Paint that will not dry

[sueanddaren]

When we bought the boat the previous owner gave me a 1 litre tin of the same green paint. I have tried it on a small scratch and it is a perfect match however it does not dry, even after a week in hot sunny weather. I assumed it was cellulose paint as that's what I managed to clean the brush with having failed with white spirit. The boat is also spray painted.

So far I have tried adding Owtrol to a small sample with no luck and epoxy hardener again with no luck. Does anyone know what I can add to make it dry?    

[bizzard]

10 minutes ago, sueanddaren said:

When we bought the boat the previous owner gave me a 1 litre tin of the same green paint. I have tried it on a small scratch and it is a perfect match however it does not dry, even after a week in hot sunny weather. I assumed it was cellulose paint as that's what I managed to clean the brush with having failed with white spirit. The boat is also spray painted.

So far I have tried adding Owtrol to a small sample with no luck and epoxy hardener again with no luck. Does anyone know what I can add to make it dry?    

Cellulose paint has a very pungent powerful smell, very different to ordinary oil paint.  Cellulose thinners will clean oil paint off brushes indeed most paints. Most Ordinary oil paint uses linseed oil as the dryer.

 

12 minutes ago, sueanddaren said:

When we bought the boat the previous owner gave me a 1 litre tin of the same green paint. I have tried it on a small scratch and it is a perfect match however it does not dry, even after a week in hot sunny weather. I assumed it was cellulose paint as that's what I managed to clean the brush with having failed with white spirit. The boat is also spray painted.

So far I have tried adding Owtrol to a small sample with no luck and epoxy hardener again with no luck. Does anyone know what I can add to make it dry?    

clean

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

Can you provide images of the labels on the can?

Will help identify what paint you’re using. 
 

Does the paint at least go tacky to the touch?
 

[sueanddaren]

16 minutes ago, bizzard said:

Cellulose paint has a very pungent powerful smell, very different to ordinary oil paint.  Cellulose thinners will clean oil paint off brushes indeed most paints. Most Ordinary oil paint uses linseed oil as the dryer.

 

clean

Are you suggesting using Linseed oil?

Are you suggesting using Linseed oil?

14 minutes ago, beerbeerbeerbeerbeer said:

Can you provide images of the labels on the can?

Will help identify what paint you’re using. 
 

Does the paint at least go tacky to the touch?
 

After about a month it goes bobbly but is still soft.

[Onewheeler]

Why not ring the supplier and ask them?!

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

There will be someone here able to answer your question. 
I’m certainly none the wiser. 

 

You could keep it as anti vandal paint for something/somewhere 😃

[sueanddaren]

Just rung them, they think it might be something called spiezeca (but they can't be sure) and a tin of hardener is £45 plus £10 P and P or it might be something else.

[PCSB]

It looks like an auto paint as in cars, in which case you will need a hardener. Usually known as 2 pack paint. It is an epoxy based paint I believe. Whereabouts are you?

[Puffling]

4 minutes ago, sueanddaren said:

Just rung them, they think it might be something called spiezeca (but they can't be sure) and a tin of hardener is £45 plus £10 P and P or it might be something else.

I'd walk away from this paint now while you can.

Add an app such as  Color Harmony to your phone and take a photo of your boat surface in neutral light without shadows. You can compute the RAL number of the paint you need and then take it to a paint centre to get them to mix precisely some undercoat and gloss paint to that colour.

 

You'll probably have spent less than £40 and you'll have known quality paint you'll be able to use for touch up for years ahead

[sueanddaren]

16 minutes ago, PCSB said:

It looks like an auto paint as in cars, in which case you will need a hardener. Usually known as 2 pack paint. It is an epoxy based paint I believe. Whereabouts are you?

Cheshire

[Tracy D'arth]

I suspect that it could be 2 pack polyurethane car finish. We used it in the '70.  It had a prime mist cote of adhesive then a full coat of mixed with hardener. 

[Tony Brooks]

Just to point out that a local auto paint supplier supplied and mixed ordinary oil based paint to a Masons colour. However, I don't think that you have ordinary oil based paint and go with Puffing. Any trade paint supplier can probably scan the paint in the can and then mix oil based gloss to match. I used Johnsons Paints for the boat.

 

If you know any painters, they may have a set of colour cards that can be matched to your boat. It does not have to be a RAL colour, it could be one of the BS standards.

