Commercial Bottom Paint - Anti-Fouling Paint Used On Ships

I have and old friend who bought an old workboat to do fishing tours and he is having problems keeping the bottom of the boat clean from barnacles, etc. So he asked me what the commercial ships use to paint their bottoms. The last time I was involved with painting a ship’s bottom I think we used Intersleek but, the question is… which commercial bottom paint is best for anti-fouling?

Also…

What is in the paint that keeps the barnacles off?

And…

What is in the paint used in other countries? I was once in Indonesea and the agent offered to get us Tin based paint on the black market, he said that nothing prevents marine growth like tin, but I hear it’s deadly to marine life in the harbor and, since my buddy’s customers all fish, he has no interest in harming the marine environment… but he’s heard of other captain’s mixing “additives” into their paint (e.g. everything from Mildercide from Home Depot to shavings from lead-free solder to chili pepper) that may or may not be legal. I’ve also heard the Navy uses some pretty nasty stuff that can only be purchased & applied overseas.

[B]Hey cmjeff, what type of hull???[/B]
[B][/B]
[B]I never seen any difference in growth from hulls where they used cyan pepper mixed in paint, my theroy is it gets dilluted in the biga$$ body of water it’s in.[/B]
[B][/B]
[B]The “ablative” paints, in theroy, gradually wear while under way, and inhibit the barnacles from “seeding” to the boat. Well it only takes 24 hours for a barnacle to do this and be seen with the naked eye. So running the boat often would be best for that option. [/B]
[B][/B]
[B]I don’t remember anything about Tin in paints that we used at the ship yard 100 or so years ago. [/B]
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[B]If he can make it/ or not to clear waters, I would just get used to taking it out and diving the bottom frequently to maintain.[/B]
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[B]I like to check all intakes frequently.[/B]
[B][/B]
[B]Interlux and petit make a clear antifouling paint he can use on the sea strainers. [/B]
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[B]I’m not up with the industry like I used to be, but I would contact the manufacturer, they don’t spend millions on research to have thier product fail.[/B]
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[B]Some paints require a pesticide certification and license for application. Thats where the small boat yards stick ya.[/B]
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[B]I would come and do it, but plane tickest and beer would get expensive.[/B]
[B][/B]

if he does a search on the following forum it will give him lots of info

it is a sailboat forum that has covered the topic

[QUOTE=cmjeff;50917]
What is in the paint that keeps the barnacles off?
[/QUOTE]

Why not check the MSDS sheets? It should list most of the ingredients… at least the nasty ones.

Tin was outlawed many years back and was replaced with TBT which is still manufactured in the US but is illegal in most states. But I think you’re on the right track asking what the Navy uses… since they don’t have to follow the laws. I remember talking to a supplier of fixed-firefighting systems in Singapore who said the Navy ships still come in to port to load up on Halon which has been banned in the US.

Why bother with bottom paint? Just wrap copper around the hull and be done with it

[QUOTE=Mr 100-ton;50938]Why bother with bottom paint? Just wrap copper around the hull and be done with it[/QUOTE]

Then you would have to worry about meth addicts with scuba gear.

[QUOTE=anchorman;50953]Then you would have to worry about meth addicts with scuba gear.[/QUOTE]

I will think about that one

[B]Recent article about [U]Hullspeed’s Marine Coatings[/U] From [U]MarineLog[/U][/B]

I am a former Marine coatings sales and technical guy.

Intersleek is a very high tech silicon foul release coating which contains NO biocides or heavy metals in it. Great for the environment, really a quality product for boats that are on the move, but easily damaged and abrasive wear in silty waters.

TIN as in Tributyltin, as in TBT is an IMO outlawed antifouling system. It was so effective entire harbors were coming up devoid of life. It was replaced with the older cuprous oxide coating which requires a substantial epoxy barrier between the copper and the steel (even worse aluminum) for galvanic corrosion.

Hullspeed looks VERY interesting. I met the factory guys at the Workboat show earlier this week and was pretty impressed with the product. It’s a silicone/epoxy foul release coating however it has the strength and durability of epoxy. Of course that’s the hype you see from the marketing guys, I want to see the panel tests. As a racing sailor, many of the hullspeed products look unique and desirable for boat prep.

Have successfully used several brands of copper paint mixed with cayenne pepper (1 can/gallon). No barnacles or growth of any kind, seems they didn’t like the heat. Hauled out and bottom painted annually in Sitka.

[QUOTE=john;50929]Why not check the MSDS sheets? It should list most of the ingredients… at least the nasty ones.

Tin was outlawed many years back and was replaced with TBT which is still manufactured in the US but is illegal in most states. But I think you’re on the right track asking what the Navy uses… since they don’t have to follow the laws. I remember talking to a supplier of fixed-firefighting systems in Singapore who said the Navy ships still come in to port to load up on Halon which has been banned in the US.[/QUOTE]

US Navy ships have to comply with the Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS) which cover a variety of shipboard discharges including hull leachate (AF paint that sloughs off, and/or the compounds it releases to the surrounding water).

