[Gator_Bob]

I decided to take the plunge and paint the interior of my boat.  The old factory finish had seen it's better days and painting was my only option.  I decided on using Sherwin & Williams "Tile Clad".  This is an epoxy paint that cleans up with water, it is also used a lot by the shrimp boats.  I have not read anything on this site as regards a review of this type of paint so I thought I would provide my observations. 
1)  The cost for the two part system was $84.  This was enough to do three coats for a 15 mill (dry) thickness and still have enough for a second boat.  I only used half of the one gal+quart mix.

2)  The pain comes in a lot of colors and can be mixed to match a lot more.  I chose S&W "Tradewind" which was a light blue/gray.  This made a nice contrast to the white gel coat of the exterior and does not show dirt as easily.

3)  The one thing that was of particular note is when mixing the components you have to wait 30 min before applying. This has a pot life of 3 1/2 hours after mixing so there is no rush like the oil based finishes that I have used in the past.

4)  The paint was applied with a brush and roller and even with the brush there was no brush marks when the paint dried.

5)  I opted for a slight sand finish on the final coat.

6)  As a final touch I painted the aluminum rub rail with a rubberized paint after priming with an aluminum primer. 

 

[firecat1981]

Curious? why did you go with the water based as apposed to the solvent based? I may be using this for a project very soon.

 

[Gator_Bob]

Some of the reasons for using the water based:

1. Low odor.

2. Easy clean-up

3. Longer pot life, as in it flows over the brush marks and am not rushed to finish. With solvent based finishes you need to work fast (in hot weather)

4. The durability of the finish is equal to the solvent based finish (this is what my research indicated) I will keep the forum posted of any problems.

 

[Swamp]

Please do. I called Sherwin Williams and the rep I talked to said they were having some serious blushing/dulling issues here in the FL sun. I'd rather hear first hand experience. Prove them wrong. The stuff sounds good to use, cheap, easy to use, and durable.

 

[Gator_Bob]

I did not have blushing or dulling issues. I do my work in a shop with some control over the environment.

 

[Swamp]

Sorry, I was unclear, the concern expressed by the rep was from post application sun exposure. I did not mean to imply your technique/skill was anything other than as good as it looks in the pics.

 

[Gator_Bob]

From what I was told at Sherwin & William here is that some of the painters do not follow the instructions and this is what causes the blushing. One requirement for this system is that it takes 7 days to cure 100%. So for the next 7 days the boat will stay in the shop away from direct sunlight, rain or fishing trips etc. Also note the requirements for 30 minutes for setting the mixture and then re-stir the mix, a four to one mix etc. It has been my experience that when some has had a bad experience with a product it was because they did not follow the instructions completely. I have been guilty of this myself. If you "Google" tile clad on the S&W site they address this.

To bad I still have enough to do another boat. If I had another boat the basic cost would have been $42. Not bad for an epoxy finish.

 

[Swamp]

No doubt about that, me too. Let us know how it holds up. I have a project that it may be perfect for.

Did you prime the interior (and with what if you did) before the applying tile clad? I assume you scuffed/sanded the gelcoat if applied straight.

Boat looks great BTW Should have pointed that out to start with.

Swamp

 

[firecat1981]

7 DAYS???

Man does the solvent based mix cure faster? I'll have to look into it. I was going to pick up some for the cooler I am building. I spoke with the SW rep a while back and the solvent based is a 1:1 mix so it was a 2 gallon kit. I don't want this thing setting up in my garage for 7 days, and I couldn't let my new boat wait for 7 days after paint to go fishing.

EDIT: I just looked up all the info and the waterbased (tile-clad II) has a max cure time of 7 days in most temps, but can be handled after a few hours. However the solvent based one (tile-clad HS) can have a dry time of up to 21 days if it's cool out . Looks like I'm sticking with waterbased. Both have a sweat-in-time that changes with the temps.

 

[firecat1981]

PS. I love the color, thats what I was thinking of doing on my whole boat and then web the top and decks.

 

[Gator_Bob]

I suppose I could use the boat after a couple of days of setting up but I choose to wait.  I am very pleased at the ease of application, finish and clean up.  I plan to take the boat out and get all kinds of mud, shells, fish blood and let it set up with this and then wash it off and see how it cleans up.  I do not store it outside so a test of ultraviolet light is out of the question.  Hey if I screw it up I still have enough to paint it all over again!

PS: I sanded the surface with 80 grit sand paper to give the surface some tooth. This is a good practice for all painting. They make a primer for this but I was told that mostly steel is where you would use it or an incompatible painted surface. The store rep said painting over the factory webing would not be a problem.

 

[mark_gardner]

looks like new please keep us all updated as to how it wears, this might be a great product for some of us

 

[jr88]

so, why can't I see any pix ?

 

[Gator_Bob]

I can see it. Do you get a red X in a box? Try to right click and down load picture.

 

[jr88]

No, don't see any red x or even that a pix is posted, other than everyone else talking about it. Hmmm.

 

[firecat1981]

I know it hasn't been very long, but any updates? hows it holding up?

 

[Gator_Bob]

I took the boat out last week and did my best to dirty it up with mud on my feet, shrimp smeared in some locations and then let it dry over night. I used only a stiff brush and water (no soap) and the dirt/shrimp came off very easily. I was very impressed and see why the shrimp boat industry uses it. As far as nicks and dings, I did drop a pair of pliers and noticed a small nick in the finish. Overall I am very pleased with the performance of the finish.

 

[levip]

hey bob you said youve got a gallon left right? wanna sell what youve got left?

 

[Delmer]

Can this product be sprayed or is it reccommended to roll or brush on?

 

[Gator_Bob]

It can be sprayed.