Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

[fishrdan]

I'm getting ready to paint a swim platform and trying to figure out what anti-slip paint additive to use, ground walnut shells, play sand, commercial additive. I want something that has grip, but not a 40 grit sandpaper texture.

I picked up a bottle of Sharkgrip anti-slip additive from Lowes, ground polypropylene about the size of 100 grit sand paper particles. Seems like it might work OK, but ,,, this stuff is supposed to be mixed with the paint and rolled on, instead of being sprinkled on and painted over like I'm going to do. That and, it's plastic and I'm not sure how that's going to hold up over the long run.

Initially I was going to mask off an area, lay down a coat of epoxy, sprinkle on some gritty stuff, lay down another coat of epoxy to seal it in, then spray paint the thing with 2 coats of Nason auto paint to match the boat. But,,, I'm pretty sure the Sharkgrip will get covered up by the epoxy and paint, rendering it useless. I could use the anti-slip between coats of paint, but think it might get rubbed off too easy, don't know...

Any better ideas of what to use, or how to apply the anti-slip.

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

http://www.awlgrip.com/MPYACMDatasheets/4078+A+eng+A4.pdf

you can get a choice of grit....another application option for an even finish is to tape off the non skid pattern, put a layer of paint, then dry spray the griptex under light pressure, then spray the final topcoat after it tacks..

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

In my research on this subject I ran into this product. I have never used it so cannot speak from experience but it appears to be nice.

SoftSand Rubber & Asper Grit - Innovative Non-Skid Particles for Paint

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

http://www.awlgrip.com/MPYACMDatasheets/4078+A+eng+A4.pdf

you can get a choice of grit....another application option for an even finish is to tape off the non skid pattern, put a layer of paint, then dry spray the griptex under light pressure, then spray the final topcoat after it tacks..

That looks to be like the stuff I have now "micronized polymer" for Sharkgrip vs "polymer bead" for the Awlgrip, though I'm not sure how this stuff would compare to Awlgrip's fine, course and extra course.

When you say, dry spray the Griptex, do you mean load the dry powder up in a spray gun and spray it over the top of wet paint? I like that idea and will need to see if this stuff will go through my spray gun, looks like it might be small enough for my el' cheapo HF spray gun...

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Hey zool, you seem to be one of the "paint" guys here...

For Nason automotive paint, can I spray that directly on top of epoxy or do I need to prime the epoxy first. If priming is needed, what should I use on top of the epoxy? Not sure if I need a tie coat, or not....

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Hey fishdan, yes, you put the dry grit in the cup, reduce the pressure at the gun, and just spray it.

I assume your using ful-thane 2 pack ss topcoat, i would just use the ful-poxy 491-35 unless you need a build coat, then tie it with 421-17.....but ful-poxy is a sealer too, so it will work fine alone..

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

In my research on this subject I ran into this product. I have never used it so cannot speak from experience but it appears to be nice.

SoftSand Rubber & Asper Grit - Innovative Non-Skid Particles for Paint

That stuff looks interesting, wood, never saw it before...

 

[ThrottleBack]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

I have mixed blasting sand into paint plenty of times, most notably on the deck of a friends boat. works great.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

That stuff looks interesting, wood, never saw it before...

Yeah, I thought so too. I'm in the process, well kind of, of redoing the deck on my boat and I may try some of this stuff.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Yup, Nason Ful-thane 2K, SS urethane. Thanks for the advice on the primer and sealer. I'm not sure If I'm going to need a build coat, have to see how the epoxy sanding comes out.

I just checked and I only have about 1/4 quart of tan paint :culpability: Do you think that will be enough to paint a 2' x 5' swim platform, top and bottom? Guess I would mask off the anti-skid area, spray that area with paint, apply the anti-skid, then spray the whole thing with 2 coats of paint. Seems like a lot of area to cover with 1/4 quart of paint, even after adding activator and reducer.

I have 3/4 quart of blue (boat is tan/blue) so I guess I could spray the entire platform blue, then do the anti-skid area in tan. I was hoping to have the swim platform brackets blue and the entire platform tan though....

Guess my friendly paint shop might get to sell me a quart of tan paint along with the primer.

