bottom paint

Hi Guys,
How many gallons of bottom paint for one coat?

1 gallon should do you just fine. I usually have a little left over after I'm done.

using VC-17, it comes in annually at a predictable quart and a half.

I guess I should qualify my "gallon" with: I use the cheap ablative stuff.

A quart and a half Kyle? That almost makes it cost effective to go with the fancy stuff! I'll have to research and switch over once I do a bottom job so I can eek out that extra half knot!

Just following the PO's bottom painting. Salt water may have different requirements, and our 6 month season is relatively short (yours too Mike) but VC-17 keeps off both any real algae growth and the Lake Michigan zebra mussels. At ~$48 a quart, it ain't cheap.

With Lucky Dawgs deck job just creeping along, I'm just hopeful to GET to paint the bottom this season!

Hey Lou,
Have we had the pleasure of pictures of C-4 on the board? And pehaps a detail or two???

I believe this is the earliest Commander I know of!

Great luck with the bottom job!

:pjust over a year ago.
California will be next and then Florida.
The problem is copper sloughing off recreational boats where they congregate.
and what this does to area sealife.
We'll have the CoastGuard and the local sherrifs stopping us for bottom paint inspection.

Some of the pros and cons, with added heat can found at
google> Washington State bans Copper Anti-fouling Paint - Sailing Anarcy
forums.sailinganarchy.com/index.php?showtopic=121894&st...

That got me into the thread about 100 posts into the fray.
There are a lot of points of views and some knowledgable level heads.


I'm located in one of the last DIY boatyards that still does bottom jobs. Could say
that bottom jobs is basically what they do. And the Fed Clean Water Act might
make it possible for the state to sue the yard if California bans cuprous oxide.
Whatever our point of view, legislation will probably by tied to licencing people
to do the work thereby destroying DIY in any yard.

I've just ordered some ablative epaint ZO (metal zinc) antifouling at a truly exorbident price.
Because I'm in California I had to order a VOC exempt thinner/solvent directly from the epaint factory that can legally be shipped into California..
This solvent (E-17) is not pictured in their regular catalog!

There is nothing really environmental about this alternative bottom paint. The regular thinner
for the paint (not the one I had to get) is 50% aromatic and 50% aliphatic solvents. So the ZO must be pretty gross too.
I had to request the MSDS for the paint and the solvent, which I have yet to see, from the factory as it is not published to their web site.

By the time lit'lgull splashes, they'll have banned zinc anti-fouling!!!:(

I have a line on 2 gallons of Pettit Horizons bottom paint for a real good price. The paint is about 5 years old.

IIRC, bottom paint is ok as long as it has not frozen.... any way to tell? Any one know for certain?

I tried calling Pettit, and so far they have not gotten back to me. They are closed for the day, and I am supposed to meet the guy tomorrow.... thinking I will pass unless anyone has an answer here.

Well,

I went to pick up the paint this afternoon. The cans were a little rusty, but looked ok. I opened one, and there was nothing like 'cottage cheese' in it so I paid for them and took them to my friend at the paint store.

He warned me that the shaker would generate heat in the paint (apparently the high metallic content makes lots of friction). He put a stir in before shaking, and found 4" of solids at the bottom of the cans. After a couple tries he got them ballenced in the shaker. He double bagged them in case of a blow out... the Benjamen Moore heavy duty paint shaker was up to the task.

The 3/4 gallon of Easypoxy (1 part poly) shook out fine, not sure what I will use it for since it is black.... but it was thrown in with the rest so I guess it is good.

He shook the bottom paint for about 5 minutes, when it came out one of the cans had blown it's seam on the bottom... not much paint had come out. The other can was opened and it looks good. There is still about 1/2" of stuff on the bottom that needs to be mixed in but I think I can do that with a drill operated paddle (like I normally do with bottom paint).

It did not smell bad, and I think it will be fine. Will update when I haul out and do the bottom.