ePaint Company (Falmouth, MA) announces the release of new and improved ECOMINDER®, waterborne antifouling paint.

ePaint Company was founded in 1991 to develop protective coatings that are safer to use and better for the environment.  ePaint Company markets novel coating technologies to the marine, industrial, and aerospace industries.   ePaint Company specializes in the development of antifouling coatings which prevent biofouling.

Biofouling organisms such as algae, grass, zebra mussels, barnacles, and the like, rapidly colonize boat bottoms.  Growth of biofouling is visible on a boat after only a few days in the water.   Growth adds weight and creates drag.  The result of biofouling is decreased speed, increased fuel costs, and a smelly unsightly mess that is difficult to remove.

ePaint partnered with the United States Department of Agriculture to develop a novel soy-based polymer  that uses energy from the sun to release biofouling.   Biofouling release, by creating a slippery or self-polishing surface, is a non-toxic way of keeping boat bottoms clean without the use of heavy metals such as copper, the heavy metal used in traditional bottom paints.  The novel polymer technology developed by ePaint that makes new and improved ECOMINDER® possible is called PolyCleave™.

PolyCleave™ is 70% bio-based, a biopolymer.  Biopolymers are sustainable because they are sourced from plant materials which can be grown indefinitely.   The ePaint polymer is made with soy-based ingredients that come from the Heartland of America.   Advantages of this polymer are improved biofouling release, increased service life, and better adhesion to metal, plastic and composite substrates.

New and improved ECOMINDER® is an advanced antifouling paint recommended for all recreational sail and powerboats in both freshwater and marine environments. ECOMINDER® is free of harmful volatile organic solvents and toxicants that persist in our environment.   ECOMINDER® is copper-free and will not promote corrosion on metal surfaces.  Boats with ECOMINDER® may be hauled and launched out of the water and the unlimited dry to launch time also allows for painting in the fall before winter storage. ECOMINDER® is designed to control slime, algae, bacteria and features ePaint’s patented photoactive technology to deter the settling and attachment of hard shell type organisms.

To learn more about ECOMINDER®  visit www.epaint.com

The March 2016 issue of Practical Sailor magazine has just been released.  One of the features in the new issue is the Bottom Paint Checkup 2016.  According to the article, “ePaint Gleams!”  Practical Sailor tested over 60 different antifouling bottom paints over a period of 8 months.  The test included products from all the leading bottom paint manufacturers including Pettit, Interlux, Blue Water Marine, Flexdel and Blue Water Marine.  The paints were rated Excellent for no growth, Good for light or soft growth, Fair for moderate to heavy growth, and Poor for hard growth.  Based on the ratings, Practical Sailor recommends paints for best performers in various categories, such as best safe aluminum paint, best racing paint, best water-based paint etc.

This year three of ePaints coatings: EP 2000, SN-1 and ZO HP earned an Excellent, Recommended rating.  ePaint continues to be a leader in the industry when it comes to copper free antifouling paints.  ePaint’s patented photo active technology, along with “green” additives provide good antifouling protection at a competitive price.  ePaint products are available at www.epaint.com or by calling 1-800-258-5998.

Everything gets old and tired after a while and our website is no exception to that time honored rule.

Over the last several months we have been working on a new website to make your shopping experience easier.  With this new site we hope to bring you more of everything.  More product information.  More payment options.  We will soon be adding more products, too..  Easier navigation.  Easier checkout for commercial customers.  Here at ePaint.com we are excited about the upcoming launch and we hope you will like what you see!

J/Boats, Inc. in Newport, RI, will be launching an updated version of its popular J/88 this fall.  The new J/88, while similar to the existing model, sports a very eco-friendly profile.  Back up power is provided by Oceanvolt’s innovative S.E.A. (Silent Electric Autonomy) system.  The S.E.A. system is electric propulsion utilizing sails, awnings for solar power in addition to hydro-regeneration capabilities.  Since the J/88 is the ultimate environmentally friendly alternative to “starting up the diesel,” it was just natural that J/Boats chose the utlimate environmentally friendly bottom paint for this project.  The J/88 will feature ePaint’s EP2000 bottom paint, a great choice for serious sailors.

