What's the best paint

[kevinl]

My boat currently has a badly peeling couple of coats of an own brand enamel from a well know central England chandlers. The paint went on OK and looked good at first but it's now flaking off quite badly, in under 2 years. The undercoat looks perfectly sound so can I just go over it (after a bit of sanding) with a better brand of enamel paint or, can as many here have recommended just use Dulux Weathershield?

I did wonder if I could use hammerite smooth. Any advise?

Many tanks

K

[bottle]

If the undercoat is perfectly sound, then with respect, I suspect the preparation for putting on the top coat was incorrect.

 

or

 

the undercoat and top coat are not compatible.

 

With luck one of our true paint experts will be along and may give you some pointers.

 

With paint, it is all in the preparation.

[bizzard]

By preparing to prepare to prepare for the preparation preparation.

[Masquerade]

I believe it's all in the preparation. I know the paint you allude to, it's rebadged teamac? I think. Pay for what you get sometimes but if the undercoat is intact and good then poor prep, application, non compatible paints or all three are likely causes.

 

I used International on the boat last year. Easily applied, no dramas, tad expensive but will probably last the test of time with the best of the rest. Current boat will be getting HMG in July.

[Phil Speight]

My boat currently has a badly peeling couple of coats of an own brand enamel from a well know central England chandlers. The paint went on OK and looked good at first but it's now flaking off quite badly, in under 2 years. The undercoat looks perfectly sound so can I just go over it (after a bit of sanding) with a better brand of enamel paint or, can as many here have recommended just use Dulux Weathershield?

I did wonder if I could use hammerite smooth. Any advise?

Many tanks

K

Use either Craftmaster,International or Epiphanes if you want to do a seriously very good job, Rylards if you want a good job for a little less money, use any old tat if your not fussed. Saving money on paint is hardly worth the ultimate consequences. However , as others have said - preparation is the vital bit. Paint doesn`t readily come off a well prepared substrate.

[blackrose]

If you want a good flexible paint at about half the price of "marine" paints, try International 10 year gloss.

 

http://www.international-paints.co.uk/products/info/10_year_exterior_gloss.jsp

[bag 'o' bones]

My boat currently has a badly peeling couple of coats of an own brand enamel from a well know central England chandlers. The paint went on OK and looked good at first but it's now flaking off quite badly, in under 2 years. The undercoat looks perfectly sound so can I just go over it (after a bit of sanding) with a better brand of enamel paint or, can as many here have recommended just use Dulux Weathershield?

I did wonder if I could use hammerite smooth. Any advise?

Many tanks

K

Given the choice I would use 2 pack.

 

It easily outlasts enamel, retains its shine without having to polish it every 6 months, so great for owners who want to spend more time enjoying their boat rather than worrying about the paint begining to fade; is incredibly tough and requires far less coats to offer the same protection.

 

Contrary to belief it can be applied by brush and can be touched up easily with single pack in a rattle can.

Edited May 25, 2012 by bag 'o' bones

[blackrose]

Given the choice I would use 2 pack.

 

It easily outlasts enamel, retains its shine without having to polish it every 6 months, so great for owners who want to spend more time enjoying their boat rather than worrying about the paint begining to fade; is incredibly tough and requires far less coats to offer the same protection.

 

Contrary to belief it can be applied by brush and can be touched up easily with single pack in a rattle can.

 

Yes, I would go for a 2 pack epoxy topcoat too. However, wouldn't that mean taking off all the undercoat & primer too? I think most 2 pack paints are very specific in terms of primers and undercoats and I'm not sure if you can just apply them over existing single-pack paints.

Edited May 25, 2012 by blackrose

[Speedwheel]

I believe it's all in the preparation. I know the paint you allude to, it's rebadged teamac? I think. Pay for what you get sometimes but if the undercoat is intact and good then poor prep, application, non compatible paints or all three are likely causes.

 

I used International on the boat last year. Easily applied, no dramas, tad expensive but will probably last the test of time with the best of the rest. Current boat will be getting HMG in July.

 

It is indeed Teamac. I have used it a few times without issue.

 

I have also used HMG many times and found it very good - try Turners Trade Paints in Hednesford (Cannock). I've always found them excellent and they know there stuff.

[ChrisPy]

Hammerite is not easy to use in large areas, better suited for painting fittings and fiddly places.

