The Bottom Paint Report

Seahawk Monterey, Interlux Micron Optima score highest in our test.

Testers inspect the painted panels after roughly six months in the water in Florida (above) and Connecticut. At this point, the paints are anonymous. Later, a code of drilled holes is used to indentify the paints.

Indicative of the tangled web sailors enter when trying to select an anti-fouling paint, this year’s Practical Sailor anti-fouling paint test featured a huge field of 53 different paints. Aside from allowing us to nail down what we believe are the best paints on the market today, the test gave us the opportunity to home in on a trend that is gaining traction: paints with anti-slime additives. Twenty-four of the paints we tested for this year’s test include some kind of slime fighter. These paints cost slightly more than similar paints that lack these additives, and so far, our tests indicate that having an anti-slime agent in your bottom paint…