Dark or light hull - is the rumor that it makes a difference true?

[schwiebert]

We have a dark blue hull Brewer 44, which we sail in Florida and the Bahamas (so far). While we sail in the winter months, and while the hull is warm -- or in some instances hot -- to the touch outside, we have never felt any real difference down below. In fact, our lockers (which are outboard along the hull) are warm, which makes our clothes feel "out of the dryer" warm. We certainly like the appearance of the dark hull -- it is striking -- and have not experienced any downside to having dark topsides.

[RodneyGlover]

It is scientifically true that dark hulls are warmer, but most people miss the fact that it is also true that the difference in warm weather is minor, and that a two tone deck will contribute more heat. The formula for computing the temperature of the hull includes a factor for the color (coefficient of emission), and dark colors have a higher coefficient, but often missed is the fact that it is also proportional to the sine of the angle of incidence. This factor is very low most of the day during the warm months ... the sun comes in almost parallel to the hull ... except early in the morning and late in the afternoon. During those two times the radiation is filtered thru so much of the atmosphere, that it is not significant. On my own boat, I have felt the dark blue hull, and the light sand colored deck at the same time during the day, and the light colored deck is much hotter. Get a pure white deck, and do not worry about hull color.

[sailmandate]

It will take more coats of paint to cover the white and the interior will be warmer..dark colors absorb more solar heat. I lightened the dark brown on our decks because it burned my feet. Same with teak decks...

[cruiser-albert]

If you still can't decide, regular boat colors we're never a pain
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