Non-skid color selection

[Sea Hunt Video]

In January the deck of S/V Bali Ha'i will be painted with Awlgrip. Last year the topsides were painted with Awlgrip (Oyster White color; #H8139). I will use the same Oyster White color for the deck.

I am trying to decide on a contrasting color for the non-skid surfaces. I will be using Awlgrip's Griptex coarse for the non-skid areas.

From the limited research I have been able to do and after gathering anecdotal information it seems like a significant consideration for South Florida is a color that does not absorb the sun's heat.

A friend at the sailing club used Awlgrip Pearl Gray (#G1008) for his non-skid. It looks like a soft color and I think would contrast well with the deck's Oyster White .

Does anyone have any experience with Awlgrip Pearl Gray as a non-skid color

Any other color recommendations

Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo

[moctrams]

Desert tan.

[Jim Walsh]

I still have all the original gel coat, but having looked at Awlgrip's color chart my choice would be "cream, H8002". I like the original color scheme and would just go somewhat lighter in deference to the Florida sun.

Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo

[Neil Gordon]

I did the decks with Interlux Interdeck, in beige (over the former blue). Only the decks... cabin top retains its original white. Not suggesting you use or not use Interdeck, just commenting on the color... for which I'm receiving compliments (not to be confused with comments about my not quite perfect masking/painting)

http://images.jamestowndistributors.com ... ge/67s.jpg

[Ben Thomas]

I used the Awlgrip Moon Dust with non-skid#G6004/F6102

[Jim Walsh]

Those are two outstanding CD30's in the previous posts. Just beautiful.

[grluecke]

Stern1.jpg

These **ARE** some pretty boats.

As our Ocean's Poem is getting to a point where we need to do the decks, I'm assuming you guys are hiring professionals, I did my stern with AwlGrip, and learned a lot about what not to do! A little running, some ripples, etc, etc., etc,... that top-deck stuff looks more complex, in that there are curves and radii to worry about..

A look at my stern:

Stern1.jpg

[Sea Hunt Video]

Thanks for all the comments, suggestions and great photos

Because the top sides are (and the deck will be) Oyster White I was trying to find a light color that would contrast with the Oyster White. In holding an Awlgrip color chart up to the topsides, most of the tans (from very light to moderately dark) did not seem to contrast well with the Oyster White. They were either too close in color or, while different in color contrast, some were dark and presumably heat absorbent. Of course, I know very little about color coordination.

I started looking at the grays and they seemed to contrast better with Oyster White. Of course, like I said, I know very little about this. Also, in my mind, the Pearl Gay seemed to look nice near the Cetol Marine Natural Teak.

My primary concern is heat absorption. My friend at the sailing club who has it on his sailboat says he does not think it does. My secondary consideration is esthetics and having the non-skid areas (which are surprisingly substantial ) contrast appropriately with the base deck color (Oyster White), the teak (Cetol Marine Natural Teak), the halyard lines (red, green, blue), the Genoa sheets (red and green) and the mainsheet (white).

The project starts early January (hopefully) so I have 2 weeks to work this out.

Thanks again to all for your suggestions, comments and photos.

Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo

[tjr818]

Have you thought of touring the harbor barefoot and testing a few of the different colors?
For me it has always been a compromise, trying to keep the color dark enough to cut down on the glare and light enough to minimize the heat gain.

[Sea Hunt Video]

Tim:

I had not thought of the glare issue. Thanks for the heads up

Something else to factor in to the non-skid color.

Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo

[Steve Laume]

Raven has her original non skid. The decks and the cockpit seats are beige and the cabin top is all white. I doubt that glare is much of a consideration because of the texture of non skid.

At some point I would like to repaint the non skid areas, Steve.

[Ron M.]

I like the beige or tan for non skid, but each to their own.
non gloss is a consideration.
Awlgrip is not what I call user-friendly for the doit yourselfer, it takes some experience to get good results-in my case anyway.
Usually fairly pricey to have a pro apply it.
Two part acrylic polyurethanes are much easier to work with and produce comparable results. I used such 8 yrs. ago and it still looks fresh.
I did use Alwgrip texture additive and found the coarse too aggressive. I toned it down by mixing 1/3 coarse to 2/3 medium which gave good footing without being uncomfortable to kneel on

[Paul D.]

FWIW I am under the impression that beige and light blue are the easiest colors to see at sea hence CD's use of them. I never preferred the light blue and when I re did the decks of our Typhoon I went with a color I would equate with pearl grey but it was Brightside polyurethane with non skid. I was very happy with the results both in how it looked and how it held up. Sorry any pictures I have of it are pre digital, but I know the decks still look good 16 years on as a friend now owns her.

If you like the pearl gray with your deck color and your teak I would go for it. It seems light enough for me regarding the heat sink. But I ain't in no Florida sun!

[Skylark]

I used Home Depot to get a color match. Seriously it has worked pretty well. Exterior latex with non skid grit mixed in.

[Wingaersheek II]

This thread is very timely for me. I’m having the deck painted and need to finalize the color selection by Monday (i.e. in a day and a half).

From the Awlgrip color chart, I've narrowed the white to Clipper White, Off White or Vanilla White. Off White is the safe choice since it’s between the other two and I think closest to the original color. Clipper White is a shade lighter and Vanilla White is a shade darker. I kind of like the Vanilla White, but am hesitant since it’s definitely a little creamy in color and darker than what you see on most boats. It's so hard to choose from a one square inch sample. I wish I could see it on a boat

For the non-skid, I've narrowed the colors to Cream, Moon Dust and Grand Banks Beige. Cream is the lightest and would only work with Clipper White or Off White. I don’t think there would be enough contrast between Vanilla White and Cream. They just finished up another boat with Cream non-skid (I'm not sure what they used for the white) and it does look very nice. Grand Banks Beige is closest to the original non-skid gel coat color. Moon Dust is kind of between the two. I leaning towards the Moon Dust. The original non-skid on the cabin top is white, but I’m having it painted this same color as the rest of the non-skid. Since there will be more of it, I think the lighter color will help to balance it out.

Ben and Moctrams, thanks for posting your photos. Do you remember what color you used for white?

Thanks to anyone who weighs in,
Jim Lemley