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will address the market-driven need for environmentally compatible marine antifouling coating technologies that outperform the state-of-the-art. Our coatings will employ both non-toxic and zero-volatile organic compound (VOC) systems ushering in new generation of highly effective antifouling technologies that are environmentally more responsible than current high-VOC, metal/biocide poisoning approaches. Our transformative approach to developing effective, low cost, eco-friendly marine antifouling coatings evolved from a chemical biological and molecular mechanistic understanding of barnacle glue. When integrated with foul-release properties, durable coating chemistries capable of reducing settlement by preventing hardening of biofouler glue will result not only in a commercial product addressing a societal need but will also enhance our understanding of key scientific and technological principles underlying the marine biofouling problem.

ePaint distributor Painters Supply introduces eco-friendly copper-free antifouling coatings EP2000, ECOMINDER, ePaint ZO and ePaint SN-1 Lake Erie boaters at the Sandusky In-water Boat Show.

Click the link below to see Great Lakes Scuttlebutt Editor Erik Kyle’s interview with Gary Ellis of Painters Supply.

Tom Mullen and his ShamrockVII crew don’t rely on luck to reach the podium, but rather passion and experience.

Year after year, the clear blue waters of the Caribbean beckon Tom Mullen, the skipper of the Shamrock VII, an intrepid J/120, to some of the regions top races; and for the past decade ePaint has been his racing bottom paint of choice.  Like it is with so many, early experiences on the water with loved ones established sailing as an integral part of Tom’s life. He reminisces how from the age of three his father instilled in him a love of the water. He remembers adventures on the family boat searching for clams and starfish in mudflats, and sailing camp in New Hampshire during the summer where he still keeps a number of smaller boats on Lake Winnipesaukee. As a young man, Tom sailed for his alma mater Boston University, and later on relished the opportunities he had to sail while enlisted in the army and posted in Washington, D.C., where he met his wife in 1969. As a lifelong sailor, Tom has always relished adventures on the water, and as such has a vested interest in the preservation of marine ecosystems.

It is safe to say that preserving this proverbial playground is a priority for the avid sailor. So it comes as no surprise that some time ago, Tom sought out an environmentally friendly, smarter approach to antifouling during the race season. A quick search online took him to our site, where he saw alternatives to traditional antifouling paints which use biocides like copper that are harmful to the environment. Intrigued, and on the Cape for the Figawi race that takes place in Nantucket Sound every summer, Tom visited our office in Falmouth and soon found himself overseeing painters applying coats of EP 2000 to his Shamrock IV in the Caribbean.

In the Caribbean, Tom has found that no product works better in the clear water than EP 2000. He applies it annually to his Hatteras and his Shamrock that he keeps in Antigua. EP 2000 is so successful in the clear water of the Caribbean because its antifouling biocides are photoactive, or activated by sunlight. This innovative design has garnered numerous accolades for ePaint, even a rating by Practical Sailor in 2011 of excellent performance over a twelve-month span. Tom also cites our thorough directions for application as being a key factor for excellent performance. He preaches to fellow sailors that to get the most out of the paint, the directions have to be followed. He appreciates the attention to detail that must be adhered to, with spray on application, optimal thickness, and sanding techniques being of the utmost importance for performance. As Tom attests, with the proper application, all the maintenance that he has to do throughout the year is a little bit of wiping biofilm away with a light Turkish towel.

This past year, Tom and his crew reached the podium in an impressive five out of six races. These races included the Rolex BVR Spring Regatta, the St. Barth’s and the Dark and Stormy in the Virgin Islands, which he won in class and division. Another was Antigua Yacht Club’s Round The Island race in which the Shamrock placed third in class. This year Tom looks forward to competing in the Heineken race during March and the St. Barth’s in April, with more to be scheduled.

On its side, the Shamrock VII sports ePaint’s logo beside that of Rolex, but it is the amusing phrase “Check out our Bottom!” that draws the most attention. Thanks to Tom and the Shamrock, many boaters in the Caribbean are becoming more and more aware of the environmentally friendly, high performance alternatives that we offer. He says that on race days he gets plenty of people asking about his bottom, and he takes the opportunity to hand out an ePaint pamphlet. All jokes aside, tradition is important to Tom, but performance is as well, so that’s why three Shamrocks later, he still uses ePaint to help him keep the waters clean and cruise to the finish line.

An Old Fishing Troller and a Classic Yawl are Ahead of Their Time

“While many Washington boat owners grapple with what to do in six years when these new laws go into effect, Port Townsend Shipwrights Co-op has already spent four years exploring copper-free alternatives for wooden vessels.  Co-op member, Chris Chase, spoke directly with a staff scientist at the ePaint Company before selecting the proper paint for wooden vessels.  He has since been surprised with the positive results of SN-1 on vessels of long time clients Kevin Campion and Les Schnick.”

Read More at:

http://ptshipwrights.wordpress.com/2012/04/19/copper-free-paint-solution-for-wooden-vessels/