Linear Polyurethane experiences
For any of you guys (or gals) who are thinking of LP'ing your boat this might be helpful. I recently decided it was time to re-paint the bait tank and cockpit deck on the Tenacious. I completed the obligatory sanding ritual on the bait tank and purchased a quart of the Interlux LP. It's the one called "Perfection". Several folks recommended I use the Sterling brand but, after reviewing the cost, I opted for the Interlux. Awlgrip was also recommended but, is also rather pricey. The Perfection comes with the catalyst and cost about $78 or so. I picked a day when the WEAX was forecasted to be fairly dry and sunny and chose to paint the tank in the morning when the dew cleared. First I wiped the entire tank well with the recommended Interlux brushing thinner (another $20), then wiped with a clean dry cloth. Mixed the paint/catalyst and then the thinner (after 20 minutes) and started painting at about 11:00. The wind was light and the sun started to break out. I had help from a friend who tipped with a brush after I rolled out an area. The hardest part was blending the areas together once we went around the circumference of the tank. This is because the paint had already started to set up and did not flow well after about 6 minutes of being applied. This also makes it difficult to go back and smooth out any flaws. When we were done the tank looked OK but still had some runs which we could not repair for reasons mentioned above. It was aceptable though. At 4:00 PM the afternoon marine layer arrived and temperatures cooled quite a bit. Dew started forming as well. The next AM the paint job was completely ruined. The paint didn't have time to cure befor the moisture set in. I decided to rip the tank out of the boat and sand the entire tank again and paint it in the garage. I also broke down and bought the Sterling LP. After purchasing the quart of paint, the catalyst (separately), and the thinner I was up to $175 at the Marine exchange. My wife tipped with a brand new brush this time while I rolled and the results were very good but, we still had some lint settle onto the surface. I thought a light sanding and a second coat would fix everthing. It did but, we managed to get a lot of lint in the paint job due to using a roller that advertised being a lint free roller. (liars!). Anyways the bait tank is complete with very nice results. The deck is next. Lessons learned.... (1) Paint indoors if at all possible. If you paint outdoors attempt to get the job done as early in the day as you can to allow for curing time, then place a cover over it. (2) Even though we didn't attempt the Interlux product indoors I felt that the Sterling product flowed much better and yielded better results early in the curing process.
(3). The Sterling paint containers do not contain directions for ratio of mixtures or induction, curing, or re-paint times. The Interlux products do. (4) If you must paint outdoors you might consider adding an accelerator. The Interlux product does not allow for accelerators and needs an entire 8 hours to cure (reference the help desk). Sterling and Interlux do.
If any of you need any help with an LP paint job please feel free to give me a shout.
Scott
