I have just aquired a fibreglass fishing boat and the outside of the cabin has been hand painted in the past a

Question

nd is peeling in places. Is there any particular type of paint I should use, and is hand painting or spraying recommended ?

Answer 1

Boats use a type of paint called gel-coat.  It's different than auto paint, and is probably what is beneath the hand painted portion of your boat.

Since the area your talking about isn't in the water, you can use auto paint - acrylic enamel.  I hope you've done some painting before, because it is tricky, but not impossible to come out looking alright.

If you don't use gel-coat, use acrylic enamel.

If you use acrylic enamel, prep. the area really well.  I suggest sanding all the old paint off the area you're wanting repainted.

Take it all off, but NOT THE GEL-COAT UNDERNEATH.  If you leave some of the old paint on, or sand to deep - to a spot that will look black, or if you can plainly see the fiberglass, the paint won't stick well.  Sand that all off, mask off every area you don't want painted and spray it as smooth as possible.  The "paint line" - where the paint stops, will probably be you biggest headache.

The advantage is once you spray that, it's basically done.

Gel-coat is the way to fix it properly, but it's very labor intensive, and if you haven't done it before, it's very difficult.

Gel-coat is very thick compared to acrylic enamel.  The prep. work is the same, but once it's sprayed and dry it must be sanded and buffed to finish it.

The way one works gel-coat, would ruin auto paint - they're very different things.

Best of luck to you, I hope this helps.

Answer 2

Sand or use fiberglass paint remover only not house paint remover as it will soften the fiberglass then prime and paint> Depends how good you want it to look spray always is the best if smooth with no blemish's>

Answer 3

If finances permit, hire a professional to clean,prep and paint the entire boat.

Or have it "Gel-coated".

To do it yourself

ALWAYS  HAVE PROPER VENTILATION.

Mask all areas that are not to be painted.

Use a plastic scraper for the loose and peeling paint.

Use a nylon scratch pad or sand the surface LIGHTLY until it is smooth and even.

Sweep up ALL the dust and dirt before painting(wetting the floor also helps)

Spraying is better but hand painting will do.

Use an EPOXY PRIMER.

Use the BEST paint you can find.

Apply several coats of paint, leaving adequate drying time between coats.

Remove the masking tape while the paint is still SLIGHTLY tacky.

Use a razor blade for a clean, even paint line