Bottom Paint Cross Reference Guide

Posted on February 22, 2012 by BottomPaintStore
Sea Hawk Paints can be applied over competitive brands Interlux and Pettit by simply sanding the existing bottom paint with 80 grit sandpaper and then applying the Sea Hawk bottom paint of choice. In addition, Sea Hawk gives a full one year warranty against hard growth when applied by a certified applicator.

BOTTOM PAINT Cross Reference
Guide
INTERLUX SEAHAWK Style Seahawk Comments
Fiberglass Bottomkote ACT with Irgarol AF33 with BioBoost Ablative,
Multi-Season		 Copolymer
Technology
Micron CSC AF33,
Cukote
Micron Extra with Biolux AF33 with BioBoost,
Cukote Biocide Plus,
Cukote with BioBoost
Micron 66 Biocop TF,

Biocop TF with BioBoost
Trilux 33 Mission Bay Copper-Free,
Ablative		 UV light
activated
Mission Bay CSF Copper/Solvent
Free, Ablative
Fiberglass Bottomkote Aqua Monterey Water-Based,
Ablative		 Hard
Ablative, 58% Cuprous Oxide
Pacifica Smart Solution Metal-Free,
Ablative
Fiberglass Bottomkote      Classic
Epoxycop		 Sharkskin, Talon Hard,
Modified Epoxy		 Single
season paint
Fiberglass Bottomkote with Irgarol Sharkskin with BioBoost, Talon with BioBoost
Ultra-Kote Tropikote
Ultra with Biolux Tropikote Biocide Plus,
Tropikote with BioBoost
YPA200 No-Sand Primer 1266
Non Sanding Primer		 Primer Non-Sanding
Primocon 1277 Barrier Coat Primer,
Shawkocon		 Primer Chlorinated rubber
N/A Hawks Grip Primer Sandless, 3-component kit
Outboard and Outdrive Aerosol Spray
Primer		 500A Primer Primer I/O’s, Outboards
Interprotect 2000E Tuff Stuff Primer High Build Epoxy
N/A BIOBOOST Specialty
Product		 Biocide additive
N/A Inflatable Paint Specialty
Product
Trilux Prop & Drive Aerosol Outdrive Paint Specialty
Product		 I/O’s, Outboards
VC 17m Extra with Biolux Silver Bullet Specialty
Product		 Slick, hard, racing finish
N/A Transhield Specialty
Product		 Transducer paint
202 Fiberglass
Solvent Wash		 S-80  Wax ‘N Grease Killer Surface
Preparation		 De-waxer/De-greaser
202V
 Low VOC Fiberglass Solvent Wash		 S-90  De-Waxing Etch & Cleaner Surface
Preparation		 Water-based, low VOC’s
N/A= Not
Available
BOTTOM PAINT Cross Reference Guide

Pettit to Sea Hawk Paints
PETTIT SEAHAWK Style Seahawk
Comments
Horizons AF33 Ablative,
Multi-Season		 Copolymer
Technology
Ultima SSA Cukote
Ultima SR40 AF33 with
BioBoost
Ultima SR60 Cukote Biocide Plus,
Cukote with BioBoost
Ultima Fusion Biocop TF,

Biocop TF with BioBoost
Alumacoat SR, Vivid Free Mission Bay Copper-Free,
Ablative		 UV light
activated
Mission Bay CSF Copper/Solvent
Free, Ablative
Hydrocoat Monterey Water-Based,
Ablative		 Hard Ablative, 58% Cuprous Oxide
Vivid Eco Smart Solution Metal-Free,
Ablative
Unepoxy, Unepoxy Plus Sharkskin, Talon Hard, Modified
Epoxy		 Single season
paint
N/A Sharkskin with BioBoost,
Talon with BioBoost
Trinidad Tropikote
Trinidad SR Tropikote Biocide Plus,
Tropikote with BioBoost
Skip Sand Primer 6998, Sandless Primer 6999 1266 Non-Sanding Primer Primer Non-Sanding
Tie Coat Primer 6627 1277 Barrier Coat,
Shawkocon		 Primer/Sealer
& Adhesion Promoter		 Chlorinated rubber
N/A Hawks Grip Primer Sandless, 3-component kit
N/A 500A Primer Primer Used for Outdrive Primer
Pettit Protect Tuff Stuff Primer High Build Epoxy
N/A BIOBOOST Specialty
Product		 Biocide additive
N/A Seahawk Inflatable
Paint		 Specialty
Product
Alumaspray Plus Outdrive Paint Specialty
Product		 Outdrives/Outboards
SR-21 Silver Bullet Specialty
Product		 Slick, hard, racing finish
Transducer Paint 1793 Transhield Specialty
Product		 Transducer paint
Bottom Prep D-95 S-80  Wax ‘N Grease Killer Surface
Preparation		 De-waxer/De-greaser
Bio-Blue 92 S-90  De-Waxing Etch & Cleaner Surface
Preparation		 Water-based, low VOC’s
N/A= Not Available
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Can you use a Marine Descaler on an aluminum outboard engine?

