bottom paint

[saltyrogue]

At some point in my boat's history, some kind of coating was applied to the bottom. It looks like it was applied with a brush because it is thick and rough. In some places on the bow large patches have flaked off, but it is stuck fast to the rest of the hull and I cannot scrape it off. I assume that this was some type of coating to protect the gelcoat from saltwater. Has anyone had any experience removing such coatings? I am afraid to use a sander because it will gouge up the gel coating. Also I would thing that such a rough surface is robbing me of performance.

Thanks for your help.

Dave

[grady]

At this point your only option is to sand it off and yes you will scratch the gelcoat.

Your options after that is to re-apply the gelcoat or you can repaint. there are a lot of options out there for bottom paint to match your needs. From staying in the water all the time to only going in the water for day sailing.

[mikelinmon]

I'd hire that done. Bottom paint is toxic. You might get sick, same day, might suffer long term. Let the pros do it for you. Save the $$ and do your own haircuts or dental work.
Mike

[Boblee]

Aside from removing the existing bottom paint which I have no experience with except for two weeks of removing the animals when I didn't use any protection, this year we again used lanolin grease for our trip North into tropical waters and if anything it worked better than last year.
The only draw back was some residue on the anchor ropes where they rubbed against it while swinging.
It worked so good that I was lulled into thinking that I didn't need to lift the motor at night and those animals ARE going to take some getting off without repainting the leg, even the ladder left down a couple of times collected plenty and the tranducer is completely covered except for the small area at the bottom which I presume is due to the pulse when working.
If I wish to remove the lanolin it is a simple matter of hitting it with a hot (or cold) pressure washer, too easy.

[ChockFullOnuts22]

I used a basic copper type bottom paint from West Marine on my boat. If you do decide to paint it yourself, wear old clothes that you don't care about ruining, and wear some decent latex or nitrile gloves to protect your hands. If that paint gets on your skin, it will not be easy to get off. I resorted to scrubbing vigorously with gasoline to clean my hands after bottom painting my boat. That stuff won't come off with soap or Gojo.

Is it effective? I'd say so. Up until this year, I never bottom painted the boat. Oneida Lake is heavily plagued with zebra mussels, and over the last few years, I have always had large clusters of them stuck to my hull when I hauled the boat out at the end of the season. This year, I put a single coat of bottom paint on the hull, and I did not see a single zebra mussel on the hull when I hauled her out last weekend.

[dca81]

Dave,
Sorry but I do not have have any suggestions on techniques for removing the bottom coat on your boat...and...
I'm new at this and certainly not an expert but...Macgregors blister their gelcoat if left unprotected in the water for an extended period. To protect from this blistering you need to apply a bottom coat to the bottom of the hull. The bottom coat will leave a rough surface. The bottom coat can then be covered with a bottom paint to protect against algae and other aquatic life. My guess is that the PO had a bottom coat applied to protect the hull from blistering, if you plan to keep the boat in the water for an extended period you may want to reconsider removing the bottom coat and just repair (recoat) the areas were coverage has worn away. If you are concerned about marine growth you need to apply a bottom paint such as VC 17.
I purchased an 04 last summer. This boat had set in the water for an extended (unknown) period and had a severe algae growth. After numerous efforts to remove the algae with my hot water pressure washer, scrub brushes, numerous, cleaning agents (including bleach), etc, I still had a brown stain covering the bottom of my hull. Finally someone suggested muriatic acid. Really nasty stuff... but worked like a charm. Once algae was removed I noted the bottom was covered with small blisters in several areas, apparently a common Macgregor characteristic. I spent about $1700 getting the blisters repaired. Quotes to apply bottom coat and paint were $2500 more. I decided to do it myself (about $500), but another nasty job. Point of this more than I ever needed to know description...I would be hesitant to ever recommend removing the bottom coat on a Macgegror because the fixes of not having it are very expensive. Impact on performance??? I am a beginner and my goal was to keep the mast vertical...but I did note that the bottom paint I used (VC 17) provided a much slicker surface than the rough bottom coat.
BTW...last weekend pulled my boat out from its slip were it had set all summer. No marine growth and no blisters. Boat was an easy clean, just had a slight brown stain above the bottom black stripe that required a little scrubbing. Heck, even the the cheap automotive wax I applied (several coats) to the hull sides and black stripes held up well. I love it when a plan comes together
Good luck
Bob

[bscott]

I bought a used from a dealer that had bottom painted areas of the boat with a brush which left a rough surface. I used my orbital sander and took off the rough spots, then repainted with a small fine paint roller for a smooth finish. I only have to touch up minor spots each spring. Absolutely no hair on my bottom

I wish I had VC-17 as it is faster than the unpainted glass bottom and is real easy to repair.

Bob

[saltyrogue]

It sounds like taking the coating off completely will be a major pain, and leaving it on has its benefits. Has anyone ever tried sanding the bottom coating smooth and then applying a slick paint over that? Or perhaps rolling on a layer of epoxy to fill in the low points, sanding that smooth, and then painting. This is what I do when building wooden kayaks. I fill the weave of the fiberglass cloth with the epoxy, then sand it down smooth without cutting into the glass. Then I use a fine foam roller to apply either paint or varnish and tip it out with a foam brush to remove any air bubbles. The result is a super smooth, glossy finish. If this finish makes for a fast kayak under human power, I would think that it would work for a sailboat? I sure would hate to paddle all day in a kayak with a bottom finish like the sailboat has though.