Durabak any good?

[Axkiker]

Re: Durabak any good?

Just add a question to this. Im looking at durabak as well for the decks on a 28 coastal. The boat was painted with west marine topside paint. I am sanding it down to the original gelcoat and respraying all of the "finished" areas. The decks and front flat area are done in the same paint but sanded.

Do I have to sand all the way down through that sand paint or can I just cut it rough with a wheel or 40 grit? Will durabak adhere to that?
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I have no practical experience applying durabak so take my advice with a grain of salt. I also have been looking into the different bedliner coatings for marine applications. I sent off for several samples from different companies (durabak) being one of them. From what I can tell Durabak feels a lot like Hurculiner which is fairly rubbery. Hurculiner and I believe Durabak are both one part coatings. I installed Hurculiner in a truck years ago and was less than happy with it. It was soft enough you could literally pick it off with your fingernail.

From what I can tell by feeling the samples and talking with some people the other coatings such as UpolRaptor, Monstaliner, Al's, are all 2 part coatings and dry much harder. The feel is much more similar to a Linex type coating. Now im not saying they are as tough or as good as Linex. Im just saying to me they seem like a better alternative.

Just wanted to throw that out there and advise if you are going down this road to check into some of the other 2 part coatings as well.

 

[johnnyv49]

Re: Durabak any good?

Thanks everyone I spoke to the folks over at durabak and they said I can just rough it with 40 grit and shouldnt have any issues

 

[RickyGee]

Re: Durabak any good?

I used Durabak on my restoration (see link below in my sig.). Tomorrow I'll put up a post about how it worked out after a season's use.

Jim

Did you every reach a conclusion as to why the Durabak in your installation stayed soft? I've always been a bit concerned about moisture catalyzed polyurethanes (single part) since they are dependant on a certain humidity level to properly harden. Is it possible that your batch was not manufactured correctly, or that the environment was too dry when you applied it? All things being equal, I think I would favor a 2 part urethane if I found one that was somewhere between the rubbery Durabak and the Hard KiwiGrip.

 

[JASinIL2006]

Re: Durabak any good?

Did you every reach a conclusion as to why the Durabak in your installation stayed soft? I've always been a bit concerned about moisture catalyzed polyurethanes (single part) since they are dependant on a certain humidity level to properly harden. Is it possible that your batch was not manufactured correctly, or that the environment was too dry when you applied it? All things being equal, I think I would favor a 2 part urethane if I found one that was somewhere between the rubbery Durabak and the Hard KiwiGrip.

I'm not sure what you mean... The finish on the Durabak in my boat feels pretty much like the sample they sent me.

 

[RickyGee]

Re: Durabak any good?

I'm not sure what you mean... The finish on the Durabak in my boat feels pretty much like the sample they sent me.

I'm just guessing (possibly incorrectly...) that the Durabak in your boat didn't cure correctly, for some reason, and that is why it is sticking to mats and rubbing off some of the edges. I got a sample from Durabak too and was impressed with the rubbery feel that is probably responsible for the anti-slip characteristics. I used a single part spray polyurethane on a project in my garage one winter many years ago. It was very cold and dry outside, and inside my heated garage, the humidity was very low. That polyurethane never cured fully, staying a bit tacky and soft. I attributed it to a lack of water vapor in the air to catalyze the process. The Durabak info says once you open a can, you have to use it and can't reseal it because it will begin curing in the can, so again, I'm guessing they are using moisture to catalyze their curing process. Was the humidity typical when you applied the Durabak in your boat?

 

[JASinIL2006]

Re: Durabak any good?

Yes, I applied mine in late March when we typically getting Spring rains, etc., with normal humidity. I believe it cured properly, based on how my application looks/feels compared to the sample. It's not really tacky, at least not beyond what I'd expect from any sort of rubbery coating. (I have a professionally applied bedliner, Permatech, in my pickup truck, that is also a slightly rubbery coating, and it is much more durable.)

I think you're probably right that a one-part product won't compare with a two-part coating. From what I've read, Durabak does better than a lot of other one-part coatings, but that's not first hand knowledge.

More than anything, the biggest problem I have with Durabak is the difficulty keeping it clean. That may be primarily a matter of adding another coat of smooth Durabak to reduce some of the dirt-grabbing texture. I recall that friscoboater did that to his SeaRay after he had Durabak in that boat for a while, for the same issue as mine.

 

[RickyGee]

Re: Durabak any good?

I looked at Al's and U-Pol and Monstaliner. Monstaliner looks like the right stuff, formulated for rolling, 2 part catalyzing, no texture additives, and designed to adhere directly to fiberglass without an additional paint/primer layer. I just ordered samples.

 

[Axkiker]

Re: Durabak any good?

I looked at Al's and U-Pol and Monstaliner. Monstaliner looks like the right stuff, formulated for rolling, 2 part catalyzing, no texture additives, and designed to adhere directly to fiberglass without an additional paint/primer layer. I just ordered samples.

I have the monstaliner samples and am impressed. Its nothing like the old Hurculiner I used back in the day. I have been picking and picking at the samples trying to chip it with my nail and have been unsuccessful. Ive even started gouging them with a screwdriver and havent chipped it. Granted I havent started beating it with a hammer or anything but so far the stuff is tough.

The only thing I can see that may be an issue is im guessing it will be slippery when wet. Im not too worried cause I think im going to go with sna

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Durabak any good?

Im not too worried cause I think im going to go with sna

sna?

 

[Axkiker]

Re: Durabak any good?

sna?

Sorry it cut off part of my comment.

Im going to go with snap in carpet over the liner

 

[RickyGee]

Re: Durabak any good?

Hmmm...looking at the Monstaliner tech data, while it is a 2 part system, it uses moisture to cure as well. That 2 part characteristic may not be the advantage that I thought it would be. I wish I was a chemist...

 

[Axkiker]

Re: Durabak any good?

Hmmm...looking at the Monstaliner tech data, while it is a 2 part system, it uses moisture to cure as well. That 2 part characteristic may not be the advantage that I thought it would be. I wish I was a chemist...

Yeah im no chemist either. If you get into any other msds sheets and find a product you feel is better suited please post as I would love to look into it as well.

 

[Iluvboats69]

For my boat I did a ton of research, here and many other forums, and ultimately decided to go with Durabak. Easy application, inexpensive and most importantly durable. I love it. Paid $115 for gallon at www.durabakdepot.com. Friendly folks over there. I think you'll be happy.

 

[jigngrub]

For my boat I did a ton of research, here and many other forums, and ultimately decided to go with Durabak. Easy application, inexpensive and most importantly durable. I love it. Paid $115 for gallon at www.durabakdepot.com. Friendly folks over there. I think you'll be happy.

Post some pics so we can see how it turned out and what it looks like.

How long has it been on and have you had any of the problems the others have spoken about? Any adhesion problems? Does the deck get dirty easily, does it still look dirty after being cleaned?

 

[JASinIL2006]

I would be very interested to hear about how others are doing with Durabak. I have not been very impressed with how it wears after another season of boating. It just does not seem to be that durable. It looks okay in areas where it is just subject to foot traffic, but anywhere it has extra wear, like where the ski locker lid rests on it, it is wearing through quite quickly. I'm not very happy with it. I really wish I had gone with gelcoat.