Powder coating swim ladder in the off season

mannix2 · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 8:14 am

The swim ladder on my 97 Coast Runner has most of the plastic coating peeled off. A buddy of mine knows a powder coater and suggested I have it powder coated white for a maintenance free solution. Has anyone else powder coated their ladder and how did it hold up? I know polyester PC is the way to go, just wondering about the durability.

kd4pbs · **Joined:** Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:34 am **Posts:** 350

Let us know how it goes; the same thing has happened on mine. It thankfully is galvanized, and I suspect this is why it didn't stick long. I'd imagine that powder coat would last the life of the boat.

noexcuses · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 12:54 pm

Powder coating sounds like a great idea. However, with my ladder I would be concerned with sharp edges. The metal edges underneath don't look like they were rounded off before the rubber/plastic material was coated onto it.

230 Mike · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 2:26 pm

That, and be aware of any parts that flex under load.

beyond the blue · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 3:26 pm

I don't have a boat anymore but still like to look into the forum now and again. I used to own a powder coating plant and powder coated my swim ladder quite a few years ago and it was still looking good when I sold the boat. As already said it must be Polyester powder and not epoxy.

JohnnyMarlin · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 3:33 pm

I will be recoating my transom ladder this winter also...........I plan on using POR 15 whitecoat......I've seen this stuff in person and it looks great......plus it is a DIY product.........

http://www.por15.com/WhiteCote_p_44.html

ric · **Posted:** Thu Oct 17, 2013 4:04 pm

I used to do a lot of "DYI" powdercoating about 10 years ago. Still have the guns and stuff in storage. Since it's in a water I would first bead blast the ladder with glass bead, then hit it up with some Alodine (if it's aluminum), and finally powdercoat it with poly.

rpengr · **Posted:** Sun Oct 20, 2013 1:02 pm

My OEM Swim ladder (13 years old) has the coating coming loose from the SST mounting Brackets. It looks like powdercoat to me (and my shop does powdercoating). It is coming loose, yet staying together like a thin sheet of white. This probably started because they left the edges of the SST brackets very sharp. If it was paint, it would crumble when it comes off. The coating on the ladder itself is still in good shape.

So yes, a polyester exterior grade powder coat (UV resistant) will last a very long time, but not necessarily outlast the boat. Sanding the sharp corners of the metal, even 1/64" to 1/32" radius, will help it last longer. Powdercoat "pulls tight" around the corners so it becomes very thin around a sharp corner.

Just for reference, the handrail for my swimming pool is Stainless Steel tube with White Textured powdercoat. It is looking pretty good after 12 years of full sun and chlorine exposure...just a slightly chalky.

ric · **Posted:** Sun Oct 20, 2013 8:48 pm

Look at getting a replacement ladder also. I bent the *#$# out of mine by accident (don't ask) and got a new one off Amazon for $100. Same make/model.

mannix2 · **Posted:** Mon Mar 24, 2014 8:33 pm

Boat ladder is powder coated and it looks great! $75 bucks seemed reasonable to me. Anyone know where I can get the 3 ladder treads? I googled everywhere and no luck. Here's the finished ladder and the treads.

[url=http://s207.photobucket.com/user/mnm2291/media/IMG_20140324_211200_zpscfe6a71c.jpg.html]

JohnnyMarlin · **Posted:** Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:03 pm

Looks great!

Part number 031-1505-01

http://parts.fwdealer.com/Catalog/Catalog?SearchText=ladder&Unique=True#!prettyPhoto

rpengr · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2014 2:43 pm

That looks great.

I have the same ladder, and would like wider treads, but there is limited when the ladder is folded under the swim platform cover. I don't think that P/N 114P8079-3 (shown by JohnnyMarlin) would fit. Maybe it would fit if they were offset forward or aft as needed because of the way the ladder folds up.

Please let us know what you end up with.

kd4pbs · **Joined:** Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:34 am **Posts:** 350

Yeah, that's the way to do it right there it looks like!
As a slightly less durable alternative, I've had good luck sand blasting for finish texture, painting with enamel, then baking in an oven at ~325 for a few hours. The finish comes out extremely hard, and I've used it to re-finish underhood parts on cars (hinges, springs, etc).

SeriousRob · **Posted:** Tue Apr 22, 2014 1:19 pm

That looks like my Horizon 180 ladder. Mine is chipping and the white coating is coming off. I may decide to replace the whole ladder if it is aluminum.

Does anyone know if this ladder is aluminum or stainless?

Mine is 15 3/4 inches wide at the maximum width - outside of the bolts and 12 inches center to center on the mounting bolts. The only ladder with those dimensions I can find is from GGSCHMITT.com.
This image looks like our ladders (except it is an under mount) and I suspect was made for Four Winns by them. It is powdercoated aluminum.

They also make a nice looking stainless ladder with similar dimensions.

What do you think???
Rob

mannix2 · **Posted:** Tue Apr 22, 2014 7:33 pm

The mounting legs are stainless, the 3 folding steps are aluminum.

www.iFourWinns.com

Powder coating swim ladder in the off season

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