Comparison of different methods for gelcoat
I have below tried to give an honest overview of the IG system versus tradional and poliglow type wipe on acrylics. You could probably also such procedures in combination if you wanted to - just experiment! I dealt with 303 on a separate post and will do my own experiments. I am also sending out for comparisons done by some detailers. Additional uses of some products are also mentioned. A: PROTECTION OF NEW(ISH) GELCOAT. Do not use compounding or harsh abrasives. Keep free of water spots, keep washed down (salt water conditions). Liquid waxes with a slight polishing action are less harmful but good paste wax (Collinite is better (thicker coating, more "filling"). IG's Mirror Hard Superglaze is the weatherproof, stainproof coating that can be wiped onto new clean gelcoat,even over existing wax. This coating will not crack yellow or peel and takes the surface weathering instead of the gelcoat surface. It can be used over painted surfaces and polished or cast metal too (good for spars cleats and line-stoppers on sailboats). Used over Slikenseal it can totally prevent gumminess on vents or fender tops. B: RESTORING OLD GELCOAT 1. PREPARING THE GELCOAT (the most important step) . The aim here is remove oxidation/stains, prevent their return and have a smooth surface (VERY smooth in the case of a using regular wax finish. a)Wet-sanding/compounding, then polish. Works on really old gelcoat that still has some thickness. However, this process cannot get rid of deep-down chalkiness (as on McGregor stripes, dark blue gelcoat etc). Needs skill with a buffer (you can ruin gelcoat on edges or on stripes that are usually of thin gelcoat). Needs good buffer, several hours and physical strenth. HAS TO BE DONE WHEN HAULED (unless you have a death wish or heavy duty cordless equipment). WEARS YOUR BOAT AWAY so it eventually needs painting or new gelcoat. There is no UV protection, mildew protection, anti-oxidants etc. Use of abrasives (except to remove ecessive roughness or faded pigment) is NOT recommended if you are going to use a "wipe on" acrylic clear coat since porosity is necessary for adhesive "key" and a sufficient layer of the coating will "fill" surface roughness. b) Butyl "cleaner/strippers" (poliprep etc) will remove wax (absolutely necessary for adhesion of acrylic coatings, stains and much deeper oxidation. It then has to be rinsed off. Will not remove surface roughness or faded pigment (still need abrasives). c) IG's Sea Glow Cleanser/Conditioner (use Neutral Clear on those few boats that have brown or beige gelcoat). This product removes and kills deep seated oxidation, slows return of oxidation, prevents mildew, protects against color fade and vastly brightens white & colors. Can be used in addition or in place of compounding with outer protection produced by various methods, including regular wax IG coatings. There is no need for abrasives on newish gelcoat, but very light scuffing necessary on older gelcoat so as to "open up" the pores so that cleanser can get down and remove chalk/stains and so that the conditioner can soak in and preserve the gelcoat. Compounding (even wet sanding?) can still be done with REALLY bad gelcoat that is rough to the touch (test by dragging you fingernail over the surface) , or if colored gelcoat has an outer layer that has faded pigment that has to removed. You do have to neutralize by WIPING with water-moistened (FO NOT HOSE!) towel and then wipe dry. Gelcoat will have a very clean, new satin feel. It is now ready for sealing with an outer protective coating (your choice but we think IG is more long lasting). Remember, Sea Glow remaining after the job, can ALSO be used to clean and restore viny lifelines, fenders, vents, inflatable boats, upholstery etc where it also stops color fade and maintains suppleness. 2. PROTECT THE GELCOAT (& other plastics) from weathering - getting a nice-looking shine.This is done after the preparation stage 1. above. a) Traditional wax finishes. WAX ITSELF IS NOT SHINY AND WILL DULL BEFORE WATER BEADING GOES - THE SHINE COMES FROM DIMETHYL SILICONES AND DURABILITY FROM "SET UP" SILICONES AND/OR RESINS. TEFLON INCREASES WATER BEADING BUT ADDS NOTHING ELSE (my experiments). Liquid waxes produce a very thin film and are therefore are only really only suitable for new shiny surfaces (including paint). Although they are easy to use and can be used without a buffer, they do not protect as well as good paste wax. Of all the paste waxes I have tried, Collinite paste wax is the best. However, it is terribly hard work to apply and "buff out" by hand and leaves a satin not high gloss sheen. Easier and higher gloss is seen with machine buffing that actually heats up and melts the wax & resins. We find that using an undercoat of IG Silkenseal , wiped on (to dryness) is important and that an outer coat of Silkenseal produces much better shine and weather protection. If conditions are very humid, wipe on thin, back and forth until dry. b). Wipe on- water based acrylics (Vertglas, poliglow, newglass etc). As alsready stated, wet sanding/compounding should be avoided, since penetration of the coating into