Boat Lining Options.....something easy to get.

Ok, so I know this has been covered a couple times, but I'm going to ask the question a little different. I want to line the OUTSIDE of my boat (it has a semi-v hull) I'm not too worried about weight as its a 12footer, and I can't see a lining adding more than 15 pounds (or can it?) I know it always goes back to SteelFlex, but I want something that I can get at a the local hardware store or WalMart/HomeDepot/Lowes etc. I hate ordering stuff and having it shipped to me (I've been slowly loosing faith in humanity with neighbor's having packages swiped from their doorsteps)....its just one of those things...

What can I use?

I also want to paint the inside with some sort of non-slip material....any ideas? Or do I go with strips of grip tape and replace as necessary?

This may ruffle some feathers or maybe raise some eyebrows. When I was a kid I know we used an oil based paint that is used to paint aluminum sideing to paint a jon boat we had. I know it wasn't "marine grade" but it worked. I can't remeber it pealing or flaking of. I have purchased a gallon of it at Home depot and planned on using it to paint my 1442. I recently traded an upgraded to a 1548. I still plan on useing it. It costs $26 for a gallon. You can spend more on the self etching (doesn't require prinmer) but I didn't. I plan on priming it and the slapping on as many coats as I can get out of it. It suggest that you thin it out with some paint thinner according to a DIY site I was trolling. The only thing is you are limited to your color as it is color at the factory. The color are white, black, forresty green and a tan/khaki color. I will be painting mine the green and then the interior will be the tan/khaki color. It is a satin matte finish so it will not be shiny. The do cary other paints that are more vast in color otions but the cost goes up. Just ask the paint people at Home depot or Lowes and they can show it to you.

A buddy of mine painted his boat with Rustoleum Metal paint that you can get at home dept or lowes.. he even had it tinted to match the color of his truck and it looks great.

He spray bombed it (air compressor with no thinner) and that stuff went on thick as crap. He lightly wet sanded between each coat, and that boat looked just as good as my boat which I painted with Pettit Easy Poxy which is made for boats

As far as the inside non slip... look at this stuff from Cabelas https://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/...parentType=index&parentId=cat21324&id=0021475

Thanks guys.
One last question, when preparing the boat.....do I just clean it up good, wipe it down with ethanol let it dry and prime/paint? Or should I hit the entire boat with some really fine sandpaper to etch it up a bit and then clean, ethanol and then prime and paint?

Sand it good. Not down to bare metal (if its painted). I used my black and decker mouse sander on my old boat with 120 grit sand paper. Took me about 3 hours and 8 sanding pads to do the bottom & sides. I then blew it down with an air hose. I rinsed off real good with soap, a scouring pad and let dry. The site I researched said you will want at least 48 hours to pass before you paint the aluminum so it drys thoroughly. Now, with me I didn't paint the boat before I traded it off. Also, you will want to conecentrate any area that show corrosion or where the old paint is flaking off real bad. The reast of the area you just need to scuff up real good.

PS: I am no expert in this by any means, but the process seemed sound so that is what I did.

JeepDVL45 said:

Thanks guys.
One last question, when preparing the boat.....do I just clean it up good, wipe it down with ethanol let it dry and prime/paint? Or should I hit the entire boat with some really fine sandpaper to etch it up a bit and then clean, ethanol and then prime and paint?

Click to expand...

Depends on how the existing paint is holding up. If it is ok, no flaking or peeling, then just scuff and prime, and paint. If it is peeling, not looking great, you should get off all the stuff you think is suspect (at the minimum) then prime, then paint.

I also wiped down the boat with acetone after sanding.

Are you wanting to seal it or just paint it?

Good info so far. Let me give you more info. The boat is acutally bare aluminum, so there is no faded, cracking or peeling paint to worry about
Secondly, sealing the boat is not a major concern (unless you mean sealing the paint on the boat) There are NO leaks in it, so I'm not worried about using the paint job for that.
I'll proibably finish up with a couple coats of clear coat (suggestions?) I have a power sprayer avaliable to use too.

This is the process I recommend to people who ask me about repainting...