It’s a work in progress, but I can assure you the Navy can’t just put anything on their bottoms anymore, especially considering the complexity of US law regarding removing same in US shipyards, which are governed by OSHA regulations and are all situated in waters governed by the US EPA. So, no more TBT or other forbidden AF ingredients on Navy bottoms. At least not until they manage to offshore all Navy drydocking to places like Vietnam, Singapore, South Korea and the Philippines.

To add, I have some personal experience with Intersleek paint. Very expensive, needs careful prep, is easy to damage, needs at least 24 hours out of the water to cure, and is not for ships that sit around. Fouling will grow on it, but speed will remove the fouling. Supposed to be easier to scamp, too but I haven’t spoken to any divers lately so I can’t attest to that.

Five years ago, it came out to around 400-450 bucks a gallon, and I think that included the special primer. We painted an LMSR with it, including the CPP blades. That same ship is back in the yard, getting another shave and a haircut. The pics I saw looked pretty clean prior to sweep blast but they may be going with a different AF this time. Anyway, the paint job came out to I think, a million and a half. Maybe the earlier poster who was a paint rep can update us on the price? Dunno if I’d use it on a recreational or fish boat though.

But it’s hella cool once on. Feels slick and rubbery! And it was the most gorgeous blue.

[ATTACH]2711[/ATTACH]

USNS Soderman 2007.

Intersleek. Slicker than snot on a glass doorknob.

[QUOTE=cmjeff;50917]I have and old friend who bought an old workboat to do fishing tours and he is having problems keeping the bottom of the boat clean from barnacles, etc. So he asked me what the commercial ships use to paint their bottoms. The last time I was involved with painting a ship’s bottom I think we used Intersleek but, the question is… which commercial bottom paint is best for anti-fouling?

Also…

What is in the paint that keeps the barnacles off?

And…

What is in the paint used in other countries? I was once in Indonesea and the agent offered to get us Tin based paint on the black market, he said that nothing prevents marine growth like tin, but I hear it’s deadly to marine life in the harbor and, since my buddy’s customers all fish, he has no interest in harming the marine environment… but he’s heard of other captain’s mixing “additives” into their paint (e.g. everything from Mildercide from Home Depot to shavings from lead-free solder to chili pepper) that may or may not be legal. I’ve also heard the Navy uses some pretty nasty stuff that can only be purchased & applied overseas.[/QUOTE]

There is a brand new anti-fouling coating available from Fujifilm-Hunt USA. The product itself was invented by the US Navy and is now manufactured and distributed in the USA by FujiFilm-Hunt and in Europe by OXY Group Belgium. The product is called Smart Surfaces and is biologically neutral, no negative effects on marine life. It is guaranteed for at least 5 years but tests have shown that it can last up to 15 years. Barnacles even if they attach themselves, once the ship moves at 8 knots or faster, they just fall off. The coating can be put on any type of hull, metal, wood, polyester, new or old.

You can buy powdered copper…1 level cup to one gallon of paint…everythings legal till you get caught…Iknow for a fact this works.

[QUOTE=catherder;90628]US Navy ships have to comply with the Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS) which cover a variety of shipboard discharges including hull leachate (AF paint that sloughs off, and/or the compounds it releases to the surrounding water).

It’s a work in progress, but I can assure you the Navy can’t just put anything on their bottoms anymore, especially considering the complexity of US law regarding removing same in US shipyards, which are governed by OSHA regulations and are all situated in waters governed by the US EPA. So, no more TBT or other forbidden AF ingredients on Navy bottoms. At least not until they manage to offshore all Navy drydocking to places like Vietnam, Singapore, South Korea and the Philippines.

To add, I have some personal experience with Intersleek paint. Very expensive, needs careful prep, is easy to damage, needs at least 24 hours out of the water to cure, and is not for ships that sit around. Fouling will grow on it, but speed will remove the fouling. Supposed to be easier to scamp, too but I haven’t spoken to any divers lately so I can’t attest to that.

Five years ago, it came out to around 400-450 bucks a gallon, and I think that included the special primer. We painted an LMSR with it, including the CPP blades. That same ship is back in the yard, getting another shave and a haircut. The pics I saw looked pretty clean prior to sweep blast but they may be going with a different AF this time. Anyway, the paint job came out to I think, a million and a half. Maybe the earlier poster who was a paint rep can update us on the price? Dunno if I’d use it on a recreational or fish boat though.

But it’s hella cool once on. Feels slick and rubbery! And it was the most gorgeous blue.[/QUOTE]

Yep, slick and rubbery, kind of like a smooth layer of silicone sealant all over the bottom. I haven’t been in this business since '06 but 4-450/gallon sounds about right for back then, certain to have increased in price some more, raw material costs were skyrocketing due to China buying everything they could get their hands on.

The largest customer for this product now is actually power plants, or other industries with large water intake requirements. Raw water sea chests and gratings would be a good candidate for the product.

One of the companies I represented was Chugoku Marine Paints. Japanese obviously with no large presence in the US market but enormously well respected in the blue water international scene. They actually develop and ‘license’ a lot of their technology to more marketable US companies (hint: Intersleek). They have a copper free, [U]true self polishing [/U]AF called SeaGrandPrix CF 10. If your boat is continuously moving, this would be good bottom paint, not recommended if you spend more than two weeks dockside at a time.