the gelcoat pores provides the adhesion of the coating. That is why these products are forbidden on NEW (or newish) boats, painted boats etc., since cracking or peeling will result. Also any old underlying wax has to be removed to remove "fisheyes" etc. However, the butyl-based precleaner "Poliprep etc" should remove wax and most deep- seated oxidation. You keep putting on multiple coats of the 6-12 coats) , until a smooth high gloss is produced. Properly applied, the finish is close to sprayed on urethane. An attractive feature of these coatings is that they dry quickly, but this also means that you should not apply in very hot sunny conditioners (dull surface, streaks). A special applicator is necessary to minimize overlap marks in the finish. Shine can be touched up every season for about 3-4 years when (if gone grey or yellowed) it has be "stripped" and redone. On dark colored gelcoat that has gone grey, or on white gelcoat that has gone yellowed (due to coating breakdown) the stripper may not work well and old resins may have to be wet sanded off. However, under less severe conditions, these coatings will greatly outlast conentional waxes. c) Professionalyy applied 2-part solvent-based clear coat. The microshine method is probably based on this method. Many yards do a "quick fix" on old gelcoat (rather than a complete repaint) but spraying on a two-part solvent based polyurethane clear coat. Obviously, initial results are dramatic and labor charges are minimal. However (as for the water-based acrylics) all clear coats eventually become grey and opaque ( you can see this on the hood of cars that are more than 5-6 years old in hot climates). Because the underlying gelcoat was porous, peeling is unlikely, but this outer clear coat HAS to be removed by wet sanding, since strong paint remover (the only other way) would also remove the gelcoat!. We had a customer this summer (Randy Kahn of CA ) with a black gelcoat stripe that had been treated this way (although the yard would not confirm). Wet sanding and (eventually IG system) fixed the problem. d) IG's Silkenseal and Simply Brilliant Superwax. Silkenseal is a "plastic skin" sealant that is "rubbery" in consistency and was originally designed as a stain-resistant coating for vinyl, leather and rubber (upholstery, inflatable boats, etc). On older porous gelcoat it seals over the pores so that regular wax or our SB Superwax do not soak in (producing a dull surface) or comingle with conditioner from the Sea glow (that will interfere with proper curing of the SB Superwax, leaving an oily layer that can be partially washed off and/or dulled by rainwater runoff. SB Superwax is a synthetic resin-coating that also contains synthetic (non-yellowing) wax particles for "filling" of surface pitting and greater weathering resistance. This is a wipe-on coating that can be used with associated catalyst (SB Catalyst) for faster setting in cool conditions or on porous gelcoat where otherwise many SB Superwax coats have to be applied to counteract any the dulling of the finish due to "soaking in" of the resins. Just apply with paper towel or with slow speed buffer (scum buster). The surface lasts so long that customers re-order at 2-3 year intervals!! Initial finish is close to that of polyurethane but will age into a classic "waxed look" after some weeks. Although protection and water-beading will last at least 2 years under tropical conditionsl the surface should be kept clean and (especially on dark surfaces) periodic (6 month) touch up of the shine is necessary (use Silkenseal, more SB Superwax or Mirror Hard Superglaze). The protection therefore outlasts conventional waxes by 4-5 fold. C: ROUTINE CARE OF SURFACE. a) General. It is important to keep all surfaces rinsed down with fresh water at least once a week. A little dietergent or IG Pink in water really helps, especially with bird or spider feces. Microfiber cloth removes most suface dirt without need for strong cleaners - often just water will do! a) Black streaks and other surface pollutants. Only MH Superglaze surface is resistant to most stains. Metallic stains have to be buffed off. Silkenseal can reduce metalic (aluminum and rust) stains. ALL WAXES GET BLACK STREAKS because wax is really a "hard fat" and will absorb sooty hydrocarbons from airborne auto and aircraft exhaust. On regular wax, remove with "black streak remover" (actually a wax remover) Some removers contain wax and sllicones to repair the shine that is otherwise removed. Liquid waxes also remove black streaks and restore shine. MH Superglaze does this too but leaves a stain-resistant coating (when fully set). Black streaks in our SB Superwax used to be deep-seated and pronounced due to the thickness of the coating and excessive wax content. Latest versions have much less wax and so this problem has been minimized. It is virtually eliminated by use of an outer coating of MH Superglaze that is stainproof. c) Transom Soot. Remove with undiluted or 50:50 IG Pink. Fresh coating of SB Superwax or MH Superglaze tends to attract soot. Can remove and coat with Silkenseal or just use Silkenseal (multiple coats) in susceptible area if boat is to be used right away.
