by Rolf » Tue Oct 11, 2011 10:59 am
Kiwigrip was very easy to work, provided that you could work quickly. I started applying it in the morning with the boat outside and the sun shining on the deck. Temperature was in the low to mid 70s and humidity was low. I troweled the material onto the deck, first spreading it with a 4" plastic spackling knife and then evening it out using a V-notched trowel (~1/8 - 3/16"). Total time at this point was ~3 minutes. Rolling with the "Kiwigrip roller" followed immediately thereafter and I noticed it drying already. I had to work fast. I then moved the boat inside the barn and allowed the deck to cool down for 1/2 hour and tried another taped off field. The drying time increased a little bit, but not by much. Bottom line is that you need to plan and have everything taped off, and all the cleaned tools required at your side, including the roller. Under these conditions, I recommend that each field and rolling iteration be completed in about 5 minutes. I suspect that the optimal temperature for maximizing the open time of this water based product for those who cannot work fast is between 55 and 65 degrees. It should be noted that the manufacturer doesn't recommend application below 50 degrees. After each field is finished, throw all of the tools and roller into a bucket of water to clean them immediately. Two wash cycles are best. If one is okay with the above application caveats, then I cannot imagine an easier and better looking product to apply.
The texture of the coat after rolling it out is very even, but it is a little rougher than I would have liked to see (close up pictures will follow). My suspicion is that it will wear down after a season of use to where the crew will not get a rash on their backsides every time they slide around to adjust weight. I think the chance of someone slipping on a pitching wet surface is as close to zero as one can get. I didn't experiment, but one could probably use a finer roller than that supplied by Kiwigrip, or add water (or better yet a 10-20% solution of propylene glycol in water) to the product to thin it out. I think Kiwigrip should probably sell a glycol containing retarder to add to their product, providing users more flexibility in this regard. I won't charge them for this consult. This should allow it to go on thinner with a less aggressive "nap."
The other cool thing about Kiwigrip is that you can computer color match any surface by taking a sample to a paint store and simply have them tint the white Kiwigrip product. This is way better than simply painting over the white as when it wears down, you'll always have a surface that maintains a consistent hue.
Would I use this product again? Absolutely. I'm a believer.