Paint or not to Paint a Aluminum Boat

[deanalika]

Why would one want to paint the hull? Reason I ask is I ran into a deal on a 14 footer and they stripped the paint from the hull and looks great, now I am just not sure if I need to rush to paint or just hang out and not do anything? Is there any pro's or con's. (new to boat ownership and I don't want to screw up my 50$ find, and its in great shape).

 

[ezmobee]

As someone who unsuccessfully painted an aluminum hull, I say leave it bare!

 

[Scott Danforth]

bare aluminum starts to corrode almost immediatly. if your in salt water, it will corrode really fast. hence the reason for paint

 

[gm280]

Scott is correct. However, If you seriously like the bare aluminum look you can use products that coats the aluminum and keeps it looking well. Sharkhide is one such product. I have never used it or even seen any aluminum hull that has used it. But a lot of folks on these forums think it is a good product. JMHO

 

[jbcurt00]

What $50 boat?

Pix?

Up to you, paint or no paint, IMO, bare (ie plain old gray) aluminum looks great on some, polished looks great on some, and painted does too.

How and where you plan to use it does matter as does trailering, throwing it in the back of the pickup or mooring it....

 

[ondarvr]

I leave aluminum unpainted, it can fail in saltwater either way. But I only fish, so cosmetics aren't a high priority.

 

[Woodonglass]

Hmmm, I thought the fish wouldn't bit if the bottom of your boat wasn't PURDY!!!!:noidea:

 

[Watermann]

If you like the look of bare then by all means keep it that way. So you know Aluminum boats do not start to corrode immediately as the alloy is very resistant to corrosion, even in brine. The aluminum does oxidize and will go from being bright and shiny to dull gray with time. The majority of AL boats are painted for looks not protection from corrosion. I left the entire bottom bare on my current 18' SS project and just painted the sides.

One thing I for sure recommend for painting to avoid corrosion is the inner transom skin where the wood sits against the AL and causes galvanic corrosion which can really eat into the AL.