Any ideas for sealing or restoring non-skid deck?

[speras]

Hi -
We've had a great couple seasons on our 1991 Mac 26S, but I'm realizing the deck needs some sealant or restoration. It takes more time and elbow grease to clean spider and bird droppings than I'd like, and chalk rubs off when rinsing into the water or when sitting in the cockpit.
We've had good luck with the washing and waxing discussions for the hull, and use Starbrite on the non-skid.
But I think it's time for "something more" on the non-skid.
There are multiple "painting" approaches out there (like Awlgrip) but I'm not sure I want to get into that level of effort and expense.
Would a spray on / temporary approach (like Woody Wax) mitigate the chalkiness and do anything to boost the "health" of the non-skid?
Or would a "heavy wax" type solution (like Sure Step) be a good middle ground?
Thanks for sharing your experiences and recommendations!
Oh, and we're sailing miswestern inland lakes, so we're not baking in the sun as much as others.
Scott

 

[vizwhiz]

I'm curious about this also because there are a number of places on the deck that the white gelcoat is so thin you can see the black through it...

 

[speras]

Hi Vizwhiz - sorry I've been away from this thread, but for some reason I hadn't seen or been alerted to your comment.

I ended up getting the Sure Step and prepping my boat with it last season. I do not have any areas where the gelcoat has thinned enough to see the black underneath. But I have no idea how much white is really left.

Using the full three-product approach did entail a bit more effort than I was expecting, but I was quite pleased with the result. The non-skid was A LOT easier to rinse and scrub all season, compared to earlier years, and I didn't see hardly any chalk in the rinse water. So I felt it was successful trial.

The one downside is that it did take more Sure Step than I estimated, so I skimped in some of the rear areas and ended up running out before I finished. Since I was worn out, and a little "bitten" by the expense, I decided not to buy more product. But, as I said, I don't think the trial suffered for that.

For this year, I'm torn ... should I stay with a product I'm happy with (except for it being a bit pricey) or run another trial with a different product (like Woodys Wax).

Hope you had some luck with your situation.

 

[Old Sprite Sailor]

Hi Vizwhiz - sorry I've been away from this thread, but for some reason I hadn't seen or been alerted to your comment.

I ended up getting the Sure Step and prepping my boat with it last season. I do not have any areas where the gelcoat has thinned enough to see the black underneath. But I have no idea how much white is really left.

Using the full three-product approach did entail a bit more effort than I was expecting, but I was quite pleased with the result. The non-skid was A LOT easier to rinse and scrub all season, compared to earlier years, and I didn't see hardly any chalk in the rinse water. So I felt it was successful trial.

The one downside is that it did take more Sure Step than I estimated, so I skimped in some of the rear areas and ended up running out before I finished. Since I was worn out, and a little "bitten" by the expense, I decided not to buy more product. But, as I said, I don't think the trial suffered for that.

For this year, I'm torn ... should I stay with a product I'm happy with (except for it being a bit pricey) or run another trial with a different product (like Woodys Wax).

Hope you had some luck with your situation.

I have used NewglassII for several years now to control chalkiness on my 98 26X. It is a polymer sealer that works well for about a year (my boat stays in a slip at a marina in Central Florida) and needs a couple of new coats to refurbish. I do use it on my nonskid, but my nonskid is still very functional for its intended purpose. The NewglassII just clears up the chalkiness very nicely.

 

[speras]

I'll have to check out NewglassII, OldSprite. Sounds like something useful for the kit bag.