Poli Glow

elle · Apr 15, 2015

I have used it and can wholeheartedly endorse it from my experience. Gives a beautiful finish w/o all the work of polishing & buffing. Follow the instructions.

Roadking Larry · Apr 15, 2015

I bought my boat in February last year and it had been treated with Poli Glow about a year before I bought it. It had been on the hard the whole time. Right now it still looks pretty good for a 39 year old boat, decent shine to the hull and no areas showing any failure of the product, except maybe a little where the fenders rub between the hull and the dock. The PO included a complete kit to apply it again and I probably will if for no other reason I've got the stuff to do it.

wflowe2 · Apr 16, 2015

I used it on my last boat and initially it looked good. It is not as easy to apply correctly as they claim. After 2 years it became splotchy looking and it is almost impossible to remove. I traded that boat in on a newer one and when the Marina rep came to pick up the trade in , his first words were "Oh no it has Polyglow". I have two friends in my current marina that have polyglow and both wish they could get it off.

I'm not a fan.

Ken Cross · Apr 16, 2015

I've used it. Some say it's difficult to remove. Not true if you use their "Poly Prep" or ammonia based cleaners. It just wipes off. Never put it where skin contact is expected. Sunscreen will turn it black. It's best used on the sides of the hull. After a year a quick re-coat takes minutes and it's good for another year. Be sure to follow instructions.
Ken

Claude L.-Auger · Apr 16, 2015

This has been discussed here many times. Do a search and you'll see dozens of comments. Some pros and many cons. Having used it and having lived through the nightmare of removing it, even with their Polyprep stuff, I'll just tell you that a good compound and wax job is what I do now. My boat is over 30 years old and looks better than it ever did with the Polyglow stuff on, without the peeling and splotchy spots that appeared the 3rd year even though I had carefully followed instruction and re-applied every spring. Never again for me.

agprice22 · Apr 16, 2015

I have not used PoliGlow. However, I have used acrylic coating on several of my boats. My boats get compliments. People say they look new! I looked at the PoliGlow and other products. I opted to use ProForm floor acrylic floor coating from Sam's club. It is Water Resistant, Scuff Resistant, and UV protecting. It only takes a few minutes to apply 4 very thin coats. The thinner, the better, as the stuff will run easily. I have had it on several boats for several seasons. Each season, I just wet sand the old coat lightly with 1200 and then recoat. You coat it by rubbing on with a fine cloth dampened with the acrylic coating. If you want to remove it, wet sand the hull with 600 and 1200. That will take the hull down to the gelcoat.

The boats stay shiny year after year.

Here is my 272 before last season:

Here is my 272 BEFORE reapplying acrylic this year:

Not much difference after a season on the water, in my opinion. I have experienced no flaking, discoloration, or any problem at all. Being at the waterline has not bothered it either.

Here is a photo of the product I use:

It is made by EcoLabs. I know it seems risky to use a product not made for boats, but I looked at the ingedients, and I could not see the difference nor the point of paying 16 x more money for a pint of a product packaged for boats. I gave the floor coating a shot, and I haven't been disappointed.

Enjoy,
Andrew

dparilla · Apr 16, 2015

If it works...go for it. I have used PoliGlow for 5 years now. Even stripped and reapplied it due to some hull repairs. Removal with polistrip aerosol was easy. 1 to 1 ammonia and water worked almost as well. I have even tried NuFinish car polish and it worked about the same, but poliglow seems to be a slightly thicker suspension to the floor wax/car wax variety of polymer. Just my observation.

agprice22 · Apr 16, 2015

dparilla said:
poliglow seems to be a slightly thicker suspension to the floor wax/car wax variety of polymer. Just my observation.

Thicker would be helpful because the stuff I use is thin as water. I apply it in THIN coats to avoid runs. That is why I apply 4 coats.

Interesting.

Thanks!

Brian S · Apr 16, 2015

There is another product that gets play from the RV industry: New Glass 2 http://www.newglass2.com

I have not used either product. I know someone who is happy with Poliglow. I've heard that it's expensive. I don't know about New Glass 2. I have heard other people have good results with a floor product, as noted by agprice22.

Either way you go, all 3 products are really acrylic coatings.

Me, I have a small boat that was in good shape when I got it, so I followed MaineSail's Tips for a great buff wax. Since I put in the major effort 2 years ago, each spring is a simple polish with the Makita, and application of the Collinite, to keep mine looking shiny.

tartansailboat · Apr 16, 2015

Several years ago, a dock neighbor who is a chemical engineer looked at the polyglo can and said this stuff is nothing more than acrylic floor polish, maybe with a uv inhibitor. He purchased a gallon of Ace Hardare acrylic floor polish and applied several very thin coats. Looked great, I followed his lead, looks great. Maybe you need the UV inhibitor in Florida but not in SF CA. To remove it, use Ace Hardware floor stripper full strength. You do have to clean the hull first and I use On/Off, a powerful acid wash.

meb135 · Apr 16, 2015

Canonshooternb said:
I have read some of the articles from Maine Sail and Buff waxing but would also be intersted on hearing peoples experience from Poli Glow.
A fellow sailor was telling me this evening that what he plans on using. I have seen the you tube sales video but more interested on real like experience.

Should I stay or Should I go

Canon,
I followed mainsail's instructions to a tee, 2 years ago. Come have a look at the results for yourself. I have no regrets.

Marc

HealthWorks · Apr 16, 2015

I have been using a Macquires boat cleaner/wax with good results, but since I'm a sucker for new stuff, found RGLabs waterless wash/carnuba wax product that is GREAT for the auto paint. They make a MARINE product FW1 Marine Formula that I just got. I'm trying this as soon as the snow melts. I hope it will pull out an old waterline mark where the Mac was in the water for the Summer.

agprice22 · Apr 19, 2015

Here are some pics of the process of applying acrylic to my friend's Oday 26 today:

Partly done hull. You can see the difference between the aft section and the near section. The aft section has 1 coat. The near section is uncoated:

Here is the hull after 4 coats:

Again, you apply it with a cloth dampened with the acrylic.

Thanks,

Andrew