paint

[bouttime]

just purchased a 22 foot seaswirl hard top and need opinions on whether to apply bottom paint--is it a must --can it wait-- what to use--do it myself or pay. lot of questions i know appreciate any info

[Nailer]

Michael, Welcome aboard. If you plan to slip the boat, than yes it's a good idea to apply bottom paint. If it stays on the trailer, regular boat wax will do. Where do you plan to fish from?

[Paulywood]

It depends, if you plan on slipping it then the bottom should be sealed to prevent water from penetrating the fiberglass. This can cause blisters. If you plan on trailering than I wouldn't worry about it. Interlux is what most people seem to use. It's not cheap. As far as doing it yourself, it depends. A lot of people recommend having it done professionally the first time. After that you can just repaint. But it's best to take the boat off the trailer.

[killerbe20]

when i bought my first boat, i had it in the slip for about 2 weeks prior to barrier coating and painting the bottom. Big mistake. The entire bottom had to be acid washed to remove the staining and crap that built up in just a short amount of time.

as far as doing it your self or not, depends on how comfortable you are with the job. the instructions are pretty easy to follow for the first time. im sure there are plenty of people around that would be more then willing to help or offer guidance as well. basically its just roughing the hull up with an orbital sander, wiping down and then following the instructions for applying your particular barrier coating and/or paint.

[bouttime]

most of my time will be in Au gres--then a week or 2 in ludington-thinking of a barrier coat --no idea on how to prop up boat to do it myself-- its only money-right?

[Priority1]

Welcome aboard Michael. If you need any help just holler. I live between AuGres and Tawas. I fish AuGres a quite a bit. Maybe I'll see you there. Where will you be slipping your boat?

[bouttime]

hopefuuly will be at northpoint in july--i have read a lot of your posts Frank-it has helped --thanx everyone for the feedback

[MY2SONS]

just purchased a 22 foot seaswirl hard top and need opinions on whether to apply bottom paint--is it a must --can it wait-- what to use--do it myself or pay. lot of questions i know appreciate any info

If you plan on slipping the boat, or leaving it at a dock for an extended period of time I'd put at least one coat of epoxy barrier paint, and one coat of a good anti-fouling paint. I put Interlux CRC on the bottom of mine because I leave it in a slip, and I want to make sure it's protected. If you trailer yours it isn't worth it since the slime, and crap won't build up that quickly. As far as doing it yourself I wouldn't suggest it for the first time application. If it's not done properly it will just flake off and that stuff isn't cheap! That and the stuff is highly toxic so kids and pets getting around it when your painting is a concern. You have to rough the bottom of the boat up first, then apply barrier coating, then bottom paint. There's a time frame in which to do the bottom paint after applying the epoxy. If you do it too soon, or wait too long you won't get good adhesion, and will tend to flake off.