Posted on February 7, 2012 by BottomPaintStore

We recommend a Hammerhead Marine Descaler Flush every 100 hours, or
twice a year for any engine running in warm, calcium rich waters.  This is
a revolutionary change to outboard marine engine maintenance which has come
about through Bright Bay’s next generation chemistry.  Only Hammerhead
Marine Descaler is made with aluminum safe cleaning agents designed for today’s
high performance marine engines. Now you can even descale your aluminum outboard engine safely!

The attached pictures were taken of a 4 stroke outboard engine
in Key West.  The block cracked with less than 200 hours because marine
scale had restricted water flow for engine cooling.  Because water flow
and scale buildup are a maintenance item, damage was not covered under the
manufacturer’s warranty on the $20,000 motor. A marine descaler would have prevented this damage.

When compared to other brands such as Barnacle Buster, we found Hammerhead Marine Descaler to be as effective and safer for aluminum.

Owners have historically only used “salt away” to flush
outboard engines because acid descalers are not safe for the aluminum
heads.  Salt away does not remove marine biogrowth which ultimately causes
engines to overheat.  The traditional repair method for an overheating
engine is to tear down and rebuild.  We are going to recommend that an
outboard Hammerhead Flush be done with each oil change as a preventative
maintenance procedure for avoiding marine scale buildup, overheating, and
engine rebuilds.

Posted in Engine Maitenance, Marine Descaler | Tagged | Leave a comment

Can you use water-based bottom paint over a marine epoxy primer?

Posted on January 9, 2012 by BottomPaintStore

Putting a water-based bottom paint  (WBP) over a solvent based primer can be done with some modified application procedures. You do NOT want to make the window, or hot coat the water based paint over the solvent based primer such as Tuff Stuff high build marine epoxy primer. If you do, it will mud crack. So instead of putting on the WBP over the Solvent Primer in the same day, you need to wait for the primer to totally cure. Then you have to sand it with 80 grit sandpaper before apply WBP. This is a lot of extra work and very difficult to sand = extremely hard surface. So the best thing to do when using a high build solvent based epoxy is to coat it with a solvent based paint. That way you skip the extra time and labor with sanding.

Posted in Bottom Paint, Help, How To, Marine Epoxy, Primer | Leave a comment

Awlgrip Paint, the Best Topside Boat Paint

Posted on January 9, 2012 by BottomPaintStore

Awlgrip Topcoat is a polyester based high gloss polyurethane topcoat giving long lasting gloss and color retention. It is considered the among the best Topside Paints in the marine industry. AwlGrip Topcoat  may be applied by brush/roller or spray. For application above the waterline only.

The most common practice for the do it yourselfer is priming the boat with Awlgrip 545 epoxy primer. This is a 2 part primer, so you will need the base (either white or grey) and the converter. Awlgrip also recommends a reducer. The links to the converter and reducer can be found on the base primer product page.

Mixing and Reduction:
This is a two part system. You must order the base primer in either gray or white along with the D3001 Converter in the appropriate size. The mix ratio is 1:1 so if you purchase 1 quart of primer you also need 1 quart of converter for a total of 2 quarts. Additionally you need to purchase the appropriate reducer (spray or brush) for spraying reduce up to 25% with T0006 and for brushing reduce up to 10% with T0031.

Theoretical Coverage: 497 Sq feet/gallon at one mil dry (25 microns) 165-248 Sq. Feet at recommended dry film thickness. Calculated based on a theoretical transfer efficiency of 100%. 

Then you will choose your base color of Awlgrip Topside paint, the converter and reducer. The reducer and converter change depending if you are spraying or brush/rolling.

