Painting my Deck - Over the non-skid?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Sun Apr 20, 2008 9:38 pm

Ok, Clearly I did things in the wrong order last year.

The update - last year I purchased my Swede, and realized that the non-skid was totally shot. I sanded it all down last spring and repainted just the non-skid with Interlux Perfection Epoxy paint and interlux non-skid compound.

Now that I have lived with it for a year I have realized that the rest of the decks need paint - especially in contrast with the white non-skid. The original gelcoat is in great condition, no cracks etc just dull and in some spots worn pretty thin.

So my question is, what's my best bet on making the boat look great? (I have already removed most of the hardware from the boat, and it's under cover.)

Options to start the discussion:
1: Buff existing gelcoat and be happy with it.

2: Spray 1-2 coats of Interlux Perfection white over the top of the non-skid and the rest of the boat. Will the non-skid pattern still work/show through? This would be by far the easiest!

3:Paint over everything, then re-tape the non-skid pattern (using the old reference and redo.

4: Sand everything and start over - holy crap that's a big job, and I will probably just go with option 1 if it's the case.

5: Some other option...

So what is it experts? And yeah, I should have stripped the rest of the hardware last spring and painted the whole thing.

Thanks,

Noah

Post by **Tim** » Mon Apr 21, 2008 6:42 am

I hate to say it, but I'd probably go with the dreaded Option 4. I think painting over everything would be a poor choice that would reduce the effectiveness of your nonskid and make it look like someone just painted over it (which, indeed, would be the case) You might have success with retaping and repainting the nonskid afterwards, but if you're going this route you'd be better off just starting fresh, in my opinion.

It'd be nice to say just tape and mask off the new nonskid so you can prep and paint the smooth areas, but it's doubtful that you would get an acceptable tape line using this approach.

Ceasar Choppy · Post by **Ceasar Choppy** » Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:30 am

You could try and eek out a few more years out of the gel coat by repairing it where it needs it. If its in serviceable condition that is...

This is something I'm wrestling with as well, although I haven't done anything yet. My non-skid is so-so, and the gelcoat has some blemishes and is wearing thin in some spots. I'm actually thinking of re-gelcoating it a few years.

Paint is great, but darn thin for a well used deck. Gelcoat hides the nicks and scratches better. My only concern with re-gelcoating is piling on so much gel coat that it will be too thick.

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Mon Apr 21, 2008 2:54 pm

Dang, I really didn't want to hear that...Let me try sanding the surface and see how quickly it comes off.

Bluenose · Post by **Bluenose** » Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:16 pm

Noah,

Do you have a website or blog for your Swede?

bcooke · Post by **bcooke** » Tue Apr 22, 2008 7:23 am

Do it right. Do it once.

Take a shortcut and you are on it forever...

Besides, working on boats is FUN!!!

-Britton

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Apr 22, 2008 8:33 am

That's easy to say, but I have 53ft of Epoxy painted deck to sand - not an easy task...I do have a spare sander if you want a trip to Vermont...