 Hi guys, I've got a club 19 with a lifting keel and was hoping for a bit of advice.
The gel coat is very faded (dark blue) I've tried restorers and polishing wheels but it never seems to last, it always, however, looks perfect when it's wet. Could I give it a quick coat of epoxy or polyester resin to give it the wet look permanently? Or do you think I should just give in trying to make the gel coat presentable and paint her?
My other problem is that she sank a couple of weeks ago (got knocked over in a storm whilst the keel was lifted up and didn't recover), I cleaned the interior out completely (it was full of mud) and jetwashed it out. I didn't dry it properly though, I was too concerned with trying to rescue engines and electronics, and she has since gone very mouldy. The paint inside often goes a bit mouldy as she is always a bit damp due to the keel box being full of water, can I use a mould resistant bathroom paint to make the interior less prone to this? Any other ideas?
Thanks
Benjamin.
|
 |
 Hi Benjamin, bad luck on the sinking. I think if colour restorers and polishing aren't doing the trick, painting the hull is probably the only answer, although I know someone who swears by white vinegar (it MUST be white, apparently) to get rid of the chalky look of dark blue gelcoat after a summer in the Med. Maybe it's worth a try.
I use Nitromors mould remover (well diluted) to sponge over our headlinings whenever I see mould spots (I think it's something that affects all boats, because of the damp environment) and I've convinced myself it stops the mould coming back so quickly. Might be worth a try, too. Certainly not worth painting over mould, It will come through. Can you get a dehumidifier on the boat? Well worth the effort if you can. Good luck! Cathy
|
|
 I wouldn't use bathroom paint in your boat as it wouldn't last as long and is more toxic to the environment that other marine paints. I am awaiting a call back from someone who specialises in marine paint to see if can offer any suggestion, but until than I would advise the same as Cathy and that you should just wipe it away as soon as you notice it.
|
|
Thanks for the responses. There are no linings in the boat, just bare GRP. I would clean the mould out before painting. I guess I'll rephrase my question slightly then, I need to repaint the interior, what paint should I use to avoid mould?
I'll give the white vinegar a go, thanks. If that doesn't do it I think I may just give up and buy something with a decent gel coat! I could at the same time get something more difficult to sink!
Thanks again.
Benjamin.
|
|
Sounds as if you are thinking along very constructive lines.....
|
|
 When I bought my little Mirror Offshore five years ago she was badly neglected, the topsides were faded and chalky. I rubbed it down with medium wet or dry, washed it down and when completely dry gave it two coats of International Toplac, lightly rubbing down between coats. Apart from touching up scratches and grazing it has remained good. I give it a good polish with Starbright wax every spring and she looks fine. The interior, I lined the sides with carpet, I have used carpet squares on a previous boat, giving the cabin a nice cosy atmosphere. The deckhead I have painted twice in that period with silk immulsion, odd spots of mould have appeared between paintings but nothing serious. The thing with our size of boat is to keep it simple, it's no big deal!
|
|
Continuing on Ben, my boat, Barbara, is also blue and there is a picture on my gallery album.
|
|
Thanks Harry, how do I get to your gallery album? Any chance of a link.
I completely agree about the keeping it simple thing!
|
|
 hi ben as a time served boatbuilder one things for sure blue and red pigments never last the course so if your looking for a replacement bear that in mind,
for your cub if you are painting her do it on a nice warm morning in the spring, personnal I have no problem with International paints but the yard I worked 4 always use Blakes as it seamed more flexable to being done with a brush or better still a small raditor roller this if fine haired will produce a far better finnish than any brush but as one of the other guys said make sure you completly dewax the hull from any existing hull treatments and most importanly don't over do it on the amounts you put on at any one time paint runs will give it away its been done on the cheep!
