Leaving peel ply surface on the boat deck for better grip?

Hi, yet another question related to my new boat project, one of the last things I'm trying to figure out. My boat will be reinforced with carbon fiber cloth all throughout, with peel ply during layup and vacuuming of course. Peel ply leaves this rough surface finish that is great for bonding to, no amine blush, etc. For the bottom of the boat, I will be adding several more thin coats of epoxy to build up that surface enough to facilitate fairing, priming and painting so it is as slick as possible.

However, the deck (cockpit) does not need to be smooth, and I wonder if it would make sense to prime and paint directly after removing peel ply, or maybe even skip priming because of how good of a bonding surface the peel ply provides (I plan to use epoxy paint). The idea is to save labor, cost, and most importantly - weight. Additionally, the idea is that with no additional layers except paint, the surface should remain relatively rough, providing better grip, maybe so well as to forgo mixing sand into the paint or gluing on yoga mats.

However, my concern is that if I ever need to repair the boat, I don't know if it will be possible to remove the paint from the carbon fiber surface without having to sand into it. I'm not sure if paint removal chemicals will be able to remove epoxy paint the job without damaging the composite (since it is basically epoxy as well). If paint remover is a no-go, would there be any other way to get a good bond with that painted surface if it ever needs to be repaired?

If anyone here has experience with composites, can you please comment on this?

 

I have yet to see a chemical paint stripper that will reliably remove a 2 component paint.If you are planning to spray a really thin layer of paint there might be a faint texture of doubtful grip quality.I also wouldn't expect much non-slip from painting over a peelply textured surface and there might be creases in the peelply,which might look a bit ugly.I would be thinking about granulated cork as a texturing medium as it can be sanded very easily but I do know that others have used salt and expected it to dissolve and leave small craters for grip.As with all such questions,the best way forward is to prepare a small sample.

 

I agree with Wet Feet, the texture left by peel ply is too fine to be useful as nonskid.
There are ways to mold in nonskid, but it’s usually applied to the bottom of a laminate as part of the mold, and gel coated over.
not sure that applying on top would work as well, never tried that.

 

Wet Feet, kapnD, thank you for your comments. Okay, so in that case I should build up epoxy surface on top of the surface that peel ply leaves behind, smooth it, and then proceed with regular priming+painting? On my last boat, I tried mixing in some specialized sand infill into the paint, specifically meant for adding grip. Unfortunately that grit went away within one season from shoes and clothes rubbing on it, so I guess I won't be doing that again. I suppose yoga mat is a better solution...

 

My local fiberglass supplier stocks three sizes of grit. I use the largest one, and apply it with a shaker over wet paint, sweep off excess after base paint dries, and recoat.
If the grit feels too rough, put more paint over it.

 

That is pretty much what I did. But the grit rubbed off within one season. I guess the paint wasn't strong enough to hold it (polyurethane 2 part).

 

Hi Laukejas, try a base coat of paint, then when tacky, lay over it some coarse fly screen material, or shade cloth, paint over it again in place, then when it is tacky again, remove the flyscreen material in a vertical way without sliding it, to leave an evenly textured surface wherever you laid fresh paint. Or cut shaped sections of the mesh material, and leave it on after painting, to grip, and take wear. Good for floors, but may wear out seats of trousers.

 

Damn, now that's smart! I will try this on a sample, sounds very promising. Thank you very much!!