 

[java230]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Used shark grip on a concrete Deck a few years ago. The concrete was polished smooth. We put a clear sealer on it with the shark grip mixed in. I think we went a little heavy on the shark grip if i remember right, but it ended up so grippy it felt weird to walk on. So much so I spend a few days sanding it back down since the client didn't like it so grippy.

It was in a thin clear sealer though. But it was grippy!

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Yup, Nason Ful-thane 2K, SS urethane. Thanks for the advice on the primer and sealer. I'm not sure If I'm going to need a build coat, have to see how the epoxy sanding comes out.

I just checked and I only have about 1/4 quart of tan paint :culpability: Do you think that will be enough to paint a 2' x 5' swim platform, top and bottom? Guess I would mask off the anti-skid area, spray that area with paint, apply the anti-skid, then spray the whole thing with 2 coats of paint. Seems like a lot of area to cover with 1/4 quart of paint, even after adding activator and reducer.

I have 3/4 quart of blue (boat is tan/blue) so I guess I could spray the entire platform blue, then do the anti-skid area in tan. I was hoping to have the swim platform brackets blue and the entire platform tan though....

Guess my friendly paint shop might get to sell me a quart of tan paint along with the primer.

Thats a tough one, i guess it depends on how much paint your gun wastes. I suppose you could give it a shot, as long as you can get more within the recoat window....you wont be able to resand the grip if you wait too long and wont get a good bond. Maybe doing the entire top 1st, then see whats left for the bottom...

Not sure of the current Nason price, but the Concept SS i use is 109/qt for just the paint..so i get trying to make it on what you have

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Not sure of the current Nason price, but the Concept SS i use is 109/qt for just the paint..so i get trying to make it on what you have

..... It's probably much better paint than Nason though....

It was something like $35+/qt when I bought it 2-3 years ago. $140 for everything I needed to repaint the transom, 2qts of paint, reducer, activator, etc, etc. I would have plenty of tan left over,,, if I hadn't screwed up my 1st attempt at spraying the transom, had to sand out runs and respray....

Guess I'll 2-tone the swim platform since I already have the materials,,, except the primer.

Thanks for the advice zool, really appreciate it!

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

In my research on this subject I ran into this product.

SoftSand Rubber & Asper Grit - Innovative Non-Skid Particles for Paint

Thanks for the link WOG. One of the things I'm leery of is anti-slip that will loose it's grip with the paint, or rub off. I'm not sure how the soft grip would be in that respect since it's made of rubber. I was worried about that issue with the SharkGrip (plastic particles), but no one said it was bad, I'm going to go with the Sharkgrip and hope for the best.

That and, zool's method of dry spraying the anti-slip should work well since I think the fine particles will go through my spray gun.

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

I have used SharkGrip for other anti-slip applications, but never in paint, more importantly never in THAT paint.

Because it's anti-slip, the Shark-Grip grains are the high point under a thin layer of paint. Surface tension of the paint (& the products I use it in) cause it to 'pull' the paint off the top of the S-G grains as it dries. So the layer of paint covering the grains is thinnest at the high point that will bear the majority of the foot traffic. <<<-- Does that make sense?

Having the coating the thinnest at the wear surface bearing the most traffic isn't ideal. If you broadcast or mix sand into epoxy, it behaves similarly, and should be done MORE aggressive then you think necessary. Then fine tune the aggressiveness by adding additional layers w/ minimal or no S-G until you've gotten the texture where you want it.

When we use Shark-Grip, I typically add as much S-G as I think necessary to create an EXTREMELY aggressive anti-slip texture in the 1st coat. My products can be tempered w/ additional catalyzed material w/in a specified window. If I can 2nd & 3rd coat in that window, a couple of hours, I add additional material for the 2nd coat BUT NO MORE S-G, reducing the PPM of S-G, unless I think the 1st layer wasn't extremely grippy. For the 3rd coat, I again add additional material to the reduced PPM S-G mix I used on the 2nd coat, further reducing the PPM of S-G. Once I (& the customer) determine we are almost where they want to be w/ the aggressiveness of the S-G, I mix a 4th coat w/ little or no S-G and apply it over the previous coats. W/ some luck, it dries where the customer wants the anti-slip texture. If not a 5th coat may be applied.

