OUR GOAL: Be The Bottom Paint Experts
Here at JD, we’ve been helping boaters choose the right paint for their boats for over 40 years. We take pride in offering the widest selection, the largest volume of reviews from real customers, practical how-to information, and unmatched customer support. But with so many different choices available, choosing a paint that suits your boat, budget, and delivers reliable fouling protection can be a challenge.
We’ve made it our mission to learn everything we can about bottom paint, and to help take the mystery out of how antifouling paints work. We’ve spent the last six summers testing different paints in different locations, even partnering with a local university to better understand how factors like current, sunlight, and water temperature can impact fouling. In addition, our annual bottom paint survey has yielded thousands of detailed data points from boaters worldwide.
BOTTOM PAINT SURVEY RESULTS
Our annual Bottom Paint Survey asks customers to tell us which paint they used, and to assess its performance. With a record 3,000 responses from our 2018 survey alone (more than 2016 and 2017 combined), it was easy to find trends in paint preference and performance by region. First, we grouped paints by type, then calculated average paint ‘scores’, where a score of 1 indicates a surface covered in hard shell fouling, and 4 represents a clean bottom, devoid of any growth (Refer to the key below for a more detailed breakdown of scores). Take a look:
Our survey also asks questions about boat type, size, usage, storage, and geographic location. Boat type matters, because many ablative paints wear away too quickly when used on high-speed powerboats. Hard bottom paints are often a better choice in this situation. Usage is an important consideration. Many antifouling paints release fresh biocides only when the vessel is underway. If life doesn't allow you to be out on the water very often, consider a self-polishing copolymer ablative. These innovative paints release fresh biocide even when the boat isn't moving. Geographic location matters. Colder waters with short recreational boating seasons have different fouling conditions than warmer waters with seasons that run year-round.
WE CAN HELP YOU FIND THE RIGHT PAINT
A clean hull is faster, more fuel efficient, and safer. Knowing which paints are popular in your area is a good start. But there are other considerations, like environmental regulations, paint compatibility, whether your boating seasons run year round or ends on Labor Day, whether your boat is trailered or in the water all season, whether slime is a problem in your area, whether you need to be able to haul and relaunch without repainting, and how often you use your boat. Talk to the bottom paint specialists at JD for expert advice, and let us help you find the right paint for your needs.