Is Dulux going to be my option? and has anyone actually done it that can help? (Rather than I knew a guy!)

[Chiara’s slave]

In that case, if he's desperate, I've got some paint in a fetching shade of brown...

I will talk to the owner tomorrow, he may be delighted with an offer like that The boat was bought for next to nowt, and bearing in mind his other boat is called ‘Gleam’ and comfortably lives up to it, the bet was a joke, but is still running. 66 is a really good boat in fact, built in 1936 by the original designer/builders yard.

 

[Jim@sea]

Forty years ago I had a paint body shop and needed to repair some Osmosis damage on a 9 year old 33ft Nauticat. In those days International Paint had not started selling Two Pack Paint (International 308 ?)and just sold Single Pack Paint which was not very good as this particular boats hull had been repaired and painted 3 years before, (when it was only 6 years old) and not only had the paint faded, the Osmosis was coming back through.

But at my bodyshop we had been using Two Pack Paint for 3 years. I showed the International Paint colour chips to my ICI paint supplier who said that many of the Marine Colours were just basically British Standard Colours, (BSC) I.E The BSC white of most boat hulls is the same as Ford Diamond White, The Perkins Engine Colour and the Nauticat Bilge Colour is BSC Grey. A BSC Red, is Post Office Red. Perhaps JCB Yellow is a BSC Colour. I did a Colvic Watson hull with a matching British Racing Green

Anyway 5 years ago I painted with a roller the deck of my boat with 2 Pack Ford Diamond White which is available at any Car Paint Suppliers.
I have even painted a bilge with Two Pack Perkins Grey but because of fumes I stuck a vacuum cleaner in the cockpit with the hose in the bilges sucking the fumes out.

I would only use a Two Pack paint on a boat.

 

[jwilson]

I have used Dulux oil-based gloss on a wooden boat and it lasted well, and gave a good result, but that was 50+ years ago, and I am not convinced current eco-tweaked Dulux is nearly as good as it was then. The best amateur painted boat I have seen recently was done with Tekaloid "coach paint", made for painting coaches (ie cars and buses as well as horse-drawn carriages).

I have also twice hand painted GRP with two-pack: the first attempt with International was disastrous - didn't cure properly. Took months before it hardened enough to sand down and recoat with Awlgrip which worked well. Much later had the hull professionally sprayed with Awlgrip and it looked fantastic and better than the original GRP.

 

[oldharry]

Done this many times with old boats to tidy them up. Always always go for Trade paint whatever make you go for. Weathershield as sold in the local DIY store is nothing like as good as the Trade version. I have had Trade Weathershield that has lasted every bit as long as the International Equivalent. I have also had cheap DIY store pain that has been a total disaster and needed repainting within a couple of seasons.

Dont whatever you do try to put a two part paint over an existing one part paint coat. It will come straight off again and you will end up with a worse mess than you started with. Been there an' dun it! It just isnt worth the suffering for the sake of a few quid.

As with any paint job, preparation is all. If the substrate is lifting and unstable it MUST come off. Even if its only in a few places. Otherwise you are throwing good after bad.

Non slip deck paint can be substituted with rough finish masonry acrylic paint. It dries in half an hour, and works every bit as well as the 'marine grade' stuff. In fact I would say it works better, is much easier to apply and much easier on bare skin when you decorate your boat with bikini clad beauties. Its finer grain sand than in deck paint, so much easier on the anatomy on the few days a year you can strip off at sea! One word of warning, learned the hard way: dont paint if there is any risk of rain before it has dried out properly. Its water soluble (easy brush cleaning too) but rain will wash it all over the place and its impossible to remove from where its not wanted!

 

[DreadShips]

X66 isn’t going to win prizes for her looks, but the 9 year old paint is still on there. She came with about a litre left in the tin, for touch ups. That is nearly used up, what to do after that?

Apply whatever paint comes free in bold stripes to cover the worst of it, creating your own unique dazzle camouflage.

As a bonus your competitors no longer know your speed or direction, and you're also immune to submarines. Not sure how handy that second bit is in racing, if I'm honest, but it probably can't hurt.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

The Dulux Dog going in for a swim.

 

[steve yates]

I use paint4trade boat and barge range, they have a vast range of colours. Pretty sure you will find one there you like. I used weathershield with play sand scattered over the deck for nonslip on my bradwell 18. It looks dirty quickly and its not lasting well, though thats prob myprep work as I am a crap decorator!
I am just going to stick ebay eva foam pretend teak over it instead.

