Bottom Paint Removal?

[noXcuse]

I bought a 228 Seafarer a few weeks ago. The anti-fouling paint that's on it is pretty ugly. Since I plan on keeping the boat on a trailer, I want the bottom paint off. Is there a safe way of removing it without damaging the gelcoat? I've seen the brush on gel, but I've heard that it can damage the gelcoat. I've also hear blasting with peanut shells works good, but I doubt my sandblaster can shoot that. I'd like to find a way to do it at home, if possible. Any suggestions? Thanks.

 

[richie rich]

Peel Away or Easy Off....regardless, you will have to sand the bottom with various fine grits and then polish to get a shiney gelcoat finish...no getting around it.

 

[noXcuse]

Thanks for the reply. Looking at it, I do t think it's gonna be too bad. Looks like only one coat and it's coming off on it's own. I've heard the Easy Off trick. I might try that with my neighbors 4,000psi pressure washer. I don't mind sanding if I have to. Just want to avoid as much as possible.

 

[seasick]

Thanks for the reply. Looking at it, I do t think it's gonna be too bad. Looks like only one coat and it's coming off on it's own. I've heard the Easy Off trick. I might try that with my neighbors 4,000psi pressure washer. I don't mind sanding if I have to. Just want to avoid as much as possible.

A pressure washer that powerful can easily blast away gel coat or worse. Be careful.
On the positive side, if the paint is coming off on its own, that usually means that the hull was not prepped correctly, dewaxed or cleaned.

 

[noXcuse]

A pressure washer that powerful can easily blast away gel coat or worse. Be careful.
On the positive side, if the paint is coming off on its own, that usually means that the hull was not prepped correctly, dewaxed or cleaned.

I'll keep that in mind when I get around to it. But, the bottom paint looks pretty damn old. It looks real thin in spots and looks like the ocean has been wearing it away over time. I did notice yesterday that the transom was sanded with a pretty heavy grit where the bottom paint is. I'm sure I can sand it back smooth though.

 

[ROBERTH]

I removed mine, first started with Peel Away, and it did work somewhat, but would have taken 2 months of layers to get it all and pressure washing was harder than sanding in my opinion. Just makes a heck of a mess for not much gain.
Got out the sanders and went to it. Done in over 2 weekends, but what I found is whoever put on the bottom coat, used a grinder with a very course grit and it got through the gelcoat in some spots and very thin in others. I ended up re-gel coating the entire bottom and am very happy with the results!

 

[Jeff_R]

Using a pressure washer, especially of that power, will take the bottom paint off yes, but it also will cause harm to your gelcoat. The amount of working it takes to get the paint off is means there is a lot of high pressure water being forced over the gelcoat. What ends up happening is water does get forced into the tiny pores of the gelcoat and it builds and builds the more you use the washer. Of course once you get all the paint off the boat will look good, but the thing is you have now forced in under great pressure, moisture in the gelcoat and in the coming years you will get osmotic blisters begin to develop in the areas you pressure washed.

I would NOT use the pressure washer. Myself I have stripped a hull using peel-away with good success. It was a major pain in the butt and after doing it, I told myself I would never do it again.

No matter what remember this: "The best tool of bottom paint removal is, your wallet!" Pay someone to soda blast the bottom paint off. It will be the easiest, fastest and most hassle free route to take.

 

[noXcuse]

Lol. I'm not talking about putting the nozzle right up against the hull. Holding it a couple feet away from the surface will only put maybe a couple hundred pounds of pressure on it, at most. As thin as the bottom paint looks, I'll probably end up putting some sort of remover on it, then spraying it off with the pressure washer. I promise, I won't getthe nozzle too close to the hull . Thanks for the insight.

 

[Parthery]

You might look into Farrow blasting.

I've got a quote in hand from Atlantic Green Pro up in NJ and if I can't find someone closer, may plan a one week trip up North...get the bottom done in 2-3 days and then do a little Chesapeake Bay boating on the way back.

It's not cheap...but it's environmentally better, it's better on the gelcoat, and from what I can tell looking at some of their work, the bottom will be like new when it's done.

 

[Bob's Cay]

Have you considered repainting with some of the colored anti fouling paints? I have used Petit Vivid with good results (dark colors). But they make a white and a wide range of other colors. An ablative style paint is suitable for trailerable boats.

Also, FYI I believe the paint manufacturers and shops use pressure washers to prep hulls about to be repainted. Just be careful with pressure and distance.

 

[andrew45]

In order to remove paint from any surface or bottom there is need of some razor scraper which is very useful for this purpose. But if still problem persist than putty knife can be used to remove the paint. After removing the old paint, start with white paint coat before any coring for great look.

 

[noXcuse]

Have you considered repainting with some of the colored anti fouling paints? I have used Petit Vivid with good results (dark colors). But they make a white and a wide range of other colors. An ablative style paint is suitable for trailerable boats.

Also, FYI I believe the paint manufacturers and shops use pressure washers to prep hulls about to be repainted. Just be careful with pressure and distance.

Thanks. I actually tried with just the pressure washer this past weekend. The stuff on the transom mostly came off. The stuff on the bottom, it didn't even touch. If I can't get it off fairly easily by sanding, then I'll probably consider the white (or hopefully off-white) bottom paint. Thanks for that bit of info.