tell a new guy about bottom paint

[rentprop1]

I've had a few boats in the past but nothing that stayed in the water or had a painted bottom, looking to trade my pontoon for in. I'm looking at a used boat that has black bottom paint, I know why you paint the bottom of your boat, but not why if you trailer it ??.....do some folks use this to hide scratches or repairs in the gel coat, how often would you have to re-paint it and what is the cost for approx 17 foot boat.

next question, the guy said it came from the manufacturer with bottom paint, is this true, do manufacturers or dealers do this ??

last : is there any way to remove bottom paint and get back to the original finish ??

 

[Chris1956]

Re: tell a new guy about bottom paint

You do not need antifouling paint if you trailer your boat.

Boats do not come from manufacturers with bottom paint. AF paint is applied by the dealer, prior to pickup by the customer.

Bottom paint is soft, but still a PIA to remove and have the original gel coat finish look nice. You usually end up painting over the trashed gel coat with a finish coat of paint.

 

[Fireman431]

Re: tell a new guy about bottom paint

I've had a few boats in the past but nothing that stayed in the water or had a painted bottom, looking to trade my pontoon for in. I'm looking at a used boat that has black bottom paint, I know why you paint the bottom of your boat, but not why if you trailer it ??.....do some folks use this to hide scratches or repairs in the gel coat, how often would you have to re-paint it and what is the cost for approx 17 foot boat.

If it has bottom paint, more than likely it was left in the water at some time. The fact it is on a trailer now doesn't mean it always was. He may not have kept the boat in the water, but the previous owner might have.

next question, the guy said it came from the manufacturer with bottom paint, is this true, do manufacturers or dealers do this ??

I've never seen a boat for sale new that had bottom paint unless it was one too big to trailer. Any one else?

last : is there any way to remove bottom paint and get back to the original finish ??

Depending on what type of prep job was done, what primer was used, what type of paint was used, how it was applied, how many coats, current condition, yadda, yadda, yadda...it's tough to tell. Some people use a non-abrasive blasting medium (baking soda, crushed walnut shells, etc) to remove paint. Others wait until it starts to peel and then scrape the rest off. My suggestion would be to take it to a marina that does paint work and get some prefessional direction.

 

[dsiekman]

Re: tell a new guy about bottom paint

If it is the color that really bothers you, Petit makes a white hard antifouling paint. If I remember right, it can be left out of the water - a lot of soft paints cannot. It might be the cheapest way to go to get the look you want.