Mixing and Reduction

Spray: Mix by volume one part AWLGRIP Topcoat Base Component (Color) with one part AWL-CAT #2 G3010 spray converter to a a smooth homogenous mixture. Reduce up to 25% with the spray reducer(s) appropriate for conditions. Overall mixture is 1:1:1/2 volume. Example: 8oz Base, 8oz G3010, 4oz Reducer. 25% reduction is a standard mix. Clear coats. metallic colors, and painting in high temperature conditions may require additional reduction. 40% reduction is the maximum recommendation.

Brush/Roller: Mix by volume two parts AWLGRIP Topcoat Base Component with one part AWL-CAT #3/H3002 Brushing Converter until one smooth, homogenous mixture is obtained. Reduce 25% to 33% with T0031. Overall mix is 2:1:3/4-1 by volume. Example: 8 oz. color base component, 4 oz. H3002, 3-4 oz. T0031.

Theoretical Coverage:
Brush/Roller Application: 700-725 Sq. Feet at 1 mil (25 Microns) dry: 285 Sq. Feet at recommended dry film thickness.
Recommended Wet Film Thickness: 4.5-6 mils (112.5-150 Microns), Total of 2 Coats.
Recommended Dry Film Thickness: 2-3 mils (50-75 Microns), Total of 2 Coats.

Spray Application: 530 Sq. Feet at 1 mil (25 microns) dry film thickness; 210 SQ. Feet at recommended dry film thickness.
Recommended Wet Film Thickness: 6-9 mils (150-225 Microns), Total of 2-3 Coats.
Recommended Dry Film Thickness: 2-3 mils (50-75 Microns), Total of 2-3 Coats.

You can view the links provided above to see more information about the products, mix ratios, surface prep and auxiliary products.

Posted in How To, Topside Paint, Topside Paint | Leave a comment

How do I know if my boat has gelcoat on it or paint?

Posted on January 9, 2012 by BottomPaintStore

Fiberglass is what is used as the base of the boat. These are the strands underneath the gelcoat that you typically do not see. (unless there is a gouge!)

Need a repair?

If it is just a gouge and not penetrated all the way through the boat, then you would need to fill in the gouge with 3M premium marine filler (just one product that will work but our most popular for this use). After you have filled in the gouge and sanded it down, you would then apply the topcoat of gelcoat. (gelcoat is the top finish that you see on your entire boat.) Gelcoat is typically much thicker than a paint and is designed to protect the underlying fiberglass as well as provide a smooth shiny appearance. Be sure to leave the marine filler about 1/8″ lower than the surrounding gelcoat. This will allow you to apply enough gelcoat and be able to feather the surrounding area once your done. If you leave the marine filler flush, then once you apply the gelcoat you will have a lump on the area you are repairing (gelcoat should be thick enough or it could release from repair).

Here are the products that you would need.

3M Premium Marine Filler

Gelcoat or Gelcoat repair Kit.

The amount that you will need is dependent on the size and number of gouges. If you have many gouges, you may consider buying a quart of gelcoat. However, the nice thing about the gelcoat repair kits is that they come with tints so that you can try to match your existing gelcoat color.

If you need to tint a quart our gallon to match see our available gelcoat tints, please note it isn’t recommended to use more than 1 oz of tint per quart or the curing of gelcoat could be effected.

Posted in Gelcoat, How To | Leave a comment

What is the Best Bottom Paint Money Can Buy?

Posted on March 23, 2011 by BottomPaintStore
Best Bottom Paint

Best Performing Bottom Paint

For fiberglass boats, the best bottom paint is Biocop TF with Bioboost which is a bottom paint additive for extra algae protection. This provides you the absolute maximum protection against hard and soft growth on the bottom of your boat. This solution is recommended for high growth areas, or if you are trying to goes as long as you possibly can between bottom jobs.

The best bottom paint for an aluminum boat or pontoons is Smart Solution, it is copper free and safe for aluminum. If the aluminum has never been painted the best practice is to prime with Tuff Stuff to insure good adhesion and protect against corrosion.

The suggested best bottom paint for the running gear and outdrives is Smart Solution. (quart size).  You can use the Outboard & Outdrive Primer spray for priming the area before application of bottom paint. If there is already a bottom paint on your running gear, just scuff sand and paint!

Posted in Bottom Paint, Outdrives | Tagged , , | Leave a comment