Re: Bottom Cleaning

SolarFry@aol.com
Sat, 16 Jan 1999 15:03:18 EST


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West Wight Potter Website at URL
http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
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Good news! The potter does not use epoxy resin... Using a paint stripper is
not a problem as long as you clean it off when finished.

I believe that chalky light blue paint is spent copper based antifouling.
Wear protective clothing and a good mask to sand it. Better yet, West Marine
sells a paint remover for $12/qt. which you can also get as Klean Strip
Fiberglass Paint Stripper from Home Depot ($5.99/qt.) to remove it... Wear
special gloves when using the paint stripper. I do mean gloves specific to
stripping paint! You must remove stripper off completely when you are through
removing paint. When I did this (twice in my life) I wiped it clean with rags
and then with rags with lacquer thinner. after that i cleaned with soap and
water and hosed it good to get soap off. Worked like a charm. A hell of a lot
easier than sanding it off... ( I also had to strip some bottom paint off my
P19 to repair gel coat damage at dgrbrd trunk ) Beats sanding any time...

You can have a marina fair the hull bottom for 38 buck and hour. Should run
about $150.00. If you are going to antifoul again, to leave in water, it's not
worth money to fair it completely smooth... It takes a lot of sandpaper and
elbow grease...

Check out:
<A HREF="http://www.kop-coat.com/blister.htm">Boat Painting Handbook - Below
The Waterline ...</A>

{:^)
Best
SF

BTW: Wear a hat if you decide to do it. So drips don't get in your hair/head.
Control that urge to scratch that arises as soon as your hands are full of
paint or stripper...
{;^)

In a message dated 99-01-15 21:24:22 EST, you write:

<< Subj: Bottom Cleaning
Date: 99-01-15 21:24:22 EST
From: JBlumhorst@aol.com
To: wwpotter@tscnet.com
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Hi Gang,

My boat, Red Wing, was in the water for many years before I bought her.
Unfortunately, the bottom paint was neglected. There are zillions of ugly
patches where there are gazillions of crusty, hard little rings where the sea
creatures attached themselves to the hull with Father Neptune's version of
glue. Before the old owner sold her to me, he had the bottom scraped, but
that didn't come close to getting it smooth or clean.

What's the best way to remove the "glue rings" and the remaining blue bottom
paint? I'd like to restore the hull to plain old white gel coat, if the sea
creatures didn't eat into it with that glue stuff. The paint is a chalky
light
blue that can be scrubbed off with elbow grease and some 3M Scotchbrite pads.
Where ever the "glue spots" are, however, I can't scrub the hull clean. It's
ugly, green/brown hard scum with spots of blue paint inbetween the rings.

I read somewhere to try oven cleaner. It didn't do much. What about paint
remover? What kind? They sell a paint remover at the marina that promises
to not destroy the gelcoat, but of course it's $50 a quart. Most paint
removers say they will remove epoxy. What about using paint remover on
polyester based gel coat? Somebody with experience -- PLEASE HELP!

Thanks in advance,

Judith Blumhorst, DC
HMS-18/P-19 Fleet Captain, Potter's Yachters
WWP-19 #266 "Red Wing"
SF Bay, CA
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