Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I need some advice guys. I am rebuilding a 1993 24ft Voyager pontoon boat & will be setting it up strictly for FISHING. It's a "father & son" project that I am enjoying. My son wants to put a new deck on the boat (which I agree with) but he is also talking about putting a "non-skid" finish on it. Vinyl is out of the question to the cost factor & so is aluminum. He is thinking about using a non skid paint or a product we just found out about today called TUFFCOAT.

It has been shown on TV & there are several You Tube videos on the web about it as well. It's a LOT more expensive then using a very good product out of FL that you just paint on. Both products seem to be very good but I really know nothing about either of them. They BOTH are painted on decks, stairs, docks etc & have very good ratings. TUFFCOAT is a rubberized paint & is available from several of the well known dealers "WE ALL" deal with. The other product is only available from a company in FL.

My question is has anyone ever used any non skid products that were painted on & if so do they work OK?. Any advice would be appreciated. We have no intentions of putting carpet on a "fishing boat" under any conditions so we are trying to come up with a low maintenance non skid surface that is durable & doesn't cost an arm & a leg. Would appreciate some help on this subject. PVC decking is also a "no-no" IMO for several reasons. I would go with an all aluminum decking but the cost of aluminum is out of sight & my name isn't Donald Trump. lol

I have experience with cabela's version of the product and though it looked good for maybe a year it then started failing and turned into a ugly looking disaster. All recommended application instructions were followed including priming the wood with a specific primer and protecting the product from moisture for an extended period of time. I do know I'll never use it again with wood anyway, I'm thinking it would probably be ok with aluminum or fiberglass.

How about some marine vinyl at $9 a foot in tan or gray? Ain't a horrible price upgrade overall at $80 bucks a gallon and it probably will last 20 years. PM me if you'd like the link.

The following product is available at TruValue Hardware and online directly from the company:

http://www.amesresearch.com/_Safe-T-Deck.html

Ames' products are triple first class.

Home Depot and/or Lowes are also displaying a new slip resistant product that's used to seal up wood decks. It looks like a thick paint with granules and color. I don't remember the name of the stuff. Their display showed an old highly weathered 5/4 x 6 before and after using this product. It's great looking stuff.

+1 on the vinyl. I spend some time in the mid Atlantic area. The pontoons their have vinyl kits as the rule, not the exception.

I had a company for a number of years that I sprayed truck bed liners. I done a number of pontoons and never had any problems. All customers were very happy. So I would suggest checking around for someone who sprays truck liner or check with the auto parts on a kit and you can do it yourself. It is tough weather doesn't bother it and if you get the right kind it will not fade

Thanks for reply. Question?? Can bed liner be applied directly to a wood deck & still hold up well? Is it available other then Black? My son mentioned to me a product called Rhino Liner & Line-X. I'm not familiar with either of them but my son is checking them out.

I dont think bed liners work on wood....

I did a LOT of checking around yesterday on spray bed liners as well as non skid paints used for decks. WOW is all I can say to the bed liner spray ins. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ is all I can say. I had no idea it would be anywhere near that much with me doing all the "prep" work & masking off the pontoon. I call the two biggest name brand companies & I will NOT be going that way. They "guaranteed" me on the phone the bed liner material could be sprayed directly to the bare wood & even with heavy usage would like new after 5 yrs use. REALLY??? I'd think that is pretty hard to "guarantee" when you don't know how much usage the boat will/will not receive or under what conditions it will be stored. For the "PRICE" of that guarantee I could buy & replace 6 pontoon boat decks & install the best carpet on the market & still have a little change left over.

I also called & talked to several companies in FL & WA state about a product called Kiwi-grip & one called Tuff Coat. I spent the biggest part of the day searching for rubberized floor coverings as well as non-skid coverings. LOTS of companies out there promising big results. Still not sure what we will wind up using but we WILL be using something in a rubberized finish.

Any advice would be appreciated from anyone who has knowledge about any of these non skid finishes.

VA,

look at ronkmiller's post on how he did his floor....

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=15501&p=125993#p125993

Thanks for the link. It was very informative & helped out a LOT.

no problem, I just remember because it seemed cheaper and I thought it was cool.

Don't know what price u were given. Line x is better then the other company u stated. As for guarantee. When I sprayed trucks I gave a lifetime on the product. You can not destroy it I sprayed product called super liner. Cost to spray a truck bed was 450.00. And yes it can be sprayed over Maine plywood. Sprayed plenty of them. Prep is the key to it lasting forever.

Gonefishing wrote:Don't know what price u were given. Line x is better then the other company u stated. As for guarantee. When I sprayed trucks I gave a lifetime on the product. You can not destroy it I sprayed product called super liner. Cost to spray a truck bed was 450.00. And yes it can be sprayed over Maine plywood. Sprayed plenty of them. Prep is the key to it lasting forever.

When I called the local Line X guy in my area he quoted me a price that darn near give me my 2nd heart attack. Try $2800.00 FIRM!! I was going to do ALL the prep work & mask the boat off too. All he had to do was wiped the deck down one last time & spray it. I guess you know who DID NOT get the job don't you? I didn't even bother to ask about a guarantee. I just said "thank you" & hung up the phone.

check out the thread " pontoon stuff provides materials to make my toon new"... go to page 10 and scroll down... check out what handymanherb is using....Looks great!

I love that vinyl, it is tough, even over the holes I drilled for running wires, you still have to heat it to cut it easy