1 - if the paint that is there on there now is still factory paint, save the time and money and just scuff it up good with a coarse grit sandpaper - anything from 60-120 grit... I used 80 on my factory paint job. If it still looks good (paint from factory), use a finer grit sandpaper (160-200) and just smooth it out. No need for primer then... just don't take it down to the bare metal and primer shouldn't be needed.

2 - When you're done sanding, wash it down good. Dawn and warm soap work great for grit and grime. Then wash it good with water and let it dry on its own... then go over it good with mineral spirits and a microfiber or some towel that does NOT leave fibers behind.

3 - Primer.. Always remember the undercoating and prep work is what will give your top coat it's best appearance, as well as durability. I used Zinc Chromate primer, but you can get by using a good automotive primer. You can get by with one coat, but I prefer 2 coats. Always lightly wetsand with 220-300 grit sandpaper in between each coat.

Edit* just saw your new post... You'll need a self-etching primer since you have bare aluminum. This will give you a mechanical as well as chemical bonding to the boat, and your top coat will adhere to that.

4 - Top Coats... this is where you will shine if you did the prep work right, and it should last for years. Multiple Thin Coats will acheive your best finish - durability and appearance. You can put it on thick, but it will take longer to paint. If you thin it out, the paint will go farther, allowing more coats which will give you better durability. There are 2 ways to do the top coat. You can put it on and let it dry, then lightly wetsand it and wipe it down with acetone. Then put your next coat of paint on and repeat. I put a light coat on, dry til it was tacky (not dry..) and then put on another coat. I put on 3 coats this way and then let it dry for about 48 hours. Then I got out and LIGHTLY, and I mean LIGHTLY wetsanded the top coat with 300 grit sandpaper to take out any imperfections (runs, spots from overspray, etc). This was best for me and that boat is still looking good a year later even though I don't own it anymore.

Not sure if you're planning on spraying, rolling or brushing the paint on, but take your time and it will come out great.

JeepDVL45 said:

Good info so far. Let me give you more info. The boat is acutally bare aluminum, so there is no faded, cracking or peeling paint to worry about
Secondly, sealing the boat is not a major concern (unless you mean sealing the paint on the boat) There are NO leaks in it, so I'm not worried about using the paint job for that.
I'll proibably finish up with a couple coats of clear coat (suggestions?) I have a power sprayer avaliable to use too.

Click to expand...

Okay. You said that you wanted to line the outside of the boat and mentioned Steelflex is why I asked. A lining like Steelflex has a purpose other than giving the outside of your boat a color.

Any good exterior grade paint should serve you just fine.

Not sure if this was mentioned but DON'T wait to long before priming a bare aluminum boat,do it as soon as you can.It will start to oxidize again and maybe the primer won't stick as good if you wait.

Aluminum doesn't like to be painted. It starts to oxidize to protect itself as soon as you finish cleaning. It's best to acid etch prior to painting. When I coated mine(more on that in a minute) I used a couple of these kits

https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=12214&familyName=West+System+860+Aluminum+Etch+Kit

and sprayed it on with a couple of spray bottles for animals from TSC. This kit has both the acid cleaner and a "green/yellow" primer. Pretty easy to use. My boat had been sandblasted for a while as I worked on it and needed the cleaning. Pics in boat showcase.
I used a graphite filled epoxy resin to coat my riverjet. It had had a hard life and had many weld fixes. Plus the epoxy helps it slide off rocks. Here is the stuff. It's similar to GLUV-IT that the drift boat guys use.

https://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=30

Above the waterline I used a marine product that is similar to "herculiner" DIY bed liner but is for marine enviornments and water based so no smelling the solvents. You can get it from BPS or Cabelas in several colors.

https://www.ultratuff.net/utmindex.htm

It's been done and in the weather for over 3 years now and I'm still happy with the way it turned out.



I realize this isn't what everybody wants but I thought I'd throw out something different than just paint. The weight thing isn't huge. I mean what does a gallon of paint weigh? A gallon is a gallon for the most part. There is proably a little over 4 gallons of material on my 1750.