Best Bitumen Blacking

[Ratty's Retreat]

Hello All.

Blacking needs redoing, currently Rytex premium. Chandler no longer sells Rytex but stocks Kalma? which is apparently made by same company as Rytex, I believe it's a new product and I am reluctant to be a guinea pig.

I would like best protection and ideally a matt finish, any recommendations as to best bitumen, please.

Thank you.

John

[rusty69]

How about another chandler? 

Edited May 12, 2017 by rusty69

[matty40s]

Rytex is still available from many other suppliers, some of whom even deliver!!!!!!!

[Bloomsberry]

If you are in a marina environment then any bitumen product will probably be a waste of time due to oil/diesel slicks on the water surface which strips the bitumen from the waterline.

 

I am in a marina environment and 3 times I have had my boat blacked with bitumen and 3 times I've had rust at the waterline within a few months.

 

As an alternative I did a DIY epoxy blacking last year which so far , 10 months later is looking fine with no rust whatsoever at the waterline.

 

The preperation was quite time consuming though but I think it was worth it.

[Ratty's Retreat]

I'm on the River Wey, would love to epoxy but preparation time and cost too great, so stuck with bitumen.

Sorry did not word the question clearly, which make of bitumen is the longest lasting, are there advantages using a marine bitumen or can I get better bitumen at the builders merchants? I don't mind paying a bit more for a longer lasting material, or is all bitumen blacking similar? 

[Neil2]

It's all the same stuff I reckon, there's a limit to what you can do with a bitumen based product they all have the same fatal flaw ie will be attacked by solvents.  At least if you are on a river you won't have the problem of floating diesel slicks which are everywhere these days on the canals.

This issue has come up several times on the forum and I have yet to hear anyone explain what the difference is between so called marine products and something like Black Jack from the builders merchants.  

[blackrose]

Bitumen blacking is all much of a muchness. It's all crap really. None of it will last more than a couple of years so it's not worth worrying about which brand.