomically. Check out Boat Bottoms Unlimited over on the North side of the lake. They are MUCH more reasonable. Seabrook did my last one, but next time, I may get quotes from that yard in Galveston or even down in Freeport. I use Petit Trinidad SR and get 3-4 years out of it.

Paid $1186.85 last year for a 30 footer. That included haul-out, pressure washing/prep, two coats of Petit Trinidad, and replacing all zincs. Works out to about $39.50 per foot.

Gary

I just got out of the yard at Miller Marine here in our bayou and paid about $1300. Included was the haul and blocking and relaunch, several lay day costs at about $1.50/foot rate, three gallons of Petit Hydrocoat, two quarts of Trinidad SR, one gallon of Duraplate. I did all prep and painting.

I don't know exactly what they charge per foot these days when they do it, but I think it is about 10-20 bucks a foot more than my $31. However, that's not really telling the story because their cost includes some light prep work, which by my standard is simply not enough work to get the bottom AND running gear in the shape I want them to be in when the boat goes back in the water.

Galveston Yacht Service at the Yacht Basin has changed regimes in the last couple of years. It's now run by a really nice (and competent) guy named Preston. See what their price is.

-- Edited by Doc at 06:11, 2007-11-17

Our yard charged (Spring 2007)*$11/ft, with the 2nd coat at half that, plus materials.* For my boat, it worked out to about $800 for 2 coats of Interlux Fiberglass Bottomkote ACT Ablative.

There was no hauling charge as the boat was already hauled for winter storage and this was done prior to launch; standard practice here.* I don't know what the hauling / power-wash / blocking / relaunch charges would be separately, as these are bundled into the winter storage costs.

Jeff,

I was about to say something about that. Your winter charges are bundled into all of that. I bought my boat from Long Island, NY and was amazed at the relationship bewtween boat owners and their yards. It really is totally different.....a little more symbiotic if you will. I think, up there, they realize that they need you just as much as you need them. Down here, it is just like the rest of Corporate America. They wanna screw you for as much as they can...and they do. We don't haul for the winter so I guess they gotta make their money somewhere. Anyway, I was kinda envious of the way they treated the PO and his boat(soon to be mine) and how it was more of a relationship instead of a business(obvously it is and they still gotta make money).

Oh, they make their money - .

Some yards here*offer*discounts (fuel, etc.) to regular customers, with*larger discounts given to winter+summer customers.* They also tend to give better/faster service to their regular customers.

Jeff

I paid $2500 in Aug 2005, and had two coats of Trinidad SR applied on the bottom, and three coats at the waterline. Still looks good, and hoping to get at least another year out of it.

If you use a sloughing paint (aka ablative paint), we've had great success with Petit Ultima SR over the past nine years. We use our boat year round, so the surface of the paint gets "sloughed off" fairly often which is what makes it work. For a boat that sits for long periods, I'm not sure a paint like this would be the best thing to use.

We are in the Pacific Northwest where bottom growth does not progress as rapidly as it does in more southern waters and climates.

Try freshwater (Great Lakes) boating. $100 for the paint (34' boat), $12 for the roller and tray, sand it off, blow the dust with a leaf blower...

Catch the runoff from power washing the boat? Not in the midwest!

I can't resist resurrecting this old post after getting the quote for a new bottom on my new boat.* Only $30/ a foot!* Oh Great, you say!* But wait, there's more... $720 to sand and prep... $855 for paint...* it works out to over $75 a foot!!* Zincs and cleaning the barnacles off the shafts and prop are extra.

The current bottom pretty much looks like crap.* This yard has been doing the bottom on this boat for 18 years so I asked him about it.* I was trying to be nice about it so I said "the bottom looks a little rough" and he told me that it really needs to be scraped down to the gel coat and started over.* I still haven't down loaded the photos but I will post some--you can see where the surface under the current layer of paint was not smoothed out very well and there are places where salad plate size areas of the current paint have chipped off.* this bottom was put on in March of 2009.

My questions for you experienced trawler owners, is it normal for trawler bottoms to be rougher than I am used to coming from the sailing side?* Do I just need to reset my expectations?* I read the post on blasting off all the paint*down to the gel coat and got the impression*most of you would consider that overkill, considering I have no blisters.**But maybe after 26 years it would not*be a bad idea?* I*am not going to have it done right now,*maybe the next bottom job...
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thanks everyone!

How much racing are you plannig to do? If a lot, then you will need to go down to the gelcoat and keep things smooth. Otherwise, you will only need to be sure you have good adhesion over all of the bottom. A little roughness is only cosmetic. You should be able to do the bottom on your boat, by yourself, without help, in about 4 hours, including power washing, scraping rough patches and barnacles, replacing zincs and putting on the paint. Shouldn't add up to more than $10 per foot, unless your own labour is really expensive.

