# removing antifouling coating from boat



## christoph (Dec 23, 2009)

well im in the learning curve of using media. got lots of experience using chemical strippers on decks and fencing. im woundering what you guys reccomend here. i removing 5 layers of different bottom coat from my boat. i tried a test section with pettit mariane stripper, it did soften the coating but seemed like a lot of scraping, thats with 12 hrs on the hull. 
now i am trying the wet sandblasting attachment for my graco powerwasher. today i shot a bag of crushed glass at it. it removed the layers of paint but it pocked up the gelcoat pretty good. i sanded down the area and it smoothed the gelcoat back out.
is the gelcoat getting damaged because the media is too abrasive? im going to try a bag of sandbox sand tomorrow and see what happens. 
would it help if i gave it a blast of the stripper and then hit it with the water blaster? this marine stripper can be applied with my airless. 
im thinking the combination of the stripper and sand may be the answer, but any thoughs would definitly help.
2500 was a price for soda blasting 22 foot boat. thats why im giving her a try myself. try to get some pictures ip tomorrow


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## daArch (Mar 15, 2008)

I guess you now know why the pros charge so much.

What's the hull made out of?

I know my father used to just sand and scrape our boats, but that was in the 50's before these gell coats, just lead and copper paints 

BTW, what nasty anti fouling metals and chemicals are in the paints now? And are you using protection for you, soil, and runoffs?


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## vermontpainter (Dec 24, 2007)

Wolfgang and I are working on a formulation to apply an anti-foul coating to the forum.


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## NCPaint1 (Aug 6, 2009)

vermontpainter said:


> Wolfgang and I are working on a formulation to apply an anti-foul coating to the forum.


Need to start by removing any debris. Close your browser window, power down your computer, unplug it, and carefully place it in the appropriate recycling bin. 

It's a start.....


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## Scotiadawg (Dec 5, 2011)

vermontpainter said:


> Wolfgang and I are working on a formulation to apply an anti-foul coating to the forum.


Pfft, that'll never work!:no:, we're too powerful


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## MrPaint (Feb 19, 2012)

You are definitely on the right track with wet abrasive blasting for a couple of reasons. The first is that dry abrasive blasting can be dangerous without the proper supplied-air systems and the dust will go everywhere! The second is that you will have better visibility when removing the coating (no dust) and when working on fiberglass hulls the last thing you want to do is blast thru the gelcoat into the fiberglass or worse, thru the fiberglass. Try using a fine sand, playsand and crushed glass is usually pretty coarse and can cause more damage by "micro-fracturing" the fiberglass upon impact. This is not a project for the faint of heart but with some practice you'll get the hang of it. Good luck!


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## Paint and Hammer (Feb 26, 2008)

Post your questions here. http://forums.iboats.com/forum.php

The most active all-things-boats forum in the world.


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## nEighter (Nov 14, 2008)

count me in VP.. does it have a Napalm consistency?


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