 

[Refueler]

Decks - I paint with Masonry paint ... it lasts a season well - but a light sanding and another coat does the next ... I then let it wear out into the 4th year and redo ... The can of paint being the same ! 20ltrs for price of less than a ltr of Marine goop !

As to topsides / hull ... my C38 is up for a repaint (International Rochelle Red). She was painted with Perfection 2 pack and has faded on port side .. stbd side has worn out patches where fenders rubbed. Because of EU rules - Perfection 2 pack is not supposed to be available to us non yard guys ... so the alternative is Toplac 1 part.
The yard who have the job later once they have clear space after season launch ... have finally found a supplier of Perfection. TBH - I was ready for them to use their own recc'd paint .... "Double Coat" from De Ijssel (NL). 2-comp.PU paint.

The motor boat is also tired looking and the cream tinted white is worn through in patches (deck / superstructure .... the blue is faded and red lower also faded ... she will get the 'Dulux' treatment .... (local Enamel based paint).

 

[oldharry]

I use paint4trade boat and barge range, they have a vast range of colours. Pretty sure you will find one there you like. I used weathershield with play sand scattered over the deck for nonslip on my bradwell 18. It looks dirty quickly and its not lasting well, though thats prob myprep work as I am a crap decorator!
I am just going to stick ebay eva foam pretend teak over it instead.

Pretend teak will look great for about 5 minutes.. also highly questionable whether it will give adequate grip when its wet. Acrylic masonry paints are far and away the best bet IMHO for deck paint. They can be applied direct over ordinary paint as long as its sound

 

[Refueler]

Pretend teak will look great for about 5 minutes.. also highly questionable whether it will give adequate grip when its wet. Acrylic masonry paints are far and away the best bet IMHO for deck paint. They can be applied direct over ordinary paint as long as its sound

Masonry paint is also huge saving in cost vs marine !

I still have paint left after doing 3 boats decks 2x ..... at a cost about 60% of a single use marine pot !!

 

[jackleggett]

Thanks all, Ordered from SML in the end. Worth noting though, I sent them an email last week which never got picked up but super helpful on the phone this morning. I'll let you know how it goes!

 

[Keith 66]

Did you know its unlucky to paint a boat green?

I have used SML paints often, great company to deal with & their own brand paint just seems to be Jotun in a different can, I cant tell the difference.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

Did you know its unlucky to paint a boat green?

I have used SML paints often, great company to deal with & their own brand paint just seems to be Jotun in a different can, I cant tell the difference.

Is it unlucky to acquire one for very little that is already green? And sail her and win, for 9 years paying only for antifouling?

 

[Boathook]

Did you know its unlucky to paint a boat green?

I don't feel any colour is unlucky.

Some look good on a boat and some don't.

What is more important the love and care you give a boat and hopefully it will be repaid with good and safe boating.

 

[Rappey]

Ive painted a fair few boats over the years including a lightship. My view is marine two pack polyurethene is the most durable for a long length of time.
Houshold paints certainly work on boats but they dont seem to stay as shiny and last as long as a marine paint .
Overall you get what you pay for.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

I once sent an enquiry to Akzo-Nobel, the makers of Dulux, asking about the suitability of their paints in a marine environment. The unequivocal answer was that they did not make any paint suitable for marine use.

 

[The Q]

I once sent an enquiry to Akzo-Nobel, the makers of Dulux, asking about the suitability of their paints in a marine environment. The unequivocal answer was that they did not make any paint suitable for marine use.

They would say that In Respect of Dulux because they are makers of international paints for boat use..
They could come off the same production line but wouldn't tell us.

 

[Airscrew]

Topsides, or deck? We have a Westerly. Very very few have painted topsides

 

[Keith 66]

Two pack polyurethane paints mentioned, I have done more than a few boats with 2 pack & it can give fabulous results, but its expensive & got to be done right.
Nowadays i just us a good monourethane on GRP, Epifanes or Toplac are good, Jotun also.
Good thing about single pack is its easier to apply & you dont cry so much when you scratch it as you inevitably will!
Lastly the health risks of two pack are severe & to be honest It shouldnt be used if you dont have an air fed respirator.
It really is nasty stuff.

 

[Rappey]

They could come off the same production line but wouldn't tell us.

Maybe but something to take note of is different gloss paints have different hardnesses depending on what is intended use is. Grp paint would be a harder finish whereas paint for wood would be softer.
Marine paint works on the water line. Domestic paints fail.