# yacht varnish poisoning



## Zakk (Oct 15, 2008)

do all yacht varnishes say harmful to the environment and aquatic life? Is this just when its wet i take it as it seems rediculous that something for boats is that harmful.


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

pretty much. It's fine when its cured, it's really a case of a 'don't go pouring down drains' warning. 

Although most 'yacht' varnish isn't really for boats. If you look at the ones in B&Q etc, they have pictures of doors on rather than boats. Proper boat varnish is pretty expensive.


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## Zakk (Oct 15, 2008)

ah i see, thanks so much.


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## Lotus Nut (Jan 7, 2008)

Just use exterior or normal varnish if its for basic water proofing or resistant, much cheaper than it being labeled 'yacht'


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

Yacht varnish costs £8.50 at screw fix for 750mm exterior varnish is about £10 so it is cheaper to get yacht not exterior


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

and whatever you use. Make sure it's low VOC or you'll be waiting weeks before you can put anything in it.


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

Meko said:


> and whatever you use. Make sure it's low VOC or you'll be waiting weeks before you can put anything in it.


Meko is all yacht varnish low voc ? And also what is considerd low ?


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

_most _yacht varnish is very high VOC. although by 'most' i mean all that i've seen in the shops local to me when i've bought it.

They'll have a badge on the side with the VOC rating. The higher the VOC the long the fumes take to go, Ronseal External Varnish isn't a yacht varnish but is low VOC. As it's external it's waterproof and protects against UV rays.


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

Meko said:


> _most _yacht varnish is very high VOC. although by 'most' i mean all that i've seen in the shops local to me when i've bought it.
> 
> They'll have a badge on the side with the VOC rating. The higher the VOC the long the fumes take to go, Ronseal External Varnish isn't a yacht varnish but is low VOC. As it's external it's waterproof and protects against UV rays.


Have you ever used skrewfix's own yacht varnish as when i build my viv I was going to spray it gloss black then speay the varnish on top and do you know how much gloss and varnish I will need for a 6' by 2' by 2'?


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

just cheat and use external gloss; that's what i did for a 5x3x2 fish tank stand. Only problem i had was finding a tin of it, think i ended up buying a 2.5 litre and could have done 8 stands.


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

Meko said:


> just cheat and use external gloss; that's what i did for a 5x3x2 fish tank stand. Only problem i had was finding a tin of it, think i ended up buying a 2.5 litre and could have done 8 stands.


I was going to use just normal gloss for the inside and out but don't know if you can and i was going to line the base with plastic sheets as burm and boa piss floods vivs :lol2:


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

And i thought as I am using mdf it will need alot of sealing so iam going to do 2 spray coats of gloss on inside and out then 2 spray coats of varnish on the inside before I put it together than silicone seal the edges and i am unsure weather to put the plastic sheet on the base before I put it together or have it up the sides 3-4" and put it in once it is built


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

ayrton said:


> Yacht varnish costs £8.50 at screw fix for 750mm exterior varnish is about £10 so it is cheaper to get yacht not exterior


exterior varnish is £1




ayrton said:


> do all yacht varnishes say harmful to the environment and aquatic life? Is this just when its wet i take it as it seems rediculous that something for boats is that harmful.


yatch varnish is made for the funishing on a boat, not the hull(underside) plus even the paint used for the hull is toxic to aquaic life hence it has to be strip and redone before it gets to degraded and start leeching


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

ch4dg said:


> exterior varnish is £1
> 
> 
> 
> yatch varnish is made for the funishing on a boat, not the hull(underside) plus even the paint used for the hull is toxic to aquaic life hence it has to be strip and redone before it gets to degraded and start leeching


Where do you get that and how much do you get?


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

i get mine from auto world, part automobil part diy store, 500ml

most local diy store will do a cheap brand... cheapo / pound stores will have the 200ml-500ml depending on the finish and colour you want for a £1-£2 

'what!' also sell the 151 clear exterior varnish £1-thats about 200ml
heres a link on ebay its expensive online thou
151 Non Slip Clear Paint - Steps Tiles Etc - 180ml | eBay

but this is the best stuff to use


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

ch4dg said:


> i get mine from auto world, part automobil part diy store, 500ml
> 
> most local diy store will do a cheap brand... cheapo / pound stores will have the 200ml-500ml depending on the finish and colour you want for a £1-£2
> 
> ...


