Pettit and Interlux bring two anti-fouling approaches to the table. Pettit’s Trinidad is a hard multi-purpose paint, while the Micron uses a chemical reaction to do its job, which can only be done in salt water.

Powerboat Reports whittles, sifts, and filters through marine products so you don’t have to. Our annual bottom paint test serves as a good example. It’s a chance for some of the best barnacle-busting, slime-sloughing coatings to rise above the rest.

When we pulled the panels from the salt water last year, Micron 66 from Interlux (new in 2004) and Pettit Trinidad SR were spotless, which earned them “Excellent” ratings. (Many other paints did well also, including two from E Paint.) So, as we did in our “Teak All-Stars” article, we took the best of the best and put them head to head. …