On your mould problem, Ventlation is the key, but first I suspect there is sill a large salt content existing inside giveing the air and the hull a breading ground try over several good warmish weekend re washing down the inside with warm water a bleach of some discription then remove as mush damp and water hold ing items as possible ie ropes from the lockers mops loo roll anything that can absorm moisture Then in one of the camping shops the sell a christle moisture removing kit or if shes near an electric point plug in a small 40w bulb !!! once you've done that and provided for and aft ventlation she shoud behave throgh the winter , again in the summer fit a small vent on the cabin roof as far forward this will inprove this problem if you want to paint the inside and that is a cover up job if you accitone down the inside very well you could use 50% Gell with pigment mixed with 50% white resin again rollered on thinly but this is asuming she a mat/gell finnish in side... if not a sparing coat of a blakes or internatiol cabin paint wil help .... hope that helps but untill you give it good ventalation it will never go away!!!
|
|
 I had the same external problem with my dark blue hull and gave up in the end and had her painted. Interestingly the painter used paint pads with Blakes which gave a cracking finish although how easy it would be for diy I dont know.
|
|
Well fellas, I can only repeat what I said above, Keep it simple, it's no big deal. I rubbed down the hull with wet or dry, wash thoroughly, paint (brush or roller) with International Toplac, or whatever you choose, rubbing down between coats. That was five years ago and the finish is still good.
|
|
Thanks again. I think I'll clean thourouly, repaint the interior and increase the ventilation to combat the mould (thanks Ben S).
I might try a small area of the hull with some sort of clear coating, if that doesn't fix it I think I'll just sell her as is. I don't know how much difference the colour will make to the sale price of the boat, but I'm guessing it wont be as much as the hassle of painting it.
Cheers
Benjamin.
|
|
for the cost of a few tins of paint and a little time a huge differance on the selling price!!and when you've finnished you'll probly relise how good she is againg and enjoy sailing her next season
|
|
I fully agree Ben, a little bit effort can make a world of difference.
|
|
I've had two blue hull boats with the common problem of faded gel coats. I allways use POLYTROL. It's so easy to apply and lasts one or two seasons. Gives a lovely shine. Also see the article in November Boat Owner "Topside pick me up"
|
| Edited: 31/10/06 11:45 |
Hi, you may have done it by now, but paint really is a last resort - once you do it, you are stuck with it and any ding or scrape will be painfully obvious. In my opinion, it’s much better and also quicker to get the gel coat back into condition, but once you've done that, you also need to protect it or you are quickly back where you started as others have reported in this thread. OK I have an interest to declare, but there’s loads of information on my website www.BoatSheen.com There are three stages Stage 1 – Hose down Hose down the boat to remove all the mud, sand, salt and horrible stuff that will scratch when you do stage 2. Stage 2 – Restore and polish Practically anything called a polish contains some abrasive. What you are doing here is removing the roughness from the surface. Literally removing part of the gel coat. There are loads of different formulations and most will make the surface look better, more shiny and with better colour – at least for a short while. But here are a few pointers: - Cutting compounds and many ‘restorers’ take off far more surface than necessary. Don’t use them for routine polishing or you create a bigger maintenance job in the future.
- You can get combined polish and wax products, but a formulation of this kind is always going to be a compromise between the polishing action and the wax protection. Most of these are originally formulated to give a quick fix on car bodywork and simply aren't up to getting the gunge out of the surface or providing serious wax protection. These combined wax and polish products also tend to give patchy results on deep colours.
- My recommended product Prewax Colour Restorer contains no wax, but it has detergents, lubricants and a mild polishing agent. When you use it, old wax and embedded dirt is lifted away as the surface is polished, leaving the surface clean and bright, ready for waxing or glazing.
Stage 3 – Protect This is important. If you miss this stage out, your work will be wasted. The surface must be protected with a wax or synthetic glaze. Wax or glaze products form a protective layer that fills minor scratches and can be buffed to a brilliant shine. If you are using wax, you need either a high concentration of Carnauba wax or something with PTFE in it. Better still is a synthetic glaze product which bonds more strongly to a properly prepared surface. I know I've gone on a bit here, but this is an area where there's a lot of mis-information around. At least, I hope this gives a bit of insight into why a boat can look perfect when wet or freshly polished, only to return to a dull lifeless appearance a week or two later.
|
| Edited: 10/11/07 12:38 |
 | TMS Poloshirt winner |
10/11/07 19:41
 For mould on plastic head liners or wooden ones for that matter any of the spray on bathroom /shower cleaners-friends who run a BandB always used it on plastic shower curtains and works well on mould!I use it on my veneered plywood headliners. phil
|
|
I will only repeat what I said above -Oct. 2006. I have decided to give my little Mirror Offshore a paint job again. I have given her a rub down, one coat of International Pre-Kote rubbing down between coats, then she will have two coats of International Toplac. As I said before, on this size of boat it's no big deal, she will look very good as before. The colour is Baltic Blue. I agree with you Phil as regards mould inhibitors. Harry
|
|