Will this be as good as the yacht varnish I will have a look when i next go to poundland I don't normaly buy DIY stuff from cheap stores as it it usualy :censor::lol2:


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

Also I don't know if anyone will know this but can you spray any varnish and gloss instead of brushing it on?


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

in my experiance, cheaper stuff seem to be actually just as good or even better mainly because they are raw-er in preperation and dont have a the additives included in specialised varnishes that are harmful to reps and bugs mainly cus their made to protect the wood from bugs

yatch varnish aint a brand so cant be compared to anything so if you take

151 yatch varnish and 151 clear exterior floor varnish the exterior will win,
1, the fumes will disperase half the time a couple of weeks rather than the yatch months to fully clear,
2, floor varnish is a matt finish unlike yatch which will be glossy as hell
3, floor varnish has grit already in the varnish, so is great for the animal and theres some texture and something to grip, unlike yatch that will be smooth

so when you say 'yatch' varnish what brand do you mean
as if its the screwfix stuff your still talking about...http://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-yacht-varnish-750ml/23164?_requestid=985555 hate to break it to you thats their bargain/cheap range,




ayrton said:


> Also I don't know if anyone will know this but can you spray any varnish and gloss instead of brushing it on?


you can, this is best for small projects,
The Army Painter Anti Shine Matt Varnish Spray | eBay


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

ch4dg said:


> in my experiance, cheaper stuff seem to be actually just as good or even better mainly because they are raw-er in preperation and dont have a the additives included in specialised varnishes that are harmful to reps and bugs mainly cus their made to protect the wood from bugs
> 
> yatch varnish aint a brand so cant be compared to anything so if you take
> 
> ...


I know it is there cheap range but it is from a good shop so you expect more from it than a cheap one from a sh*t shop and i will be using the normal paint (not in spray cans) and using a car sprayer


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

ayrton said:


> I know it is there cheap range but it is from a good shop so you expect more from it than a cheap one from a sh*t shop and i will be using the normal paint (not in spray cans) and using a car sprayer


the consumer market is nothing like that, they prob have a cheap brand of yatch varnish say bought for £1 slap a £9 price and they're in the money

151 for example is a good brand at good prices and speacking to the supplier when starting my business they offered tins from 9p, so say the same deal got given to poundland land it wouldnt they would get aa much better rate as the volume they get but anyway say 9p they can charge a £1 and make 91p profit, and they offered my own labels so if you go to b&q chances are its prob thew 151 stuff with their b&q labels on 

a bit random but just beacuse asda a really good shop sell they're 'smart price' beans. would you rather those beans or have a multi pack of heinz beans from poundland


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## ayrton (Apr 22, 2012)

ch4dg said:


> the consumer market is nothing like that, they prob have a cheap brand of yatch varnish say bought for £1 slap a £9 price and they're in the money
> 
> 151 for example is a good brand at good prices and speacking to the supplier when starting my business they offered tins from 9p, so say the same deal got given to poundland land it wouldnt they would get aa much better rate as the volume they get but anyway say 9p they can charge a £1 and make 91p profit, and they offered my own labels so if you go to b&q chances are its prob thew 151 stuff with their b&q labels on
> 
> a bit random but just beacuse asda a really good shop sell they're 'smart price' beans. would you rather those beans or have a multi pack of heinz beans from poundland


I would get heinz :lol2: and thanks I will get some varnish from poundland and save some cash and could I spray it on as it is or will it need thinner


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

ayrton said:


> I would get heinz :lol2: and thanks I will get some varnish from poundland and save some cash and could I spray it on as it is or will it need thinner


ha, everyone chooses hienz,
i dont if you can use it as a spray, but i might experiment with it


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## bowdenmx (May 15, 2011)

Hey guys. sorry to thread jack. im going to be sealing my savannah monitor enclosure this week and was in B&Q having a look at yacht varnish and its bloody expensive. is the exterior varnish good then. like the floor varnish you spoke of. i did notice that in there but all people on here ever seem to speak of is yacht varnish. any help appriciated.
Cheers
Ben


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