I have below tried to give an honest overview of the IG system versus tradional and poliglow type wipe on acrylics. You could probably also such procedures in combination if you wanted to - just experiment! I dealt with 303 on a separate post and will do my own experiments. I am also sending out for comparisons done by some detailers. Additional uses of some products are also mentioned. A: PROTECTION OF NEW(ISH) GELCOAT. Do not use compounding or harsh abrasives. Keep free of water spots, keep washed down (salt water conditions). Liquid waxes with a slight polishing action are less harmful but good paste wax (Collinite is better (thicker coating, more "filling"). IG's Mirror Hard Superglaze is the weatherproof, stainproof coating that can be wiped onto new clean gelcoat,even over existing wax. This coating will not crack yellow or peel and takes the surface weathering instead of the gelcoat surface. It can be used over painted surfaces and polished or cast metal too (good for spars cleats and line-stoppers on sailboats). Used over Slikenseal it can totally prevent gumminess on vents or fender tops. B: RESTORING OLD GELCOAT 1. PREPARING THE GELCOAT (the most important step) . The aim here is remove oxidation/stains, prevent their return and have a smooth surface (VERY smooth in the case of a using regular wax finish. a)Wet-sanding/compounding, then polish. Works on really old gelcoat that still has some thickness. However, this process cannot get rid of deep-down chalkiness (as on McGregor stripes, dark blue gelcoat etc). Needs skill with a buffer (you can ruin gelcoat on edges or on stripes that are usually of thin gelcoat). Needs good buffer, several hours and physical strenth. HAS TO BE DONE WHEN HAULED (unless you have a death wish or heavy duty cordless equipment). WEARS YOUR BOAT AWAY so it eventually needs painting or new gelcoat. There is no UV protection, mildew protection, anti-oxidants etc. Use of abrasives (except to remove ecessive roughness or faded pigment) is NOT recommended if you are going to use a "wipe on" acrylic clear coat since porosity is necessary for adhesive "key" and a sufficient layer of the coating will "fill" surface roughness. b) Butyl "cleaner/strippers" (poliprep etc) will remove wax (absolutely necessary for adhesion of acrylic coatings, stains and much deeper oxidation. It then has to be rinsed off. Will not remove surface roughness or faded pigment (still need abrasives). c) IG's Sea Glow Cleanser/Conditioner (use Neutral Clear on those few boats that have brown or beige gelcoat). This product removes and kills deep seated oxidation, slows return of oxidation, prevents mildew, protects against color fade and vastly brightens white & colors. Can be used in addition or in place of compounding with outer protection produced by various methods, including regular wax IG coatings. There is no need for abrasives on newish gelcoat, but very light scuffing necessary on older gelcoat so as to "open up" the pores so that cleanser can get down and remove chalk/stains and so that the conditioner can soak in and preserve the gelcoat. Compounding (even wet sanding?) can still be done with REALLY bad gelcoat that is rough to the touch (test by dragging you fingernail over the surface) , or if colored gelcoat has an outer layer that has faded pigment that has to removed. You do have to neutralize by WIPING with water-moistened (FO NOT HOSE!) towel and then wipe dry. Gelcoat will have a very clean, new satin feel. It is now ready for sealing with an outer protective coating (your choice but we think IG is more long lasting). Remember, Sea Glow remaining after the job, can ALSO be used to clean and restore viny lifelines, fenders, vents, inflatable boats, upholstery etc where it also stops color fade and maintains suppleness. 2. PROTECT THE GELCOAT (& other plastics) from weathering - getting a nice-looking shine.This is done after the preparation stage 1. above. a) Traditional wax finishes. WAX ITSELF IS NOT SHINY AND WILL DULL BEFORE WATER BEADING GOES - THE SHINE COMES FROM DIMETHYL SILICONES AND DURABILITY FROM "SET UP" SILICONES AND/OR RESINS. TEFLON INCREASES WATER BEADING BUT ADDS NOTHING ELSE (my experiments). Liquid waxes produce a very thin film and are therefore are only really only suitable for new shiny surfaces (including paint). Although they are easy to use and can be used without a buffer, they do not protect as well as good paste wax. Of all the paste waxes I have tried, Collinite paste wax is the best. However, it is terribly hard work to apply and "buff out" by hand and leaves a satin not high gloss sheen. Easier and higher gloss is seen with machine buffing that actually heats up and melts the wax & resins. We find that using an undercoat of IG Silkenseal , wiped on (to dryness) is important and that an outer coat of Silkenseal produces much better shine and weather protection. If conditions are very humid, wipe on thin, back and forth until dry. b). Wipe on- water based acrylics (Vertglas, poliglow, newglass etc). As alsready stated, wet sanding/compounding should be avoided, since penetration of the coating into the gelcoat pores