Gelcoat Revival

[Cary Diehl]

I asked our local painter supply store about Nason, he said "I wouldn't put it on anything I plan on owning for a long time..." He recomended that a 2 part paint would be a better paint, such as Imron or Awlgrip. He also recomended that I contact the rep for US Paints (Interlux) and find out more about their 2 part paint which might not be deadly like the Awlgrip or Imron.

 

[sastephens]

Revival decision!

After sampling many of the suggested methods to revive my gelcoat - all without meaningful results, I decided to paint my hull with Awlgrip. The decision was based in large part to the labor involved. Wetsanding was the only thing that even brought part of the old gelcoat back. In addition to the time and effort to wetsand, I still had to content with 30 years of dings and scrapes. So now that I am painting with Awlgrip - What is the best way to care for the painted hull? I have been told that traditional wax is not a good idea on Awlgrip because of yellowing.

Thanks for all of your advice.

 

[Cary Diehl]

Here is what I have seen and why-

Awlgrip bubbles-

Awlgrip below the waterline, or a winter cover shrink wrapped was left on the boat all summer long without vents.

Awlgrip becomes dull after time-

Owner used blue tarp to cover his boat during the winter all the way down to the waterline... then when the shine was lost decided wax and rubbing compound would bring it back... when that didn't work, tried poli-glow... (This occasion happens to be our Ericson 32, at least I can't be blammed for this though )

Awlgrip became chalky-

Owner decided 2 coats of heavy duty 3M wax was appropriate to apply ever year. (Don't use wax on awlgrip.... it isn't needed.)


Other things to watch out for... don't paint the name of the boat on with awlgrip. The PO on my J.24 did this and the only way to remove the name then was to sand it off with wet/dry paper. I was able to buff it back out, but not to a shine that matches the rest of the dark blue hull. On the positive side though, the finish on this boat is probably over 10 years now and it looks great and shines like a new boat.

From time to time on recomendation of other J owners, I did use teflon polish by starbrite on the hull... they say it won't hurt the hull like everything else will and actually helps protect it. Well awlgrip's website says teflon acrylic polish will void the warranty... so that can't be good either. They do sell something called AWLCARE if you want to do anything to your boat. I've seen people though who haven't touched their hull since new and it still looks VERY good 5 years later. If the 32 ever gets painted again, and from now on with the J, I am just using soap and water and making sure to rinse it with lots of water.

Hope this helps...

 

[Martin King]

One of the nicest things you can do for a new paint job is
to make custom terrycloth fender covers. Forget the over the
counter junk, and go get some large bath towels (color coordinated of course!) with the deepest, plushest pile you
can find. Have your canvas maker make these up before
the boat is launched.

About waxing the hull, a good friend who is an expert in
this area says it isn't necessary but you can use 3m Finesse
It 2 with a lambswool pad to remove any light surface
scratches.

If you live in an area like Southern Cal that has hard water,
waterspots after a rinse down are a problem. A friend of
mine who has a dark painted hull actually installed a
water softener system at his slip and 3 other nearby boat
owners split the maintenance costs with him. It makes
a noticeable difference.

Martin

 

[raleighm]

Easy No-Buff, No-Paint Gelcoat Revival

If you aren't concerned about creating a stunningly glossy finish but want to restore color, minimize chalking, and stop the blotching that occurs when wave action or deck runoff temporarily darken the oxidized gelcoat - and most importantly - if you want to avoid painting, buffing or use of harsh abrasives, check out an inexpensive product called "Marine Penetrol". The label states that it is formulated to restore oxidized gelcoat without buffing and it really works!

Give the gelcoat a good washing to remove dirt followed by a rub-down with a solvent wash (hardware store brush cleaners containing tuolene work well and are much less expensive than marine solvent washes) to remove years of wax build-up (it's there, even if you can't see it!). Apply Marine Penetrol following the instructions on the can - you just wipe it on with a clean cloth, then wipe off any excess before it dries - no rubbing! I applied two coats followed by marine wax with Teflon. The gelcoat looks way better - not "like new" but very nice.

Penetrol is not a wax but a penetrating agent, so it shouldn't require re-doing as long as you apply wax periodically. It also produced an excellent result at minimal expense and without sanding, buffing priming, painting, etc. If you're still not satisfied you can always paint later!

 

[Sean Engle]

I prefered to change the color with every painting - that way I could tell where I was at (with respect to wear or bumps from deadheads) by what color was showing through.

//sse

 

[Brisdon]

I read your discription of how you tried to renew your finish, and apparently among other things, you wiped the boat down with acitone. Ouch. The acitone will distroy more of the gell coat than a good wet sanding. Acitone is perfect for removing the damaged gellcoat and softening the good gel coat beneath it before you apply a new gel coat to the boat. It's also good before applying a two part urethane, but for cleaning a gel coat that you plan to keep, it's waaay tooo haaarsh. A wet sanding will remove the loose pigment without chemically changing the resin beneath it. The acitone will tend to degrade the underlying resin so that it becomes chocky again sooner. My gel coat is from 1977. It was hideously chalky when I bought the boat five years ago. I wet sanded and compounded it a couple of years ago and it will now keep a nice shine for about three months.

 

[chaco]

Buff It Out Baby........

The trick for light chaulking is 3M Cleaner / Polish (light compound) with random orbit polisher and finish with RV Fiberglass Cleaner / Polish by the gallon (same thing as West Marine-1/2 the price).

For HEAVY chaulking use the Meguire (3) Step System. Heavy Compound /
Polish / Wax. Then you can use (1) step Cleaner / Polish every (2) years or so
depending on UV level. Finish buff by hand (yes....by hand !)

Polishmaster makes a great COMMERCIAL polisher. DO NOT get the CHEAPO
poliishers at WalMart. Body shop suppliers sell the REAL polishers on line at 1/2 the street price.

Get medical insurance before you start. You will need WIPLASH deep tissue treatment when your project looks like a Million Bucks !

Good Luck

Dan
S/V Merlin
35II
Oceanside, CA