Preparing a hull for painting can be one of a boater's toughest jobs. Traditional power washing is not effective against removing bilge oil film, old paint and blisters. Rougher methods like sanding and chemical treatments can destroy the boat's thin gel coat. ARMEX® blasting the surface removes multiple layers of old paint and opens up blisters for repair in a fraction of the time.
ARMEX® blasting directs a high pressure stream of ARMEX® at the hull using compressed air. Every care is taken not to affect the immediate surroundings by carefully tenting off the area being blasted. All contaminants removed by the ARMEX® blasting process are safely contained and disposed of appropriately.
Applications:
- Boat Buyers Inspections
- Hull Preparation , remove all existing paint from gel coat
- Paint & Anti-fouling Stripping
- Gel coat Safe Stripping
- Hull Blister Preparation, for blister protecting barrier coat
- Eco-Friendly Hull Stripping
- Removal of the gel coat is possible by increasing working pressure
- Cleaning of engines, motors, propellers without dismantling
Benefits include:
- Removes layers of old paint in a fraction of the time of traditional methods
- Removes bilge oil film, old paint and exposes blisters
- Is mobile and can move from boat to boat, yard to yard
- Does not penetrate the protective gel coat
- Ensures hull retains ‘no drag' due to multiple layers of paint being removed
- Environmentally safe using little or no water
Treating and removing boat blisters the easy way
Spotting blisters on an unpainted hull is usually obvious. But when the bottom is camouflaged with multiple layers of paint and marine growth, a less labor-intensive approach is needed. Unlike sanding or corrosive chemicals, ARMEX® blasting boats removes old coats of antifouling and blisters quickly, without damaging non-blistered, bare gel coat, and then properly prepares the surface for repair—all in one operation.
Blisters are most often caused by osmotic intrusion of water into the hull. As water molecules enter the hull, they pick up acids and other chemicals that alter their composition and size, making the molecules larger and trapping them inside. Since these molecules are unable to find their way out, pressure builds up and forces the gel coat to separate from the fiberglass, forming a blister. If the blister breaks while immersed, it allows for greater water intrusion into the fiberglass laminate, and perpetrates the blistering process to deeper levels.
Traditional blister repair involves grinding, sanding or sandblasting the hull. This process is time-consuming, labor intensive and, unless extreme care is taken, can result in severe or permanent damage to the gel coat and fiberglass laminate. IST – Industrial Solutions and Technologies, Moscow, provides a fast, effective and controlled alternative to these conventional methods.
In the ARMEX® Blasting process, a non-destructive stream of air-driven, specially formulated baking soda under high pressure is first used to strip the anti-fouling paint and open the blister. Then, to prepare the surface for repair and repainting, the affected area around the blister is feathered by split-second, swirled "micro-blasting." This finishes the surface in preparation for repair. The entire process can be accomplished in 1/10 the time as traditional techniques, resulting in a properly prepared surface that is ready for blister repair and painting.
ARMEX® Blasting Boats is also environmentally friendly, a major concern for repair yards and marinas. Minimal plastic tenting installed around the work area contains the ARMEX® and old paint for proper disposal.
The actual ARMEX® Blasting step only takes a few hours and, depending on the size of the boat, the entire process can be completed in a day or less.
