How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

[boostnm3]

I have a 97 four winns horizon that the previous owner painted the bottom of the hull. He said it was supposed to keep mold and mildew from forming. It is kind of rough in texture and actually starting to fade off in places. It looks terrible. Im sure it probably also causes a lot of drag in the water. What is the best way to remove this? Or would you recommend just painting over it? The guy could have at least picked a better color. Its hideous right now.

 

[45Auto]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

Sounds like it's been bottom painted. Boats that are left in the water are painted below the waterline to help keep marine growth off the boat. The paints have pesticides in them to keep stuff from growing on the boat. The paint also needs to be re-done every couple of years.

Once it's been bottom painted it's almost impossible to go back to a plain fiberglass bottom. If it was done right, part of the procedure to prepare for bottom paint is to rough the fiberglass up with some VERY coarse sandpaper. Even if you clean the old paint off (with sodablasting, etc) the bottom will look like h*** because it was roughed up for the bottom paint.

You can re-gelcoat the bottom but it's either a LOT of work, or very expensive to pay someone to do it - more than your boat would be worth.

Your best bet is probably a fresh coat of bottom paint.

 

[boostnm3]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

Sounds like it's been bottom painted. Boats that are left in the water are painted below the waterline to help keep marine growth off the boat. The paints have pesticides in them to keep stuff from growing on the boat. The paint also needs to be re-done every couple of years.

Once it's been bottom painted it's almost impossible to go back to a plain fiberglass bottom. If it was done right, part of the procedure to prepare for bottom paint is to rough the fiberglass up with some VERY coarse sandpaper. Even if you clean the old paint off (with sodablasting, etc) the bottom will look like h*** because it was roughed up for the bottom paint.

You can re-gelcoat the bottom but it's either a LOT of work, or very expensive to pay someone to do it - more than your boat would be worth.

Your best bet is probably a fresh coat of bottom paint.

ok, thanks for responding. i guess i can just repaint it. what kind of paint do i need and where can i get it? also do you just roll it on? i was thinking it would cause a lot of drag but probably not enough to make a big difference.

 

[boostnm3]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

ok i found some places to get the paint. now my question is, how much paint would i need for an 18'? They sell in quarts and gallons. Im just wanting to paint the bottom half

 

[45Auto]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

Here's a short article on bottom painting:

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/BottomLine.htm

It's usually rolled on, the slight roughness doesn't affect anything. It's not cheap, and some brands seem to work better in different areas of the country than others. Your best bet would probably be to check with a marina or boat shop in your area and see what's popular.

Good Luck!

 

[45Auto]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

The area of the bottom of your boat is going to be right around 200 square feet. You should be able to find a spec on the bottom paint that tells how many square feet a gallon will cover.

 

[boostnm3]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

alright, thanks a lot yeah it wont be cheap, but cheaper than redoing the fiberglass. it needs to be redone and im going to pick a better color hopefully

 

[boostnm3]

Re: How can i clean/remove bottom paint off hull?

ok a gallon will do roughly 400 sq feet. so gallon should be plenty