I have started spring cleaning. Every year I scrub the non-skid surfaces and get the grime off. Is there any wax or sealer I can get to make the job easier than all the elbow grease. also, What are your recommendations for a good hull wax? I want to add that for the cleaning part I use Oxalic acid(wood Bleach). It has no odor. It is not soap although you can add soap to the mixture. I use about one heaping tablespoon per gallon of hot water. The grudge and gray pollution from the soot in the air comes right off. Wood Bleach(Savagran) is about $6.00 for a 12oz container of crystals. A tub will last 5-6 years. Starbite boat cleaner contains oxalic acid. a quart costs $7-8 bucks at wallyworld.
non skid cleaning
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Clorox Cleanup
I use Clorox Cleanup to clean the non skid surfaces. Just spray, spread with a brush, wait 5 minutes and hose off. I sure beats spending tons of money on boat products and busting my knees trying to do the job. I have heard of a lot people using Woody Wax in order to maintain the non skid areas clean but I have not used it myself. Good Luck
I use Clorox Cleanup to clean the non skid surfaces. Just spray, spread with a brush, wait 5 minutes and hose off. I sure beats spending tons of money on boat products and busting my knees trying to do the job. I have heard of a lot people using Woody Wax in order to maintain the non skid areas clean but I have not used it myself. Good Luck
I can't help with the sealing, but.....
for cleaning I use my pressure washer. I have a Home Depot Husky brand, 1650 psi. I use the wand adjusted to make a 1.5-2" wide blast and I use it about 4-6" above the deck and keep it moving. It does a great job with very minimal effort. You can see the dinginess disappear quickly so you can judge the speed of motion. I think there are some posters that will warn against this method, and I wouldn't use a high pressure machine like 3000-3500 psi. But a relatively low pressure like I have seems to work great with no damage whatever. I use just water, no soap. I spray the cockpit cushions also- it removes the green crud that gathers on the undersides. A bit of soap on the cushions will brighten them up nicely. In the past I have used Softsoap with bleach, but I have been concerned with long-term damage to the surface. No proof of that, just my gut feeling. Regarding hull wax, search the archives. There was a long thread about this time last year where the OP was advocating Fleet paste wax. It would be well worth searching and reading.
for cleaning I use my pressure washer. I have a Home Depot Husky brand, 1650 psi. I use the wand adjusted to make a 1.5-2" wide blast and I use it about 4-6" above the deck and keep it moving. It does a great job with very minimal effort. You can see the dinginess disappear quickly so you can judge the speed of motion. I think there are some posters that will warn against this method, and I wouldn't use a high pressure machine like 3000-3500 psi. But a relatively low pressure like I have seems to work great with no damage whatever. I use just water, no soap. I spray the cockpit cushions also- it removes the green crud that gathers on the undersides. A bit of soap on the cushions will brighten them up nicely. In the past I have used Softsoap with bleach, but I have been concerned with long-term damage to the surface. No proof of that, just my gut feeling. Regarding hull wax, search the archives. There was a long thread about this time last year where the OP was advocating Fleet paste wax. It would be well worth searching and reading.
Aurora makes a non-skid wax that is advertised as
retaining the properties of the decks "sticksion" without being gummy. I think I'm going to try it on my H280, especially since it has a fair amount of contrasting light grey molded non-skid.
retaining the properties of the decks "sticksion" without being gummy. I think I'm going to try it on my H280, especially since it has a fair amount of contrasting light grey molded non-skid.
I also recommend the Pressure Washer
I have been very reluctant to put any wax on the non-skid, as I don't want to make it less likely to do its job, ie making for good footing. I always though wax would make it a bit slick. I've been using a pressure washer for the past few years. A couple hours of work on hands and knees with scrub brush and Softscrubb now takes 20 - 30 minutes. Fair Winds, Rob S/V Kinship
I have been very reluctant to put any wax on the non-skid, as I don't want to make it less likely to do its job, ie making for good footing. I always though wax would make it a bit slick. I've been using a pressure washer for the past few years. A couple hours of work on hands and knees with scrub brush and Softscrubb now takes 20 - 30 minutes. Fair Winds, Rob S/V Kinship
pressure washer the way
I also use a pressure washer and it works great. The only thing is it takes off the tape stripes very quickly. So this year I get new stripes.
I also use a pressure washer and it works great. The only thing is it takes off the tape stripes very quickly. So this year I get new stripes.
I also use an electric
...power washer now and the on then non-skid. But as the other posters note, be careful. The first time I did this job I let the nozzle get too close to a caulked seam around the forward hatch. While the power washer does a good job of getting dirt out of the non-skid, it also does a good job of removing caulk -- some times from places you'd rather it not be removed.
...power washer now and the on then non-skid. But as the other posters note, be careful. The first time I did this job I let the nozzle get too close to a caulked seam around the forward hatch. While the power washer does a good job of getting dirt out of the non-skid, it also does a good job of removing caulk -- some times from places you'd rather it not be removed.
Careful with powerwashers on deck.
Bart: While I agree that a powerwasher is one of the best ways to clean the non-skid, you need to be very careful that you do not blast out the caulking under you deck hardware (stanchions, pulpits, organizers etc). This may lead to leaks that you will be fighting with for a long time. I personally like the non-skid cleaners from WM and such. Someone just recommended Kaboom. Others have mentioned Scrubbing Bubbles bath cleaner too.
Bart: While I agree that a powerwasher is one of the best ways to clean the non-skid, you need to be very careful that you do not blast out the caulking under you deck hardware (stanchions, pulpits, organizers etc). This may lead to leaks that you will be fighting with for a long time. I personally like the non-skid cleaners from WM and such. Someone just recommended Kaboom. Others have mentioned Scrubbing Bubbles bath cleaner too.
Do not use KAboom!
From personal experience in its application. You may get away with Kaboom once or twice but eventually it will leave nasty orange stains on a degraded surface like your boat deck. Since the gelcoat is worn its somewaht porous, and if you can't rinse all that crap out you will get screwed. My old tub can testify to this. After using it twice it left nasty stains even undiluted bleach wouldn't remove. I'd stay away from all citrus based cleaners for that matter on the boat.
From personal experience in its application. You may get away with Kaboom once or twice but eventually it will leave nasty orange stains on a degraded surface like your boat deck. Since the gelcoat is worn its somewaht porous, and if you can't rinse all that crap out you will get screwed. My old tub can testify to this. After using it twice it left nasty stains even undiluted bleach wouldn't remove. I'd stay away from all citrus based cleaners for that matter on the boat.
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