provides the adhesion of the coating. That is why these products are forbidden on NEW (or newish) boats, painted boats etc., since cracking or peeling will result. Also any old underlying wax has to be removed to remove "fisheyes" etc. However, the butyl-based precleaner "Poliprep etc" should remove wax and most deep- seated oxidation. You keep putting on multiple coats of the 6-12 coats) , until a smooth high gloss is produced. Properly applied, the finish is close to sprayed on urethane. An attractive feature of these coatings is that they dry quickly, but this also means that you should not apply in very hot sunny conditioners (dull surface, streaks). A special applicator is necessary to minimize overlap marks in the finish. Shine can be touched up every season for about 3-4 years when (if gone grey or yellowed) it has be "stripped" and redone. On dark colored gelcoat that has gone grey, or on white gelcoat that has gone yellowed (due to coating breakdown) the stripper may not work well and old resins may have to be wet sanded off. However, under less severe conditions, these coatings will greatly outlast conentional waxes. c) Professionalyy applied 2-part solvent-based clear coat. The microshine method is probably based on this method. Many yards do a "quick fix" on old gelcoat (rather than a complete repaint) but spraying on a two-part solvent based polyurethane clear coat. Obviously, initial results are dramatic and labor charges are minimal. However (as for the water-based acrylics) all clear coats eventually become grey and opaque ( you can see this on the hood of cars that are more than 5-6 years old in hot climates). Because the underlying gelcoat was porous, peeling is unlikely, but this outer clear coat HAS to be removed by wet sanding, since strong paint remover (the only other way) would also remove the gelcoat!. We had a customer this summer (Randy Kahn of CA ) with a black gelcoat stripe that had been treated this way (although the yard would not confirm). Wet sanding and (eventually IG system) fixed the problem. d) IG's Silkenseal and Simply Brilliant Superwax. Silkenseal is a "plastic skin" sealant that is "rubbery" in consistency and was originally designed as a stain-resistant coating for vinyl, leather and rubber (upholstery, inflatable boats, etc). On older porous gelcoat it seals over the pores so that regular wax or our SB Superwax do not soak in (producing a dull surface) or comingle with conditioner from the Sea glow (that will interfere with proper curing of the SB Superwax, leaving an oily layer that can be partially washed off and/or dulled by rainwater runoff. SB Superwax is a synthetic resin-coating that also contains synthetic (non-yellowing) wax particles for "filling" of surface pitting and greater weathering resistance. This is a wipe-on coating that can be used with associated catalyst (SB Catalyst) for faster setting in cool conditions or on porous gelcoat where otherwise many SB Superwax coats have to be applied to counteract any the dulling of the finish due to "soaking in" of the resins. Just apply with paper towel or with slow speed buffer (scum buster). The surface lasts so long that customers re-order at 2-3 year intervals!! Initial finish is close to that of polyurethane but will age into a classic "waxed look" after some weeks. Although protection and water-beading will last at least 2 years under tropical conditionsl the surface should be kept clean and (especially on dark surfaces) periodic (6 month) touch up of the shine is necessary (use Silkenseal, more SB Superwax or Mirror Hard Superglaze). The protection therefore outlasts conventional waxes by 4-5 fold. C: ROUTINE CARE OF SURFACE. a) General. It is important to keep all surfaces rinsed down with fresh water at least once a week. A little dietergent or IG Pink in water really helps, especially with bird or spider feces. Microfiber cloth removes most suface dirt without need for strong cleaners - often just water will do! a) Black streaks and other surface pollutants. Only MH Superglaze surface is resistant to most stains. Metallic stains have to be buffed off. Silkenseal can reduce metalic (aluminum and rust) stains. ALL WAXES GET BLACK STREAKS because wax is really a "hard fat" and will absorb sooty hydrocarbons from airborne auto and aircraft exhaust. On regular wax, remove with "black streak remover" (actually a wax remover) Some removers contain wax and sllicones to repair the shine that is otherwise removed. Liquid waxes also remove black streaks and restore shine. MH Superglaze does this too but leaves a stain-resistant coating (when fully set). Black streaks in our SB Superwax used to be deep-seated and pronounced due to the thickness of the coating and excessive wax content. Latest versions have much less wax and so this problem has been minimized. It is virtually eliminated by use of an outer coating of MH Superglaze that is stainproof. c) Transom Soot. Remove with undiluted or 50:50 IG Pink. Fresh coating of SB Superwax or MH Superglaze tends to attract soot. Can remove and coat with Silkenseal or just use Silkenseal (multiple coats) in susceptible area if boat is to be used right away.