Coppercoat

pappaecho said:
In a telephone conversation I was specifically told to use the regime which was applied. We applied 4 coats in September 2010, and the final coat in March 2011 as instructed.
I was specifically told that the final epoxy coat had to be fresh.
Click to expand...

this is true with ME100, hycote and gelshield plus. It is most definitely wrong with gelshield 200.
 
pappaecho said:
Just realised that we did not treat the thruster tunnel with gelshield 200. We also forgot to apply the final coat of Gelshield on the stern section,which means the epoxy was 6 months old!
Both were treated with Coppercoat but were very badly fouled, which probably eliminates any solvent effects
Click to expand...

this is encouraging.

what can happen when launching in june is that slime grows before the copper corrodes. CopperCoat takes up to 3 months to get to full strength.

the jetwashing will tell all, is the weed stuck to the slime (comes off easily) or stuck to the boat (more of a worry)
 
Coppercoat application

There appears to be some confusion in this thread, so as the manufacturer of Coppercoat please, allow me to clarify.

When applying Coppercoat over a solvent-free epoxy primer, it can be applied the following day (while the epoxy primer is still sligthly tacky and not fully cured). This allows a chemcial bond to form between the two epoxy systems.

But when Coppercoat is to be applied over a solvent-based epoxy primer (such as Gelshield 200), the epoxy primer must be allowed to cure for several days so that the solvents can evaporate off. If a suitable time gap is not left, the application of Coppercoat may trap the solvents, and this can cause the epoxy primer to cure incorrectly and may cause micro-blisters to form. To be safe, we recommend that a solvent-based system such as Gelshield 200 be allowed to cure for a week, prior to an application of Coppercoat.

Therefore when applying Coppercoat over a freshly applied treatment of anti-osmosis epoxy or epoxy primer, it is important to know whether the epoxy is a solvent-free or solvent-based system. If you are in any doubt, please ask us.

With regards to the fouling on this particular boat I should perhaps point out that, as many Coppercoat users on here will know, this product gets stronger over time (not weaker, like conventional anti-fouls). It is usual for a treatment of Coppercoat to perform better in years 2 and 3 for example, than year 1. Consequently I would be confident that if now given the recommended annual pressure-wash, this treatment of Coppercoat will perform better this year.

If anybody needs more detailed information regarding the use of Coppercoat, please feel free to contact me directly.
 
I also applied CC, back in April 2011. I did it in a shed and used tube heaters under the boat to try and keep the temp above 8C... it gets a bit chilly up here. I guess the ambient temp duing the process was between 9 - 12c - not that warm.

All my helpers had dropped out so it was just SWMBO and myself who applied the 7 coats. These went on top of 3 coats of epoxy (can't remember type).

Boat lifted out this morning... the hull was clean as a whistle.... after pressure washing I have a few small patches to repair - cannot say if this is due to problems with the application or the pressure washer operator getting too carried away!

I would certainly vote for Copper coat
Rob
 
I was told to apply the last coat of gelshield the day before Coppercoat was applied. At No time was I told that it was a solvent based system and must be fully cured. The reverse is true.

At Hardway Sailing club we have some members reporting good results ( which i why I invested in it) and others who have not.

It is not telpful to be told to do an action and told the reverse when the product does not work!
 
I've been very happy with Coppercoat, even when sailing through the tropics where growth is fierce and rapid.

It was professionally applied. I think this is the secret.

With all due respect to those who do it themselves, I think experience of the application process plays a part in how well this stuff eventually works.
 
Here is ours after lift out Nov. 2011, and No pressure wash. Mostly in a marina where growth is fairly rapid. The Coppercoat was applied in May 2011 over 4 coats of AMC supplied epoxy barrier coat.
Second pic. shows the prop. after lift out, which shows the type of growth we experience here. Third pic. - coppercoat soon after application had been completed.

Draw your own conclusions,

Michael.
 
Last edited:
oldvarnish said:
I've been very happy with Coppercoat, even when sailing through the tropics where growth is fierce and rapid.

It was professionally applied. I think this is the secret.

With all due respect to those who do it themselves, I think experience of the application process plays a part in how well this stuff eventually works.
Click to expand...

I applied my own 7 years ago and it works fine. Its just a case of following the application instructions to the letter and not taking any short cuts. Some people cannot paint a wall though, they should not even start!

None of that above statement has any reference implied or otherwise to the OP.
 
You said it was on a swinging mooring. Was it on a drying swinging mooring over mud? If the boat sits on mud for a few hours a day then it coats/reacts with the antifoul surface and masks it from working and everything then attaches and grows like mad. I guess it would do the same for anything including coppercoat. I went from a swinging drying mooring on mud where every year after 6 months the bottom had everything growing on it like you have, to a marina 200 yards away where a light pressure wash gets rid of the small amount of slime that now appears after the same 6 months. In both scenarios it was Tiger Extra. It was obvious it was the mud causing it as above the line where the mud came to the hull was pretty clear, as in the marina.

If it wasn't a drying mooring then I take it all back and it was something else.
 
As I sais earlier some members of the club speak highly of coppercoat, others find that it does not work. If we could identify why it works or does not work it would make everyones life a lot easier. I would love o be able to leave the boat and not worry about the fouling, but as the photos show, it did not work on the majority of the hull, but in the minority slime areas it was fine.
 
pappaecho said:
As I sais earlier some members of the club speak highly of coppercoat, others find that it does not work. If we could identify why it works or does not work it would make everyones life a lot easier. I would love o be able to leave the boat and not worry about the fouling, but as the photos show, it did not work on the majority of the hull, but in the minority slime areas it was fine.
Click to expand...

We can talk a lot but can't draw any more sensible conclusions until she's out of the water. Let's repost then.......
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top