Interior paint for grp hull?

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martinteeluck

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'morning all!
We're about to paint the interior of our hull (have cleaned and scrubbed but needs cheering-up) and initially thought we may need a specialist concoction for the task. However I've seen a couple of references to using DIY "household" paint - bathroom specific paint seems to be a good option...
Have any of you had any experience with painting your exposed grp interior and could you share any hints, tips, advice, guidance etc to help a couple of boating newbies?!?
One love all,
Martin
 
If it has never been painted before and is dry and very clean then 2 pack boat paint is your best and longest lasting option as it's pretty much the same as gel coat. If not completely clean this will eventually come off in layers though.
Single pack paint works well but is less durable against things rubbing on it. It can easily be touched up though which is very nice.

Household paints, if you choose well are fine and as far as I can tell the same as single pack paint. I still used boat paint on mine because I didn't see it as that expensive on my little 20 footer but with a larger vessel I'd have thought long and hard!
 
Thanks both for your quick replies...
Lusty - is 2 pack reasonably easy/similar to work with as household paint?
Does it flow slowly (ie will I have to worry about it pooling at low spots) and are standard brushes ok or are rollers better?
Sorry for what may seem like simple queries but I guess the more experience we can pick up from others the more efficient our task can be!
Thanks again,
Martin
 
2 pack is horrid to work with but produces a hard plastic finish rather than a painted one. It can't be put on top of normal paint so if you have a bare GRP hull then this may be the best option - future owners won't thank you for using single pack paint because they then don't have the option of the harder stuff (I had this issue with the outside of my hull).

An alternative for the visible bits is to stick foam and vinyl on which gives a very nice finish with some insulation.

Can you tell us exactly where you're painting and the reason for it? Inside lockers I'd go 2 pack because single will wear quiker. in the cabin I'd go single or vinyl/carpet because this is likely just to brighten and won't wear a lot.
Cheers
Dave
 
lustyd said:
Can you tell us exactly where you're painting and the reason for it? Inside lockers I'd go 2 pack because single will wear quiker. in the cabin I'd go single or vinyl/carpet because this is likely just to brighten and won't wear a lot.
Cheers
Dave
Click to expand...

Thanks Dave - unfortunately my OCD has gripped me and to answer your question...everything that's exposed!
Specifically, behind saloon locker doors, underneath quarter berth and saloon seats, forepeak and hanging wet locker.
We've yet to clean out (due to awkward access) the engine compartment but would like to freshen this up as we go :)
 
bathroom paint

bathroom paint
or white garage floor paint

they go on easy

don't care about the temperature

not fussy about how clean the surface is

and are very easy to re-coat when it gets grubby

stuff the two pot

Dylan
 
I'm 2/3 of the way through doing all the exposed internal GRP and all my lockers etc out with white Danboline. It goes on well, good coverage, looking good so far :)

It isn't cheap but it seems to go a long way.
 
dylanwinter said:
bathroom paint
or white garage floor paint

they go on easy

don't care about the temperature

not fussy about how clean the surface is

and are very easy to re-coat when it gets grubby

stuff the two pot

Dylan
Click to expand...

Thanks D, I should add that this is more cosmetic than anything else. As we're in a process of refitting and upgrading (on a limited budget) it made sense to "clean up" whilst le bateau is relatively empty...
Martin
 
KevO said:
I'm 2/3 of the way through doing all the exposed internal GRP and all my lockers etc out with white Danboline. It goes on well, good coverage, looking good so far :)

It isn't cheap but it seems to go a long way.
Click to expand...

Hi KevO

How much would you suggest we need to do the job? We have a Contessa 32 which certainly has less exposed interior hull than modern yachts of similar size.

Many thanks,
Martin
 
I bought 2 x 750ml tins.

I have a Hustler 30 (offshore layout) and so far I have painted out all the lockers in the main saloon including under the 2 berths and under the floorboards in the galley and chart table area, in fact all of the exposed GRP in the main saloon except for the bilge itself which I will get to shortly. I have also painted out the whole of the forepeak except the chain locker so far. There is still about half an inch left in the first tin.

I expect the second tin will prob be enough to do out all 5 cockpit lockers (which are cavernous cos the Hustler has a pretty big cockpit IMHO) but it will be a close run thing to get it to stretch to the anchor locker and the bilge. I expect I shall have to buy another tin.

I think the spec sheet says that 1L should cover 11 sq m if applied with a brush or roller.
 
I paint the depths of lockers with Leyland primer and white gloss, because it is cheap and easy to come by (stocked by Screwfix)

I like Lechler coatings in single pack, synto primer and syntolac rapid. The Synto primer is very good on GRP
 
Certainly in the bilges and lockers I have used Danboline. It flows well and produces a good hard wearing finish. The other really long-term option is to flow coat the bilges which is effectively a new gel coat so should do a couple of decades!

There was an article in PBO a while back by Richard Hare about painting just about any substrate internally with acrylic paints like Sadolin Superdec. He was getting good results and said it wears away rather than flaking so could simply be given a refresher coat every few years to spruce it up, particularly where his shower slowly washed it away.

We used to use International Ranch Paint as a breathable finish under a wooden deckhead, but I think it has gone downhill since it was sold off.

Rob.
 
KevO said:
I'm 2/3 of the way through doing all the exposed internal GRP and all my lockers etc out with white Danboline. It goes on well, good coverage, looking good so far :)

It isn't cheap but it seems to go a long way.
Click to expand...
Danboline seems to 'stick' better to old GRP than ordinary household paints, which often start to flake after a year or two especially if the surface is not ultra-clean.
 
I was going to try white Hammerite on the inside of my lockers - thought it might resist knocks from hard stuff better then other paints?

Anyone else tried this?
 
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