Painting Hull with roller?

[Jim Kingrea]

In the April edition of Sail magazine there is an article on painting boat hulls using a foam roller and a dry brush for tipping. They used 3 coats of polyurethane paint. Has anyone painted a hull using this method, if so did it look professional?



jkingrea@flash.net

[Tom]

In the April edition of Sail magazine there is an article on painting boat hulls using a foam roller and a dry brush for tipping. They used 3 coats of polyurethane paint. Has anyone painted a hull using this method, if so did it look professional?

I have not painted a hull this way, but have seen LPU put on a hull with a roller by a professional yard that you can hardly tell from a spray job. I did use LPU on my new hard dodger and put some coats on with a brush and two coats with a roller. It takes a special roller not just the ones you buy at the paint store. Interlux makes them and West Marine stocks them. I used the Interthane that Interlux makes. It contains self levelers and dries pretty smooth even if you just brush it. It is very prone to run and sag on vertical or near vertical surfaces and even though you dont have sag one when you first finish, when you come back the next day it has developed sags overnight. The "gel time" is about 8 hours so unlike varnish or latex paint that skins over quickly and kind of "freezes" the surface, it slowly migrates over the 8 hours if you don't have it on very evenly.

Everything about it is expensive. It requires a special thinner at about $ 20 a pint. And a different degreaser that you wash the surface down with prior to painting at about $ 20 a pint. It's not worth cleaning the rollers because they are a lot cheaper to throw away than to use the thinner to clean them. If you are going to go to all the trouble to prepare the surface -- and it has to be flawless because this super gloss shows everything and is very thin so doesn't cover well -- I wonder why you wouldn't spend the money to have it sprayed? You're going to put a lot of time into getting it ready and a lot of money into materials so the cost of having it sprayed would seem like a small part of your total outlay.

If you're going to do it, I'd suggest you try it on your dinghy or the side of your fiberglass beer cooler first and see how it works. You'll understand better what the problems are and how good your surface will have to be and all that so you'll know if you want to tackle your hull. The catalyzed mix has a pungent chemical smell so that if you get it on your clothes, shoes, etc. your house will smell of it for days. Here's a trick I discovered. If you have unused paint that is already catayzed and you want to save it for a day or two you can cover it and put it in your freezer. It won't freeze but it keeps it from going off and you can let it warm to room temperature and use it a couple of days later if need be. The thing is even when it's covered the smell of it in the freezer makes everything smell and taste like LPU. Even down in the refrigerator the butter and lettuce pick up the taste.

Having said that I am pleased with the way my dodger turned out and you have to get up close to tell that it wasn't sprayed. It cost me about $ 125. in materials to cover my dodger which is about 4 feet by 5 feet with 4 coats. You have to wet sand with 600 grit between each coat. Plenty of work and it's not just a matter of pouring some paint in a roller pan and rolling it on by any means.



TacCambria@thegrid.net

[john churchill]

caution: my understanding is that this stuff is really deadly poison and unlike most warning labels that are generally ignored, this stuff really should be handled with care. risks are greatest when spraying (you can die on your first try) but i would be hesitant to keep it in the freezer. this is however a great tip for other stuff-epoxy and brushes, tubes of 5200, etc. the first mate does squawk a bit though. another similar trick is to pop this stuff in the microwave briefly to speed it up (only 10 seonds for a small cup of epoxy gets it to go tack free in about an hour)

[jim stull]

In the April edition of Sail magazine there is an article on painting boat hulls using a foam roller and a dry brush for tipping. They used 3 coats of polyurethane paint. Has anyone painted a hull using this method, if so did it look professional?]

Hi Jim
Been there, done that and learned a lot. Ultimately, a lot of work but we are very happy with the final results. Send me a note and if you wish I will e-mail a couple of pictures and share some of the things we learned.
Jim



jtstull@icubed.com

[TWMoran]

In the April edition of Sail magazine there is an article on painting boat hulls using a foam roller and a dry brush for tipping. They used 3 coats of polyurethane paint. Has anyone painted a hull using this method, if so did it look professional?

Reply:

I've painted two boats with this method, a Newport 30 and a CD 36. Essentially everything said in the other responses is true, so I won't repeat. I used Interlux 2-part polyurethane for both (also painted decks on both, a MUCH harder, more involved procedure (due to problems / time req'd for prep))

I will, though, add one more caveat: As Interlux's stuff says (it's there, but buried deep) the darker the color, the harder it is to get an excellent finish. The Newport I painted dark blue. It looked sharp, but the final finish has a "matt" appearance to it, no matter how hard I tried. The CD36 I painted w/ Hattaras Off-white, and it was MUCH easier (in a relative sense, of course) to get a great finish. I think it has to do with the amount of stuff (pigment) needed to get the darker colors.

Trying out on a dinghy first is a great idea. For <$75 worth of materials you can get a real good idea whether you'll think it's worth the money you'll save.

Another possible cost savings measure would be to do most of the prep on your own, with critique from the painter, and then let them to the actual painting. Like most other things, it's the labor content that makes up most of the cost. There's a ton of prep involved in getting a great paint job.

TWM



tommor@toad.net

[Mike Everett]

You might also like to check out Don Casey's article on this subject at sailnet.com. He says that using a roller can yield a superior finish.



everett@megalink.net