FAQ

Eco-Clad® is a new class of active antifouling paint that works with nature to form a natural biofilm on the coated area. This biofilm prevents hard fouling (which creates drag that reduces speed and increases fuel consumption) and also forms a slick layer which reduces the hull’s drag, increasing speed and reducing fuel consumption. The film is naturally regenerative, providing the benefit over the life of the coating.

Improvements in speed and fuel consumption are vessel & conditions specific, so it is not possible to forecast exact performance improvements. Test boats have demonstrated between 2-10% improvements in both speed and fuel economy. Your performance improvement may vary.

Eco-Clad® has been shown to work in all climates and conditions. Our proving grounds include some rapid fouling, tropical waters –it works great!

We’re sure you’re going to love it, but Eco-Clad® is very hard wearing and durable, and is compatible with most conventional antifouling paints. Therefore you can paint over Eco-Clad® with other products.

No. While we stand behind our product and warrant it against manufacturer’s defects, there is no way to predict all the situations that people can create using their boats, so we cannot warrant their hull.

Eco-Clad® is available only through Certified Dealers. Find a boat bottom paint dealer near you.

For now, we are selling Eco-Clad® through Authorized Dealers. We are doing so to ensure the paint if applied in accordance with our directions. We do not want people to have a negative experience that could come with a poor application.

Eco-Clad® can be applied over many old paints with an appropriate tie coat or primer.

We have the right Eco-Clad® primer for most situations, and often times standard, commercially available primers can be used as well.

Yes it does. The more you operate your boat, the greater the savings Eco-Clad® brings. However, running your boat is not a requirement for Eco-Clad® to be effective. Eco-Clad® repels fouling both underway and at the dock –equally well. (This is not the case with “foul release” coatings that requirement consistent boat movement to be effective.)

As with any antifouling coating, your boat should be inspected and scrubbed regularly around the water line, especially in tropical waters. Testing shows that Eco-Clad requires about a third the maintenance of traditional coatings, but the procedure is the same. In fact, Eco-Clad is so hard wearing that it stands up to stiff cleaning that would damage most antifouling coatings, making the process easier to perform.

We recommend that the boat be power-washed once or twice a year (as needed) and inspected regularly as the local waters demand.

Eco-Clad® paint can easily perform for multiple seasons. The need for reapplication of the paint depends on use conditions and abrasions encountered during use. Eco-Clad® paint can be repaired in case of minor damage.

While an Eco-Clad paint job may be a little more expensive than bargain antifouling coatings, the average boat-owner will have a lower cost of ownership due to the longevity, reduced fuel consumption and reduced maintenance costs provided by Eco-Clad®.

Eco-Clad is a single coat product. One coat of Eco-Clad gives the equivalent coating thickness of at least two coats of other antifouling paints, saving application time.

Eco-Clad® is only sold through Authorized Dealers, as a component of a hull painting (lift, block, was, sand, prime, paint, etc.), so the price is integrated into the total cost of the job.

The average boat-owner will have a lower total cost of ownership due to the longevity, reduced fuel consumption and maintenance costs provided by Eco-Clad®.

Eco-Clad® does not lose effectiveness following seasonal dry storage. We recommend a power wash and light sanding before re-immersion.

There is no need to immediately launch a boat right after painting.

Eco-Clad® FastCoat can be applied down to 50°F.

Yes, our registration number is 87687-1.

Eco-Clad® uses a natural forming, living biofilm to resist fouling.

Eco-Clad® is low in VOCs

While we cannot claim we are non-toxic (nor can ANY antifouling paint), our testing shows that we are not toxic to multiple sensitive organisms; such as shrimp and minnows –routinely used to measure for toxicity. However we need to register under FIFRA because we are classified as an “Antifoulant”.

We are registered from Maine through Texas and are preparing to sell Eco-Clad® throughout the US.

Eco-Clad® FastCoat™ is very low VOC (<160g/l), similar to water based products.

We continue to test globally; including East & West Coasts of the US, Hawaii, Florida, Caribbean, North Sea, & Baltic Sea as well.

Yes, we utilize metallic copper as part of the biofilm food source. The copper meets the requirement for potable water pipes in the US.

Unlike other copper-containing paints, Eco-Clad® releases copper at a dramatically reduced rate –so low, in fact, it supports life.

Ablative paints wash away in sea water. Eco-Clad® does not. Eco-Clad® is a consumed by the biofilm very slowly to repel fouling.

Eco-Clad® is extremely hardwearing.

Eco-Clad® is antifouling bottom paint. It is extremely durable and may contribute to barrier properties, but it is not a barrier coating. It is compatible with most barrier technologies on the market.

Eco-Clad® is available in Black, Blue, Red and Green

Eco-Clad is an epoxy coating, so it “cures” as well as “dries”. Cure/dry time depends on a number of factors, including temperature, humidity and coating thickness. Under typical summer conditions, Eco-Clad® FastCoat is dry to the touch in 4 hours and can be launched the next day.

For previously painted hulls, sand the surface with 60 grit sand paper, do a solvent wipe down, prime (one coat) with our First Coat Primer and apply one coat of Eco-Clad®. For new hulls, de-wax and sand the bottom, apply a two component barrier primer and finish with one coat of Eco-Clad®

Eco-Clad® FastCoat can be applied by roller, brush or conventional airless spray. Application details are available in the product data sheet.

It’s not recommended. The unique chemistry of Eco-Clad® is somewhat water soluble until it is cured, so avoid direct water contact until the coating is fully dry.