This is How You Should Paint The Bottom of a Boat
If you are like most people who own a boat and love marine supply stores, you probably keep your boat in the water for a good part of the year. That makes it critical to ensure that the hull is kept safe from marine growth. You can accomplish this by utilizing a few coats of antifouling paint. Failing to do this can result in a hull that impedes the boat’s speed and maneuverability. This translates into higher fuel costs, and all because of a fouled boat bottom.
Research Different Types of Anifouling Painting paint
Antifouling paint contains biocides that keep life forms such as plants and algae from attaching themselves to your boat’s hull, but not all antifouling paints are the same when it comes to quality, so you have to choose wisely. There are three main choices when it comes to antifouling paint: ablative, copolymer, and hard anti-fouling. Copolymer antifouling paint is often the best choice for most people since it tends to be a lot tougher than ablative antifouling paint and has advantages over hard antifouling paint. Once you have chosen the best antifouling paint for your specific needs, you need to get other items ready.
Other items that you will need
Now that you have your antifouling paint, you are going to need to get some other things such as:
- Thinner
- Fineline and blue masking tape
- Painting items such as a roller, paint tray, liner, and roller frame
- Chip paint brushes (2” and 4”)
- A lot of rags for possible spills and other purposes
- Paint buckets
- Drill driven paint mixer
- DA disc sander and 80-grit sanding discs
- Safety items such as Goggles, foot covers, dust mask, and gloves
This is a basic list that you can add other items to depending on the circumstances. Once you have it all together, check for weather conditions so that you can be relatively sure that it won’t rain during the time you will be working or shortly thereafter. Another thing about the weather is that the ideal temperature should be from 50° to 85°F and the humidity below 65%. Plan to spend more time on the job than might actually be required since little things can go wrong.
Prepping and Painting
Now, that you are ready, you have to prep the bottom of your boat for a coating of paint by power washing it which will remove dirt and light fouling. If the present fouling is not so light, you might want to use an acid-based bottom cleaner but make sure that you use proper eye protection and a respirator for safety. Then you have to sand the bottom with 80-grit sanding paper so that the paint adheres to it just like it should. Next, make sure to mask off borders so that you do not accidentally go over them with the paint. Finally, go ahead and apply a few coats of the antifouling paint that you have chosen, observing all the manufacturer’s instructions. For more information click here: https://www.merrittsupply.com
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