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I am getting ready to paint the bottom on my DE 38. Can't remember how many gallons it took per coat. This one is new to me and my last DE was 20 years ago so... fading memory? Approximately how many gallons needed for 2 coats?
And what brand/type of bottom paint(s) have you used? My boat is located in warmer water on the Mexico upper west coast. I will be buying the paint in the States and bringing it down.
Thanks for the help!
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We put 4 coats on last time we hauled and used 4 or 5 gallons? Part of that was the people painting not saving paint for parts of the rudder and keel that had work done to them and we had to buy another gallon to finish up.
2 gallons should do it but 3 would be safer.
Look at the spread rate and figure 5ft x 38ft x 2 = 350 sqft per coat (based on 5 ft depth from the water line x the length of the boat x 2 sides of the boat. this would be the calculation per coat. 2 coats is 2x, 3 coats 3x this 
So if the paint is a standard 400 sq ft per gallon coverage you would need two gallons.Some of them don't cover that much though. I swear by paints with a 60% or better copper content. east coast saltwater and we will get good growth suppression for 4 to 5 years.
Two haulouts ago it was trinidad with 75% copper that was put on it and the last haul out was a west marine copy cat of trinidad that was 60% copper. Trinidad was 300 a gallon and the west marine stuff on sale 100 a gallon so we tried it.. seems to have worked really well. last year early when I checked it last at about 3 years in we had light barnacles at the water line with just scattered small stuff on the hull down to about 2 feet from the waterline. A little weed here and there at the bottom of the keel. The prop always has issues and is almost unusable every 3 to 6 months so it needs cleaning regularly. other than that I jump in once a year with a scraper and lightly clean waterline and scattered barnacles on the rest of the hull.
Your milage may vary as conditions are different depending on your location.
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Scott,
Thanks for the info and calculations. I had used the same formula but glad to have your input also. I agree with high copper content. Sooner or later by the looks of it, there will be no copper in any bottom paint at all. Gone the way of the DoDo bird.
Just for fun, I did some internet price shopping for ablative bottom paints and this is a sampling with copper % content and price per gallon:
West Marine Bottom Shield - 28% $140 gal
West Marine PCA - 47.5% $200 gal
Interlux Micron 66 - 40% copper $310 gal
Trinidad SR - 65% $280 gal
Blue Water - 45% $120 gal (includes 1 quart of additive free with order)
Blue Water - 67% $205 gal (same as above)
The Blue Water paints I found at http://www.ipaints.us and also http://www.bottompaint.us (the second site looks to be the manufacturer) It is sold under a number of other brand names I found during my search. But hey... at 45 and 67% copper for the above prices, not bad comparatively. (Plus, the free quart additive with extra gunk killers) 
OK, bottom paint food for thought.
Cheers!
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You can buy cuprous oxide on ebay or at some hardware stores and add it to ablative paint to increase the copper content...that's probably the "additive" they charge you 400% for a diluted version.
"The only thing that works on an old sailboat....is the owner!"
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Thanks BlackIrish, that's good to know. Much appreciated!
I'm from the old school days when you would see boat yards or DIY'ers adding TBT or even ground rat poison to the paint. I have been out of contact with the marine industry for the past 6 years and boy things have sure tightened up on additives and paint types.
Everything is bad for us now! 
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Sailfish said
Thanks BlackIrish, that's good to know. Much appreciated!I'm from the old school days when you would see boat yards or DIY'ers adding TBT or even ground rat poison to the paint. I have been out of contact with the marine industry for the past 6 years and boy things have sure tightened up on additives and paint types.
Everything is bad for us now!
I'm with you man. On one hand I like a smooth, clean bottom. The copper antifouling paints work great...so great in fact, that when they slough off they continue to do the job in the open marine environment, which adversely effects my love of seafood and ocean critters in general. I fully support the EPA regulation here in CA...as long as it's enforced upon commercial and international shipping vessels (in addition to my little boat) that get cleaned in our busy harbor. I wager to say they look the other way in that regard, and copper contamination is a drop in the bucket when tallying all the other crap port and inland facilities drain into our oceans. Moreover, the science on ablative bottom paints is still pretty new. Who knows if it really is the lesser evil? 
If I didn't have my friend cleaning my bottom every month for next to nothing (18 pack of Tecate) I would be tempted to use a more aggressive copper based anti-fouling paint...but my current arrangement is pretty sweet.
"The only thing that works on an old sailboat....is the owner!"
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BlackIrish77 said
If I didn't have my friend cleaning my bottom every month for next to nothing (18 pack of Tecate) I would be tempted to use a more aggressive copper based anti-fouling paint...but my current arrangement is pretty sweet.
Hey... that's a darn good rate for a bottom clean. Maybe I should try that where I am.
I take it he gets the Tecate afterwards and not before??? CWI (cleaning while intoxicated)
Either way, it's a great deal for you.
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Sailfish said
I am getting ready to paint the bottom on my DE 38. Can't remember how many gallons it took per coat. This one is new to me and my last DE was 20 years ago so... fading memory? Approximately how many gallons needed for 2 coats?And what brand/type of bottom paint(s) have you used? My boat is located in warmer water on the Mexico upper west coast. I will be buying the paint in the States and bringing it down.
Thanks for the help!
I've just come off the slip after putting 8 litres (4 litres per coat with enough to do a third coat around the running edges) on "Tondelayo'. I use International Micron Extra (2 x 4ltr tins at approx. $AU200 per tin and it is good for 18 months over here in Jervis Bay with water temps ranging from approximately 13 degrees Celsius to 26 degrees Celsius). I apply by cutting in with a brush and rolling the rest.
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Feels good doesn't it.
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I just finished a scrap and paint. 3 gallons was the amount. I two coated the hull, then applied a 3rd coat to the leading edge of the rudder, around the waterline and down about a foot, and inverted triangle upwards from the galley thru hull drain to the waterline. What ever paint your budget can afford with the highest copper content. Have fun, I know I didn't.
Travis
Travis and Kim
S/V WundorStar
DE 38 Ketch
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