Outdoor latex is intended for houses. Houses stay outside in all weathers although they don't often float in water. My boats fit that category, some stay out 12 months a year others hang on the garage wall. Latex is suitable for a boat that will be in the water for a few hours at a time but will spend most of its time "dry moored" - most canoes and kayaks fit into that category - and that's what latex is designed to do.

Paints are not intended to fill the kind of hole that a staple leaves but a good primer should fill grain. I find the first coat of latex is a hassle, the wood just soaks it up and it's uneven and hard to sand. So after filling and sanding, I apply a sanding sealer, which dries fast and sands easily providing a perfect surface for the first coat of latex primer. It is also a good start for varnishing. I get good results using 2 coats of primer and 2 top coats, lightly sanded between coats; no pin holes and virtually no brush marks. The first coat of primer and top coat benefit from a very, very little thinning. I get a better finish with a brush than with a roller.

I do not attempt to get a gloss finish: latex's best-looking finish is probably semi-gloss or maybe satin, which provides a silky look; I wouldn't want it for my car but it looks great on a boat and gets compliments; it's shiny when wet! Maintenance consists of an off-season inspection to touch-up scratches.

Most important is to leave it alone for a few weeks; latex may dry fast but it takes ages to cure, but it forms a hard, flexible coat that protects the wood for years. Obviously it is not a showroom finish, not for restoring a classic mahogany runabout and not for going to sea for months. I admit that I prefer my boats to spend more time in the water than being built and finished: if you are very choosy about your boat's finish and appearance, experiment on a piece of leftover wood first to see how it will turn out.