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

If it’s a perfect match then it’d be worth finding the correct hardener?

 

 

[PCSB]

9 minutes ago, sueanddaren said:

Cheshire

If you are passing Middlewich in the next day or two, we are moored on the branch, I can let you have some hardener to see if it will work. 

[blackrose]

I once had a textured deck paint that wouldn't go off because I couldn't apply it thinly enough. If it's a single part paint then the only reason I can think of that would prevent it drying is that it's been applied too thickly so that it skins over before the solvents beneath can escape.

 

If it's an epoxy then it needs hardener mixed in at the correct proportions. 

 

Personally I'd never use any paint on my boat unless I knew what it was and had access to the technical data sheet.

Edited October 12, 2023 by blackrose

[Alan de Enfield]

5 minutes ago, blackrose said:

Personally I'd never use any paint on my boat unless I knew what it was and had access to the technical data sheet.

 

Where is @LadyG when you need her ?

[sueanddaren]

12 minutes ago, PCSB said:

If you are passing Middlewich in the next day or two, we are moored on the branch, I can let you have some hardener to see if it will work. 

Thanks can you pm me your details?

[blackrose]

43 minutes ago, PCSB said:

It looks like an auto paint as in cars, in which case you will need a hardener. Usually known as 2 pack paint. It is an epoxy based paint I believe. Whereabouts are you?

 

I thought most auto paints were cellulose based rather than epoxies?

 

You're suggesting mixing an epoxy hardener that you've got into an unknown paint? Good luck with that. Test it on something first rather than the boat. Even if the OP's paint is an epoxy, the hardener required will be specific to the paint, they aren't generic.

[PCSB]

2 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

I thought most auto paints were cellulose based rather than epoxies?

 

You're suggesting mixing an epoxy hardener that you've got into an unknown paint? Good luck with that. Test it on something first rather than the boat. Even if the OP's paint is an epoxy, the hardener required will be specific to the paint, they aren't generic.

Hence why I said "I can let you have some hardener to see if it will work" ... 

[Mike Hurley]

13 hours ago, blackrose said:

 

I thought most auto paints were cellulose based rather than epoxies?

 

 

Cellulose went of fashion in early 80s. its all water based acrylic polyurethane enamel now, better for the environment apparently.

[howardang]

43 minutes ago, Mike Hurley said:

Cellulose went of fashion in early 80s. its all water based acrylic polyurethane enamel now, better for the environment apparently.

Nothing to say about the paint but this does remind me of something in the 1970's when there was a lot of offshore work taking place. The story goes that someone was offered some surplus cement which originally destined for an offshore platform. Apparently he acquired it at a very cheap rate and he  used it on his house driveway. Unfortunately, the seller neglected to tell him that it was  cement which only sets when underwater! I don't suppose that he made that mistake again.🤥

 

Howard

[blackrose]

1 hour ago, Mike Hurley said:

Cellulose went of fashion in early 80s. its all water based acrylic polyurethane enamel now, better for the environment apparently.

 

Ok so it's not epoxy then. I thought that sounded a bit odd.

Edited October 13, 2023 by blackrose

[matty40s]

15 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Where is @LadyG when you need her ?

Down the SML warehouse....

[BEngo]

Modern car polyurethane is meant to be baked on.  If you go to a modern body shop there are heat lamps everywhere.    I am not sure whether they have a UV element as well.

 

If heating a sample patch in a domestic electric oven  to about 100C ( not gas or  the solvents may well catch fire) does not set it,  best thing the OP can do with his paint is ditch it.  

 

N

[Stroudwater1]

4 minutes ago, BEngo said:

Modern car polyurethane is meant to be baked on.  If you go to a modern body shop there are heat lamps everywhere.    I am not sure whether they have a UV element as well.

 

If heating a sample patch in a domestic electric oven  to about 100C ( not gas or  the solvents may well catch fire) does not set it,  best thing the OP can do with his paint is ditch it.  

 

N

 

It’s a perfect match though. Let’s see if a hardener will do the job.

 

Do the heat lamps in a narrowboat shed get that hot? Seems likely to be causing internal fires at 100c on the exterior? 
 

The epoxy I have was washed off with a cellulose smelling thinner T0200 but it’s termed a universal epoxy thinners. My epoxy is  definitely is not water based.