aluminum boat paint?

[Fastwin]

Hey guys! I am trying to re-paint the floor inside my boat but have hit a roadblock. Apparently I need some type of rubberized paint that will flex with the boat. Sherwin Williams keeps telling me nothing they sell will stand up to the water - I guess they don't understand that if the floor of my boat is covered in water that MY PAINT is the last thing on my mind. It's just the flexing of the boat and UV resistance that is a problem.

Spray-in liners are too expensive so I just want to add 100% silica sand to the paint to provide a non-slip surface. I called Fish-n-fun who refereed me to Custom Boat Works. I'm waiting for him to call back.

In the meantime, does anyone have any suggestions? I just want something I can roll onto bare aluminum and will stand up to being constantly walked on and be hard enough so that if someone has gravel in their shoe tread it won't scratch down to the aluminum.

many thanks!!!

 

[KYBoy]

I used the roll on bed liner you get at wal-mart on my boat about 12 years ago and have had good luck with it. The only place it has really worn is the front deck where i stand and fish. You can make it as rough as you want following the instructions.

 

[john faulkner]

Fastwind has the best Idea,GO WITH IT! emoGeezer

 

[SethColeman]

You are gonna add a lot of weight to the boat with spray in beadliner. Single stage paint will work, if your boat is flexing enough to crack the paint...you have bigger problems than paint. If the prep work is done properly should have no issues with single stage paint, of course walking on it over and over will do the same amount of damage as walking on a car hood(paint wise). I would suggest a roll of skateboard grip tape for a walking surface.

 

[ringgoldranger]

Most products that are designed for metal are more expensive that what people what to pay to paint an aluminum boat- if you buy primer and paint you could end up with $100 plus in material. Also most if not all of these products are very glossy so when they get wet they will get slippery- You also have to keep in mind that most paints when dry are only as thick as a sheet of newspaper so you can't expect them to be bullet proof

I think Seth has the best idea of using the heavy grit abrasive with the stick on back that 3M makes- if you really want to paint in a color first just use an oil base enamel like Rustoleum from Home Depot and cross your fingers

 

[digitalcb]

I use the Walmart truck bed stuff in my wrangler, Haul tools, material, dogs etc. $45.00 a gallon and only used a quart or so so far. Easy to touch up.</p>

Toughest stuff I ever saw was that metalized stuff they used to paint gas meters and gas pipe with; lasted close to 50 years in my grandfather's boat. He died in 1972 (Jake Marshall) and it had been painted a while. I caulked the boat up and made a water garden out of it in the late 90's and a lot of that paint is still in it. </p>

Properly etching the aluminum with vinegar or a dilute acid will create a rough surface (anchor profile) which can greatly enhance the holding power of whatever paint you use..
</p>

 

[Fastwin]

I dug into the deep chasms of the internet and found a popular marine paint company called Interlux. . . then through reading Interlux product reviews I found their parent-company (aka their professional line) AWLGRIP. http://www.awlgrip.com/Pages/home.aspx

These guys have helped me out tremendously! You have to order online but they will happily send a color-card with many color choices. They don't sound irritated when you talk to them and are willing to give very detailed instructions to non-professionals on how to properly apply the products. If you ARE a professional painter, they lay the specs out in full detail.

So it basically works like this, (for people doing internet searches on painting an aluminum boat floor to be comparable to bed liner in every way) My surface area is 57 sq.ft so a quart will provide two-quarts once thinned

1. test surface using MEK - PM me for details. If you fail the test you have to chemical wash surface before continuing - very nasty.
2. If bare metal, degrease and clean then apply a 2-part Chromate-free etching primer
3. Apply two layers of a two component anti-corrosive epoxy primer
4. Mix a non-skid material called GRIPTEX into paint and apply over primer
5. Apply second coat of paint to seal in the GRIPTEX

Of course it's a much more detailed process that takes several days because of dry times between all 5 coats but if you can wait a week you won't need to touch it again for decades.

If anyone searching this forum in the future needs part numbers send me a PM and I'll have them filed away.

 

[river rat]

I am glad this discussion didn't come up sooner about 4 years ago I decided to paint my Crestliner and I used auto paint and 3 coats of clear and it still looks like new I didn't know any better how I think I should do it over ?