Doing it this way applies a build film over the S-G grains, and builds a wearable surface that won't lose it's anti-slip properties as the surface wears. And it WILL wear. Even sand buried in epoxy will wear. How fast depends on your usage & traffic.

FWIW, my coatings meet slip coefficients requirements w/out the S-G, and are rated for ceramic tile & bare concrete (we grind/hone it if necessary) in restrooms, showers, and around pools. But w/ both our semi-gloss or gloss, there can be a perceived look of slippery, even when dry, so some customers request anti-slip additives. Around both pools & showers (where you'd expect people to be bare-foot) the coatings wear w/ or w/out the S-G, generally much faster w/ the S-G additive.

When we apply the S-G in the manner I listed above, it lasts longer then when it is broadcast rather then mixed into the coatings, and the visual look & anti-slip of the coatings lasts longer then when we apply the coatings in our usual manner: 2-3 coats max.

Best of luck, & I highly recommend several test samples to determine how much S-G to use and how best to keep it in suspension in the paint you're using, evenly. And how best to get the texture & longevity that you're looking to achieve.

At least the S-G is inexpensive... WOW, $100+ per quart, don't want to spill or waste any of that. I thought some of our stuff was to high at $65/gal.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Thanks for the post jb! That's what I'm worried about, anti-slip particles busting out of the paint,,, wear. I was thinking of doing a test with some rattle can paint and now after your post, think I really need to test.

I'm going to test laying down a coat of paint and hit it hard with SG, lay another coat of paint and do a medium coat of SG, then 2 more coats of paint to lock it in. Probably do a couple of tests to see what I like. I don't want to add the SG to the epoxy as I need to prime the epoxy and think the SG will get muted under all the paint.

The SG at Lowes wasn't a terribly bad price for my project, $6-7 for a "Red Bull can" sized bottle that should be big enough for my project, picked up 2 just in case... (West Marine had a similar sized can of anti-slip for $24... )

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

On a swim platform, I dont think you will see major foot traffic, much less with shoes on, unless thats the dock entry thru a transom door.

Whether nonskid or not, paint in general will have a finite usefull life over gel/resin, and need periodic refinishing, jmo

ps-rattle can paint wont give a meaningful test over a 2 part system for durability, but i would be interested in the results regardless...

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Hey zool, The rattle can is just a test to see how the paint builds with the SG. I'm not really looking to see how the SG sticks in the paint for durability, but I want to see how much SG to lay down, what it looks like if I lay it down heavy and cover it up with several coats of paint, etc...

I do agree with the swim platform having little foot traffic, but if I can create a wear surface that JB was talking about, I might as well give it a shot.

 

[zool]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Oh I agree completely fishr, get it the best you can so you dont need to visit again anytime soon. JB's post is of interest to me too, because I have about 100 sq ft of nonskid to lay, in my cockpit, side decks, and pulpit area. Besides the foot traffic in the cockpit, its the scrubbing to get the deck clean after heavy use that concerns me, using somewhat harsh cleansers and a stiff brush.

Maybe you will be kind enough to post back your results after you try it out.

 

[jasoutside]

Re: Swim platform anti-slip paint additive, what's best?

Hey dan, just thought I thrown in .02 here......

I actually ran some tests with that rubber stuff WOG posted up. I had high hopes but in the end it really didn't pan out and I don't think it would make for a good surface in a boat.

I have had really good success with screened play sand in epoxy. I've finished off with Rustoleum which is gloss. That finish kinda makes it hot in the sun and still a smidge slick when wet.

For the Islander I recently laid down Behr Deckover and love that! Great grip, matte finish, comes in a whole variety of colors and reasonable $$. I can't yet give ya real world test results but I'm pretty sure it'll fit the bill.

http://i543.photobucket.com/albums/gg451/jasoutside/Starcraft Islander/P1100684.jpg

http://i543.photobucket.com/albums/gg451/jasoutside/Starcraft Islander/P1100690.jpg

Might be worth a look anyway, cheers:joyous: