Ran out of Pre-kote

I finished the can of Pre-kote after 1 coat, I'm satisfied with the smooth finish after I sand with 220. Will this single coat be enough to hold the Brightside paint or do I need to buy another can? Also remember the epoxy is thin at some lap edges. This is for the inside of a Dory.    Dan


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RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

Absolutely. Epoxy itself is an excellent primer so there wont be any adhesion problems, Primers like PreKote sand easier and finish nicer than epoxy which is why they are used before paintiing S&G boats.

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

Dan,

I agree with Proavocateur.  The sole purpose of PreKode on a completely epoxy-primed surface is to fill minor imperfections.  I would recommend getting the Brightsides on it ASAP given PreKote's tendency to absorb moisture.

Cheers,

Dick

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

   Thanks for the encouragement about the Pre-kote. I work the next 3 days so the earliest I can a cover coat is Tuesday. Your recommendations about cover coat is well heeded. The weather here on the Jersey coast is supposed to be warm and dry, however I am surrounded by water(LBI). How much time are we talking about for the pre-kote to absorb moisture? Is it days or weeks> I difinitely will be painting agian next week. Dan

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

Dan,

Sorry, I was talking about hours.  Hopefully, the air will be dry enough.  If the PreKote absorbs too much moisture, the Brightsides (and anything else) won't adhere well.

Regards,

Dick

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

as dick mentioned above.....it fills the minor imperfections.so almost all of it should get sanded off.  if you have big 'white' sections, you have not sanded it back enough. you should only see small speckles and pin-hole type of fills.

pre-kote in any substantial amount (e.g., large white sections) is actually a pretty lousy substrate with respect to durability IMHO.   very easy to scratch and then the paint/prekote will flake off.  that's why it is important that it is only filling very minor imperfections.   it is not meant as typical primer as in painting a house.

 

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

   Wow.  That explains the orange peel effect I had (inadequate primer sanding).  I had no idea that the sanding was to be that extensive.  

I'm currently sanding (220) to repaint.  I'm not planning to sand down to/thru the primer except where I can't help it.  Do I need to worry about small patches of primer absorbing moisture if it's 2 years old?

RE: Ran out of Pre-kote

I don't think the issue is ther age of the primer, but rather its composition.  The following quote is from CLC:

‘Hi-build' primers contain titanium dioxide, or talcum powder, and once cured can absorb enough moisture to defeat subsequent layers of paint. To avoid moisture build-up, apply it only on dry days, and apply your finish coats as soon as the primer is cured and sanded.

What is not specified is what level of humidity constitutes a dry day.  When I painted my boat, I tried to err on the side of caution.  I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm pretty sure one does not want to trap moisture under the finish coats.  As to how much one should sand PreKote in this context---well it's pretty soft stuff and it's not intended for anything more than filling low spots and imperfections in the epoxy coating.  Brightsides adheres well to epoxy, so if your sanded epoxy coat is flawless you don't need a hi-build primer.

http://www.clcboats.com/shoptips/finishing-tips/painting_polyurethanes.html provides pretty good direction for finishing epoxy-coated boats with one-part polyurethanes.

Cheers!

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