My 26 Clipper has been in dry storage for 6 years. A lot of the bottom paint is flaking off.
Primary goal right now is to redo bottom paint.
Should I scrape it all off then sand?
or
Chemical strip it off then sand?
or
is this just preference and there is no right or wrong?
After all the old paint is off, from what I am reading I need to get some moisture back into the hull before I paint it again.
So after its all stripped, should I soak it for a few days to swell the hull before I paint?
Do I understand this right?
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Unanswered6 years of dry storage. Is this what I should do now?
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Captain Nemo
- Posts: 739
- Joined: Tue Jul 07, 2009 7:40 pm
- Location: Lyons, NY
6 Years Dry
Hi,
Removing bottom paint is always tedious work. Last spring stripped multiple coats of bronze with many coats of red ablative paint on top of it from my 28' cruiser w/ a tool called a roto stripper I bought it at a Do-it-best hardware store www.doitbest.com ,It worked very well right down to bare wood. Better than having chemical dripping down on you. Be sure to use a respirator and protective clothing, bottom paint is full of all kind of nasty stuff.
I don't believe you have to soak the hull b/4 you paint. I would do any preparation the paint manufacture says to do. Some prime w/ a product called CPES, good stuff.
I fill the seams with Slikseam.
-Mark
Removing bottom paint is always tedious work. Last spring stripped multiple coats of bronze with many coats of red ablative paint on top of it from my 28' cruiser w/ a tool called a roto stripper I bought it at a Do-it-best hardware store www.doitbest.com ,It worked very well right down to bare wood. Better than having chemical dripping down on you. Be sure to use a respirator and protective clothing, bottom paint is full of all kind of nasty stuff.
I don't believe you have to soak the hull b/4 you paint. I would do any preparation the paint manufacture says to do. Some prime w/ a product called CPES, good stuff.
I fill the seams with Slikseam.
-Mark
Boats are to be made of wood, otherwise, God would have grown fiberglass trees.
As a cruiser guy I always wonder about those of you out there that want to get your bottoms down to bare wood (no puns etc).
This is a boat bottom, exposed to all sorts of perils.
We are just boaters, looking to get out on the water.
Taking a cruiser down to bare wood is not necessary and perhaps not even advisable.
I say scrape off the loose stuff, maybe use some slikseam and cotton here and there, slap on some ablative bottom paint...not even the expensive kind (YET), and launch her for a while...see how she tightens up....she has been out a long time, there is going to be lots of movement...do not over caulk her or she will crush fibers on the edges, not to mention that she is naturally going to be pulling screws back toward original locations, a squirrelly deal in itself.
If you are not refastening or replanking, I swear I would do the above and launch her....pull her in a few weeks and check things out, powerwash her gently and put on some better paint. Rock on.
You can dude her up like a trailer queen above the waterline if you are that particular, but a bottom is a bottom.
I know I will generate howls from the deep pocket purist, again,.....but I look forward to reading other opinions on this thread.
Good luck and thanks for saving a cruiser!!!
John in Va.
This is a boat bottom, exposed to all sorts of perils.
We are just boaters, looking to get out on the water.
Taking a cruiser down to bare wood is not necessary and perhaps not even advisable.
I say scrape off the loose stuff, maybe use some slikseam and cotton here and there, slap on some ablative bottom paint...not even the expensive kind (YET), and launch her for a while...see how she tightens up....she has been out a long time, there is going to be lots of movement...do not over caulk her or she will crush fibers on the edges, not to mention that she is naturally going to be pulling screws back toward original locations, a squirrelly deal in itself.
If you are not refastening or replanking, I swear I would do the above and launch her....pull her in a few weeks and check things out, powerwash her gently and put on some better paint. Rock on.
You can dude her up like a trailer queen above the waterline if you are that particular, but a bottom is a bottom.
I know I will generate howls from the deep pocket purist, again,.....but I look forward to reading other opinions on this thread.
Good luck and thanks for saving a cruiser!!!
John in Va.
1980 Fairchild Scout 30
19?? custom Argentine Runabout 16'
1954 Whirlwind deluxe dual ckpt 16'
1921 Old Town Charles River 17' (founding Captain, James River Batteau Festival)
19?? custom Argentine Runabout 16'
1954 Whirlwind deluxe dual ckpt 16'
1921 Old Town Charles River 17' (founding Captain, James River Batteau Festival)
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Captain Nemo
- Posts: 739
- Joined: Tue Jul 07, 2009 7:40 pm
- Location: Lyons, NY
6 Years Dry
John,
Before I stripped the bottom She used to take days for her to soak up. Afterwards she was on her own in 12hrs. I swear the paint was 1/8" thick in some spots. I never really checked but I would think there is some fuel savings just by having a smooth surface going thru the water. That bottom was really rough. Just a couple of advantages to think about if you have a bottom in such a condition.
-Mark
Before I stripped the bottom She used to take days for her to soak up. Afterwards she was on her own in 12hrs. I swear the paint was 1/8" thick in some spots. I never really checked but I would think there is some fuel savings just by having a smooth surface going thru the water. That bottom was really rough. Just a couple of advantages to think about if you have a bottom in such a condition.
-Mark
Boats are to be made of wood, otherwise, God would have grown fiberglass trees.
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