Bottom paint?

[V12diablo]

I recently purchased a 356, the bottom paint is all there and looks to in good shape. I don’t know when it was painted last. It was used mainly used in freshwater rivers and in Charleston Harbour. The boat is currently on the hard so I could have it stripped and repainted prior to me bring it home to Central NY. Should I have it repainted now as I will be spending about a month or so in salt water bring it home? Or should I wait till I get it home back in the freshwater before repainting?

[tomschauer]

If the bottom paint is there, has full coverage and looks good, why repaint it?
I used to sand and paint my bottom every year, back in the day. I firmly believe it was a waste of time and money and caused unneeded build up of bottom paint. For the last 10 years or so, I make sure the bottom is clean, the paint covers all areas and touch up any "thin" areas. Full paint only about every three years. I am in mostly fresh water, some brackish.

[km1125]

If you're going to be in fresh water, totally agree with Tom's comments.

I used to do the annual 'paint the bottom' chore but all I really did was empty my wallet and build up a thick coat.

Once you have a good coat of paint, annually you can 'freshen it up' by just using a little spray bottle filled with Acetone and some Scotchbrite pads (and some gloves). Just spray the paint, wipe a bit with the Scotchbrite pad and move to the next section. I could do the whole bottom of my 36' boat within an hour. It will look like you just painted it. Eventually it will get thin and then you'll need to add some new paint...but that could take YEARS.

[V12diablo]

That’s what I was thinking , but being new to this I just want to what’s best for the boat.

[bud37]

What I have done in clean fresh water is to just lightly scuff the side of the boat to the boot stripe then apply ablative paint to that area only ( the area around the perimeter waterline). This has worked fine as the bottom is pressure washed at haul out and is never very dirty....the sides where the sunlight gets are always worse.

The paint on the bottom seems to last for years even after the anti foul part of the paint is no longer useful. After saying all this it would depend on where your boat is....in some places where the fouling is more aggressive this plan would not work...a few harbours I know of for instance...

[Cooler]

If it was me, I would leave it until you get to the freshwater. If there are no blisters now, the chance you will get any in a month are minimal. You should not just sand off the paint, and then reapply. First step is to find out what paint formula is there now. If it is Interlux Offshore, just wait until you see some actual wear. That formula is extremely durable, made primarily for salt water. If it is Interlux Bottomkote, than you can just clean the surface good and cover over with same formula. If you do sand off the existing layer, then you should get right down to the FG. There should be a coat or 2 of Interprotect as a base coat or primer level. Then 2 coats of actual bottom paint. The problem with not knowing the formula there now, is not all formulas are compatible. If you just cover the existing with wrong paint, it will just peel off in a short time. Interlux publishes a booklet of info, available at any Interlux dealer, to help you with determination of formula. er