What is the best way of treating old ply

[NB Alnwick]

Some of Alnwick's exterior woodwork, especially the sliding hatch is in desperate need of repainting. I made a start last year but the first three coats bubbled up and have now started to peel off at the edges. Obviously I need to get the wood completely dry first but then what?

 

I have heard of Owatrol oil and others recommend coating the wood with epoxy or using a diluted solution of wood glue - what is the best way to achieve long lasting results?

[alan_fincher]

Back when I had a wooden cabined boat that initially relied on lots of ply, I found it was a characteristic of ply that paint fell off with monotony.

 

Something like Masonite, (oil tempered hardboard), will keep the paint on for years, and personally, I'd probably try and use that as a surface layer on a slide exposed to the elements, rather than trying to make paint stick to exterior ply.

 

Others will no doubt disagree vehemently, but that was my experience.

 

When we bought Chalice she had a wooden slide, and I couldn't wait to replace it in steel.

[dave moore]

Hi Graham

If you can remove the slides for a while and dry them out, I'd recommend that you strip them completely and apply a couple of coats of resin (West system or similar) before priming and repainting in the usual way. We id this with all the external woodwork on Resolute and have had no problems over the past 8 years. PM me for further details if I can be of help.

Cheers

Dave

[Steve Priest]

Hi Graham

If you can remove the slides for a while and dry them out, I'd recommend that you strip them completely and apply a couple of coats of resin (West system or similar) before priming and repainting in the usual way. We id this with all the external woodwork on Resolute and have had no problems over the past 8 years. PM me for further details if I can be of help.

Cheers

Dave

 

I would agree entirely with Dave Moore as to the best solution, but we have also had good results with Blakes epu (epoxy primer/undercoat)

[Malarky]

You'll definately have to strip the paint from any dodgey areas to get it to dry properly, and any rotted areas are best cut out and replaced with fillets of ply of the same size, I'm guessng it would be double skin with blacking on the underside of the top sheet and topside of the bottom. The addition of wood preservative would also be a good precautionary measure. Red oxide paint makes a good initial primer. Joints and edges need sealng for cracks, putty and paint mixes or putty and bitumastic for the middle sandwich is traditional.

Let's hope the weather stays fine, as that is the most important ingredient!