GRP Painting question

[ryansdesk]

Bit confused as to the coating i should be applying below my finish toplac paintwork. The hull im painting is GRP and is currently in the process of being sanded, however not all the old paint will be removed completely, so should i be using a internationals primer followed by pre-kote or one and not the other? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[fluffc]

Follow the instructions on the tin...

Toplac (aka Brightside), can be applied directly to sanded grp, but painted areas should be primed (with pre-kote). In practice it is easiest to coat the entire surface with pre-kote as a primer before applying the toplac.

 

[alienzdive]

although a lttle pedantic, I prefer to use the same manufacturer for both coats as well as follow recomendations on the tin/data sheets.

 

[Bejasus]

think you will find that Toplac and Brightside are not quite the same thing, however I would definitely use PreKote to prime before applying any topcoat as it will help show up and areas that ned more rubbing down and will give a good key far topcoat adhesion. We used 3 coats Prekote, with plenty of rubbing down in between, and 3 coats of Toplac ,rubbing down between each on the topsides, and Brightside on the coachroof.
We went from this....

to this...

 

[ryansdesk]

Brightside is cheaper than toplac, so not same thing

reading the instructions on the tin is a great idea if all the toplac tins said the same thing!

anyway think im gonna go with the prekote onto my sanded grp surfaces and then toplac finish and leave out the primer or to put it another way the pre-kote will be my primer.

bejasus how does that toplac paint work with your boat, looks a large boat surely you must keep that in the water for long periods of time, thought toplac paint is supposed to blister if left underwater for long periods of time.

 

[Bejasus]

didn't use Toplac under the water only on the topsides above the antifoul, plus we were on the Broads then, so only 6mph max. All coats were applied using sponge rollers and for the final coat, swmbo follow me using a fine mohair paint pad from top to bottom to remove any roller marks. Several weeks later when the paint had hardened, we washed the boat and gave it a light rub with Farclas and then polished with Intertational Polish with teflon, and finally sealed that with International Sealer with teflon. When boat gets dirty, just wash and all the dirt just rinses away. After 3-4 years it still looked good.