[bag 'o' bones]

Yes, I would go for a 2 pack epoxy topcoat too. However, wouldn't that mean taking off all the undercoat & primer too? I think most 2 pack paints are very specific in terms of primers and undercoats and I'm not sure if you can just apply them over existing single-pack paints.

 

As far as I am aware after enamel has completed its initial curing process it continues to harden for a number of months through contact with oxygen in the air. After this stage has completed it becomes pretty well inert and can be overcoated with 2 pack without any reaction problems. A pretty good indicator of well cured enamel is when it begins to dull which in most cases could be a couple of years. However from the OP's post if the paint is begining to crack and peel then I imagine its not just cured but breaking down as well so I wouldn't imagine there would be any problems.

 

If in doubt you can buy a special isolator primer that should prevent any reaction problems in their tracks.

 

Another plus point of 2 pack is it is incredibly forgiving it hides sanding scratches far better than any air drying paint hence why it is so popular with body shops.

 

Hammerite is not easy to use in large areas, better suited for painting fittings and fiddly places.

It also chips far too readily on exposed edges.

[blackrose]

As far as I am aware after enamel has completed its initial curing process it continues to harden for a number of months through contact with oxygen in the air. After this stage has completed it becomes pretty well inert and can be overcoated with 2 pack without any reaction problems. A pretty good indicator of well cured enamel is when it begins to dull which in most cases could be a couple of years. However from the OP's post if the paint is begining to crack and peel then I imagine its not just cured but breaking down as well so I wouldn't imagine there would be any problems.

 

If in doubt you can buy a special isolator primer that should prevent any reaction problems in their tracks.

 

It wasn't so much reaction problems that was my issue. I just can't see much point in painting a two pack paint over an unspecified single pack primer. The benefit of two pack systems is not just their scratch resistance but also their greater adhesion to properly prepared surfaces. A paint system is only as good as its weakest link.

Edited May 27, 2012 by blackrose

[Guest]

Given the choice I would use 2 pack.

 

It easily outlasts enamel, retains its shine without having to polish it every 6 months, so great for owners who want to spend more time enjoying their boat rather than worrying about the paint begining to fade; is incredibly tough and requires far less coats to offer the same protection.

 

Contrary to belief it can be applied by brush and can be touched up easily with single pack in a rattle can.

My friend always two packs his boats. He sprays them and the durability and finish is quite amazing.

[bizzard]

My friend always two packs his boats. He sprays them and the durability and finish is quite amazing.

You need a space helmet,preferably the whole suite to spray it though.

[bag 'o' bones]

It wasn't so much reaction problems that was my issue. I just can't see much point in painting a two pack paint over an unspecified single pack primer. The benefit of two pack systems is not just their scratch resistance but also their greater adhesion to properly prepared surfaces. A paint system is only as good as its weakest link.

 

Ideally 2 pack would be applied to bare metal but in the real world it is not usually practical.

 

Thing is ive seen traditional enamel pait jobs that are 30 years old, completely dull to the point they are appear to covered in talcum powder yet still protecting the underlying steel as good as the day it was first applied.

 

So if the boat was painted properly from new then sanding the failed topcoat through to sound paint beneath should suffice. The way I look at if the lower layers of paint have been happilly hanging on for years without problems then there is no reason to believe that applying 2 pack is going to suddenly cause the original primers to fail.

 

Interestingly the boat next door to us was professionally repainted by a well known craftsman who commented that the orignal primers were very hard to remove. Which makes we wonder, if the orignal paint was quite obviously sound, then was it a waste of money having it stripped? Does make you wonder sometimes!

[George94]

Ideally 2 pack would be applied to bare metal but in the real world it is not usually practical.

 

 

But Blackrose's point is a good one.

 

You are putting a very strong and hard paint over an inferior surface. That means it will not have the strength and longevity that it would have had if applied to bare metal.

 

To me, the whole point of spending quite a lot more on 2-pack paint is to create a surface that won't need painting again for a very long time.

 

Whilst a base of some other paint may remain stable for years, it won't have the adhesion of epoxy. An impact is therefore much more likely to cause chipping, right down to bare metal, than it would with a coating of pure epoxy.

 

Yes, it's a lot of work, but if done by professionals with a UHP water jet system, it's quite quick. And it won't need doing again.