Sand for non slip boat floor

[Andrew72]

What’s the best sand for making non skid/slip floor on flow coat.

And/or is it a bad idea 

[Ed.]

One of the crayboats I used to work on many decades ago in W.A. used dried sand sprinkled on wet gelcoat followed by about another thin coat of flowcoat, and another boat used Silicon Carbide grit, can't remember the size of sand or SiC  grit so you might have to experiment, couple of downsides to them in that they are not so friendly on bare feet and you don't ever want to have to grind them down to redo the floor for whatever reason. Plus you will get savage grazing on your hands or bare legs if you ever do fall down on the floor. Having said that, they do  offer a really good grip but we used to work in 2-3m seas, so occasionally we would get airborn on the deck.

[deegee12g]

When I put a new floor in my boat, I bought a non-slip paint. It came with a container of VERY fine sand that had to be mixed into the paint. It was so fine that I didn't think it would work. So I put a coat of it and a piece of scrap plywood, and I was surprised at how much it roughened the surface, and how effective it was,  But it was not abrasive on bare  feet or tackle. I think that was because it was in the paint, not sprinkled on top of it.  It was inclined to settle to the bottom of the can and had to be stirred regularly to keep it in suspension.

Sorry, but I can't remember the brand, or where I got it , but it may have been from Bunnings.

If you use something like beach sand you could get a very coarse, rough surface, so you should test a small amount on some scrap wood before you mix any serious amounts. I'm not sure what makes paint so expensive, but is not cheap and you won't want to waste it.

Cheers,   Don.

 

[Drop Bear]

On 25/06/2021 at 12:33 PM, Andrew72 said:

What’s the best sand for making non skid/slip floor on flow coat.

And/or is it a bad idea 

It is normally finely ground Pumicestone that you mix in with the paint. Sand sinks to the bottom or the tin so wouldn't brush/roll on.

I think you can use sand if you paint quickly then cast it over the top of the painting while still wet but not sure how that works on a floor application. We used to do this in the film industry to give MDF texture on spaceships and submarines.