I am looking at painting my 21 foot cuddy cabin boat. I am getting confused
about applications and anti-fouling.

First the boat will be used in fresh water and trailered most of the time.
There will be 5-8 times a year that it will be put into the water for no
more than 4-5 days at a time. I have read the brochures from Interlux and
Petit, I have also talked to West Marine. I have talked to my local marine
dealers, they have suggested to use automotive paint (I think that they are
nuts). Do I really need an Anti-Fouling type of coating? I was looking at
using a one part epoxy top coat (White for the boat and Sapphire Blue for
below the water line). How does anti-fouling look when it is dry? Is it
smooth like a top coat? I also have read about some anti-fouling paints are
only good for one season. I don't want to say that I am lazy, but if I can
do it once and forget about it for a few years at least would be nice.

Second is application. I will be painting it myself. I am curious what the
final product looks like using a roller method (If apply an anti-fouling
than this is probably how I will be applying it to get the recommended
thickness of the coats). I just have a feeling that it will come out rough.
Brush method sounds better, but I am afraid of brush strokes. I am pretty
sure that I will be buying a spray gun and going for it! Siphon feed,
gravity feed or HVLP? Any suggestions? I know that painting aircraft, HVLP
and siphon feed were the way to go for smaller projects such as this. Any
suggestions about nozzle size.

Third, has any "non-professionals" done what I am getting ready to do? Is
there any information that can help me with the big anti-fouling question
and put it in layman's terms for us non marine speaking individuals?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Tim