topside paint and cracked non skid

[ataylor233]

soooo i'm a bit confused as to what i should do i have a 86 Carver 3207.My aft desks non skid is full of cracks and a chip my forward deck and paint looks extra crappy when its wet, when its dry it looks white when its wet it has a yellowish brown color near the chain locker opening..... Should i Repaint everything?
The previous owner let it sit in the weather for the winter not shrink wrapped.
1.There is allot of oxidation all over the hull.
2. If i choose to paint the entire boat should i use the roll tip method or spray it?
3. The entire Deck just sucks, allot of cracks in the non skid, whats the best way to deal with this?or should i just put carpet and over it?
Has anyone ever painted using the roll tip method i'm curious if the finish is smooth?

[tomschauer]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the yellowish color may quite possibly be moisture in the wood under the fiberglass. You should check this with a moisture meter before trying to repair or cover it up.

[g36]

Before deciding to paint the hull and topsides I would try cutting buffing and polish ,waxing a area. It's time consuming but it's something that I would rather do than painting. Roll and tip can produce very g ood results but may not be necessary. You May Be Very Surprised.

[waybomb]

Our boat sat uncovered and unused for ten years.
A Makita buffer, a bunch of pads, 1,2,3 3M perfect-it and many hours of machine buffing brought ours back to like new. Try it before painting.

[Viper]

I agree with all the above. Painting should be your last choice and only after it's been confirmed that a multi stage polish won't work. Even then, don't condemn it until you try wet sanding first, then polishing. Unless there's very little gel left, as mentioned above, you'd be surprised at how good the results can be. Try a small area first (3'x3') then assess. Keep in mind that when it's in bad shape, a simple polish may look great right after you do it but fade very quickly days later. This is your cue that an additional process is required.

You can't simply paint over cracked decks without repairing the cracks first or they'll simply show through again eventually. The issue you're describing doesn't sound promising and doing anything cosmetic wouldn't make any sense without addressing the underlying problem first. Unless you know how to proceed, have the proper equipment, and know what to look for to determine what's going on, I'd recommend getting a fiberglass professional to take a look at it first. The cracking may be superficial gel cracks or worse. It may involve simply sanding off the non-skid and rolling a new non-skid layer on, or cutting out the top glass layer and replacing the core. The chain locker area certainly seems as though it's a core issue, pretty common for that area in any boat brand. If you have an expert deal with core repairs, you can have them stop there and roll out the non-skid yourself or consider laying down one of the synthetic deck products as most are DIY friendly.

[ataylor233]

Source of the post I agree with all the above. Painting should be your last choice and only after it's been confirmed that a multi stage polish won't work. Even then, don't condemn it until you try wet sanding first, then polishing. Unless there's very little gel left, as mentioned above, you'd be surprised at how good the results can be. Try a small area first (3'x3') then assess. Keep in mind that when it's in bad shape, a simple polish may look great right after you do it but fade very quickly days later. This is your cue that an additional process is required.

You can't simply paint over cracked decks without repairing the cracks first or they'll simply show through again eventually. The issue you're describing doesn't sound promising and doing anything cosmetic wouldn't make any sense without addressing the underlying problem first. Unless you know how to proceed, have the proper equipment, and know what to look for to determine what's going on, I'd recommend getting a fiberglass professional to take a look at it first. The cracking may be superficial gel cracks or worse. It may involve simply sanding off the non-skid and rolling a new non-skid layer on, or cutting out the top glass layer and replacing the core. The chain locker area certainly seems as though it's a core issue, pretty common for that area in any boat brand. If you have an expert deal with core repairs, you can have them stop there and roll out the non-skid yourself or consider laying down one of the synthetic deck products as most are DIY friendly.

i've had someone look at it they are not severe but more surface gelcoat cracks . I was going to sand the decks down rePaint and non skid... there a few gelcoat stress cracks i am capable of repairing them before repainting.

[ataylor233]

Thanks guys for all your help in the spring i'm going to polish her up and see what comes of it .. over the winter i will sand the rear decks and non skid to see how it turns out .... as far as the discoloration you can only really see it when the deck is wet. and its in a few places i will check it out ....i got lucky and only spent 4k on the boat with 400 hours on the engines the surveyor gave it the seal of approval with a few minor repairs. so it's been on the water and out on a few trips for the last 4 months and seems to be mechanically in great shape .