Non skid floor help

[Bluemelj]

I have been replacing part of my floor and putting new fiberglass over all of it, my last layer was 1708 I am using total tread after first coat I can clearly see the 1708 Mat plus the total tread has very little sand in it or I just don’t have it mixed up well.

did I not finish my fiberglass properly, now that I am at this point is there a paint on that is thick enough to cover up the cloth. Considered adding more sand to my total tread, any ideas paint or otherwise are welcome.

 

[alldodge]

In the USCG we would put down a thick layer of paint and then sprinkle or pour sand over it. Once dry, sweep or hose excess off, looks good

 

[AShipShow]

1708 will definitely show through the finished paint or gelcoat. Thats why most people will go over 1708 with CSM for a final layer to help hide the weave of the underneath layers... You may need to do a couple coats of paint and then sand down to try to "fill in" the valleys of the mat... Then go back and do you nonskid... Or you could go to a bigger particle size to help hide it...
For mine, I used medium size "softsand" non skid particles in interlux brightsides paint and it hides imperfections great... But I also faired my deck first before doing any primer/paint cuz I wanted it to look as close to a molded hull as possible..

 

[Bluemelj]

@Mad Props could I still put a layer of csm on top of the coat of non tread I put down? The csm I got was so weak it was a mess to work with but if that is a better option I will do it?

 

[Scott Danforth]

Mix up thickened gel, trowel it on with a notched trowel, rol over it with a bedliner roller to make a great nonskid

 

[Bluemelj]

Mix up thickened gel, trowel it on with a notched trowel, rol over it with a bedliner roller to make a great nonskid

@Scott Danforth when you say thicken gel what product are you talking about? Poly resin peanut butter for example? Epoxy peanut butter? Thanks.

 

[kcon]

If you're looking to get a smooth substrate, you're gonna need to fair it out. You could mix up a less viscose PB like mixture, using poly or epoxy (personally I'd use epoxy, bit easier to work with at this stage, and stronger results).

I'd etch the surface, lay out a smooth layer or two of TotalBoat TotalFair, (give it a sanding with 80-120 grit between layers), then after a proper surface prep, do a non-skit treatment over it.

TotalBoat TotalFair Epoxy Marine Fairing Compound

Lightweight 2-part marine epoxy fairing compound perfect for reshaping, filling, and fairing. Use above and below the waterline on fiberglass, wood, aluminum, and steel.

www.totalboat.com

You'll never get a smooth deck if you paint directly over 1708, or any fiberglass, without fairing (or in general building up the substrate to smooth it out).

 

[Bluemelj]

@kcon i don’t believe it needs to be completely smooth because I am putting down a non skid but I want to cover up 1708 cloth showing through. Considering putting down a layer of CSM, this would be on top one coat of total tred, thoughts?

 

[Chris51280]

thicken gel for fairing is resin with glass bubbles and a bit cabosil. you want the wax additive which makes sanding a bit easier. this makes a paste that you can spread

 

[kcon]

@kcon i don’t believe it needs to be completely smooth because I am putting down a non skid but I want to cover up 1708 cloth showing through. Considering putting down a layer of CSM, this would be on top one coat of total tred, thoughts?

That would work fine I reckon, you'd still end up seeing some form of fiberglass strands, just less of a defined weave. Honestly I think it'd be easier to just trowel out a thin layer of TotalFair over the 1708 and non-skid over that. As far as applying CSM with poly resin over Total Red, which I believe is a polyurethane paint product - I don't know the answer from a chemical perspective, but I'd remove/sand/prep as much of that surface material off as possible, especially if you're using a poly resin product and not epoxy.

I don't think you need to go insane trying to remove it, but hit it with a sander as much as possible before applying anything on top of it.

 

[Bluemelj]

@kcon makes sense just trying to use what I have left. Appreciate everyone’s comments.