Yard rate in our marina for haulout, powerwash, and basic bottom paint is $18 a foot. If you use a better (aka more expensive) bottom paint then the boat owner has to pay the difference. Also if you want more than one coat you have to pay the difference. We generally put on one coat overall with a second coat on the forefoot, along the waterline, and on the rudders.

Our bottom is pretty rough for a variety of reasons. We do a cursory sanding on the worst areas and then roll on the paint. With an 8 knot boat, the difference between a racing-slick bottom and a "roughish" bottom isn't enough to worry about or spend the money fixing unless one is truly anal about this sort of thing. We're not.

If the boat has 26 years of paint buildup on it, that could be getting a little thick. But unless this is demonstrably hurting the performance of the boat or the adhesion of new paint*it's probably not worth taking off. This is one reason we*use an ablative paint--- it takes itself off.

-- Edited by Marin on Monday 30th of August 2010 09:52:07 PM

I don't really ever see us doing bottom paint.* My husband and I have installed bilge pumps, electronics, lights, all kinds of stuff,*but painting is not our forte.* I would like to get it done for less than $75/foot next time though!

Pineapple Girl wrote:My questions for you experienced trawler owners, is it normal for trawler bottoms to be rougher than I am used to coming from the sailing side?* Do I just need to reset my expectations?* I read the post on blasting off all the paint*down to the gel coat and got the impression*most of you would consider that overkill, considering I have no blisters.**But maybe after 26 years it would not*be a bad idea?* I*am not going to have it done right now,*maybe the next bottom job..

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PG, coming also from the sailing world I also was concerned that the rough bottom on our trawler was not just a embarrassment when the boat was hauled ... but surely was costing* me in efficiency and speed.... well it took me 7 years but last August we removed the 40 years of modified epoxy bottom paint that over the years was coming off in pieces from quarter size to plate size... $ 15,000 worth of work later she still goes exactly the same speed and uses the same fuel.... I thought I might get a 5% improvement... nada!, zip, zilch! ..... but it looks as smooth as a babies behind. I used Hydrocote and to this point I am not impressed with it's slime properties. I plan to spend some time this weekend getting up close and personal with the bottom prior to heading down the Columbia River to get back to Puget Sound. Believe me a little texture on a trawler doesn't matter a bit.
HOLLYWOOD

*

hollywood8118 wrote:$ 15,000 worth of work later she still goes exactly the same speed and uses the same fuel.... I thought I might get a 5% improvement... nada!, zip, zilch! ..... but it looks as smooth as a babies behind.

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*thanks for the reality check Hollywood!*

Note that we boaters are not the only ones with bottom job concerns..... So as you contemplate the best course of action for your hull remember you're not alone.

The difference in most anything , fuel burn , speed, range will not be noticable from a smoother bottom.

BUT the prop is a different story , it needs to be clean and not even slightly damaged for the best results.

Scrubbing to keep barnaciles off or prop speed IS worthwhile.

The old master Herrishoff , thought you should look at the prop with your minds eye and blow it up to the size of the boat.

The damaging effects of even minor imperfections would then show their real effect.

FF wrote:BUT the prop is a different story , it needs to be clean and not even slightly damaged for the best results.


Scrubbing to keep barnaciles off or prop speed IS worthwhile.

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Don't know about the PropSpeed-- I've read posts that say it's an expensive waste of time and posts that say it works as advertised.* But FF is right about what happens when a prop gets even a small amount of fouling.*

For a variety of reasons, this year has been a "bad" one for barnacle growth in our marina.* The local dive company has been kept very busy taking barnacles off props.* in our case we experienced no problems all winter.* But a couple of months ago when we took the boat out after almost a month of no usage, we had a vibration in the wheel that we'd never experienced before.* I went back and looked at the steering gear in the lazarrette and it was vibrating and rattling at cruise speed.* So we went back to our slip rather than risk damaging something* Had the boat dove on and it was barnacle growth on the props.* It can not only unblalance a prop, it can disrupt the water flow coming off the prop to where it starts pulsing the rudder(s).

In the case of the sailboat in the slip across from us, it had not been run for many months during the winter (the owners live in Canada and use the boat primarily in the summer).* When they came down to take the boat out for the first time this season, they could barely get it out of the sip.* So they went back in and called the dive service.* Barnacles on the prop was the reason for an almost total lack of thrust.

*

Great info on the props / barnacles. There are a LOT of barnacles on our props and struts, which the yard is removing. Everyone on the sea trial had expected the boat to go faster at WOT so sounds like these barnacles are slowing us down.

Sounds like I shouldn't worry about a little roughness on the bottom. We won't be doing any type of racing or contests in this boat.