to paint below the waterline , or not to paint!!

[bob johnson]

This starcraft of mine will be used for salt water fishing and duck hunting...it might see 10 trips a year 20 on a good year with lots of fishing... I have removed all the paint on the outside of the hull... I am going to replace rivets now, but wonder if I should not even bother painting the hull below the chine. I am going to paint the top half a blue gray to try and match the color of water reflecting the overcast sky of winter...I will trailer this boat everyplace I go...

whats the consensus on needing to paint the hull below the waterline?? I think it should help protect against corrosion, but don't know how much and if its worth all the trouble doing it.


BOB

 

[dozerII]

I'm not a Salty and am no where near salt water, but from what I have seen I think you want something between the bare aluminum and salt. Or I guess the other school of thought is if you are only leaving the boat in the water while your fishing a good rinse afterwards will ensure there is no trapped salt water corroding the hull. I was probably no help at all.:doh:

 

[bob johnson]

I'm not a Salty and am no where near salt water, but from what I have seen I think you want something between the bare aluminum and salt. Or I guess the other school of thought is if you are only leaving the boat in the water while your fishing a good rinse afterwards will ensure there is no trapped salt water corroding the hull. I was probably no help at all.:doh:

Dozer you are certainly qualified to be an engineer at my company!!!!! you sounded just like a bunch of them......the aluminum trailer isn't painted!!!!!!!!!

I was thinking ahead as well..knowing rivets get old and even some that feel solid now, will pop off in the next year...I could replace them and not have to patch or repaint, or leave a bare spot when the rest of the bottom is painted...

I also wonder if the paint coating also does a "little "sealing of its own.. but boats like this one get scratched up on the bottom all the time...we bang into rocks near shore and on the beach....

bob

 

[g0nef1sshn]

I think you would be fine not painting since you wont be leaving it in the water. The aluminum I think should oxidize a protective layer. Im not an expert either.

The thing I would worry most about is if you have carpeted trailer bunks. If you do, thats what would make me want to put a good paint on the hull meant to protect against the corrosion.

 

[astor]

see the linked article, some of the "don'ts" surprised me a bit.

http://www.boatingmag.com/boats/protecting-aluminum-boats-salt-water-corrosion

 

[hayko1971]

Here's a pretty good read relating to your question
http://www.boatingmag.com/boats/protecting-aluminum-boats-salt-water-corrosion

 

[g0nef1sshn]

That was a good article. Almost sticky worthy. It answers a lot of questions.

 

[hayko1971]

Oops seems I'm slow when I respond! Hahah, posted the same article Astor did!
I should read quicker I guess!

 

[Watermann]

Personally I like to paint the bottom of the my boats. Yeah they get scratched, dinged and nobody ever sees the bottom but I do it anyway. It's definitely a matter of preference though. Saltwater isn't battery acid that instantly eats the boat out from under you, it just acts faster than fresh water when it comes to corrosion. If I painted or left the bottom bare AL I would do the same after each use, rinse and flush with fresh water. I normally rinse the outdrive off and flush the motor with fresh tap water even after coming home from the lake here and most the time I rinse the hull too.

 

[classiccat]

see the linked article, some of the "don'ts" surprised me a bit.

http://www.boatingmag.com/boats/protecting-aluminum-boats-salt-water-corrosion

Great article. This is a must-read for tinnie restorers!

That recommend bottom paint is worth noting...most contain copper.

 

[laurentide]

This is purely anecdotal, but as a kid I worked in a boat yard and spent a lot of time sanding bottom paint on wood and steel boats. I can tell you that there are few worse jobs than this. Dirty, unhealthy (especially back in the 80's), difficult, minimally rewarding. I would never bottom paint a boat that doesn't live in the water. It has to be redone almost every year if you're doing it to prevent growth/corrosion. And it sucks. I'm thinking of stripping my entire hull so I don't have to worry about fixing dock rash. To me this is one of the beautiful things about aluminum...it protects itself.