We recently purchased a NEW boat, and love the way the gelcoat shines now---What is the best way to protect the finish? The boat is in freshwater, and moored with no protection from the elements. We've been considering waxing the entire boat with a traditional paste wax or just using a boat wash that has wax in it. Any suggestions?
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.. I would tend to start there with a new boat. Easy to apply, seals the surface. FWIW, my L40.5 gets washed weekly and waxed spring and fall. It looks great at 8 years old. I have it done. My V32 was waxed the same frequency, but I used Poly Glow on the non-skid. It also looked good after nine years. I used a variety of cleaner-waxes, but found Boatlife more durable. I started this maintenance after watching a guy bring back an old chalky Columbia 28 to look as if it had been LP'ed. I did the same to my O'Day 27, and it also looked like it had just been poped. There is no question that your resale will reflect your care and pay for a lot of it if you keep it up all the time. And, I do not believe the current gel coats are as dense or durable as the old ones, thus requiring more maintenance. Again, I would try Island Girl on a fresh boat and avoid wax build up from the start. Good luck, Rick D.
.. I would tend to start there with a new boat. Easy to apply, seals the surface. FWIW, my L40.5 gets washed weekly and waxed spring and fall. It looks great at 8 years old. I have it done. My V32 was waxed the same frequency, but I used Poly Glow on the non-skid. It also looked good after nine years. I used a variety of cleaner-waxes, but found Boatlife more durable. I started this maintenance after watching a guy bring back an old chalky Columbia 28 to look as if it had been LP'ed. I did the same to my O'Day 27, and it also looked like it had just been poped. There is no question that your resale will reflect your care and pay for a lot of it if you keep it up all the time. And, I do not believe the current gel coats are as dense or durable as the old ones, thus requiring more maintenance. Again, I would try Island Girl on a fresh boat and avoid wax build up from the start. Good luck, Rick D.
COLLINITE
i HAVE FOUND COLLINITE WAX CLEANER AND FLEET PASTE WAX TO BE UNEQUALED IN DURABILITY AND ABILITY TO CLEAN THE GELCOAT. THE COLLINITE CLEANER WORKS WONDERS ON ALL KINDS OF STAINS ON THE GELCOAT FROM THE DIESEL SOOT TO SLIME FROM THE WATER.
i HAVE FOUND COLLINITE WAX CLEANER AND FLEET PASTE WAX TO BE UNEQUALED IN DURABILITY AND ABILITY TO CLEAN THE GELCOAT. THE COLLINITE CLEANER WORKS WONDERS ON ALL KINDS OF STAINS ON THE GELCOAT FROM THE DIESEL SOOT TO SLIME FROM THE WATER.
Don't use polish or Poli-glow on a new boat.
Bob: If you have a new boats all you need to do is clean it with something like the Island Girl Pink. Then seal the smooth gelcoat with the Island Girl Mirror Hard Superglaze. This will protect the gelcoat. Then you should also get some of their Non-skid sealant. This will keep you gelcoat as maintenance free as it can be. Poliglow if fine for a boat with pitted and badly oxidized gelcoat. If you use many of the waxes they have abrasives to "Polish" the boat. All you want to do is protect the finish from long term degradation. It is smart to do this when new.
Bob: If you have a new boats all you need to do is clean it with something like the Island Girl Pink. Then seal the smooth gelcoat with the Island Girl Mirror Hard Superglaze. This will protect the gelcoat. Then you should also get some of their Non-skid sealant. This will keep you gelcoat as maintenance free as it can be. Poliglow if fine for a boat with pitted and badly oxidized gelcoat. If you use many of the waxes they have abrasives to "Polish" the boat. All you want to do is protect the finish from long term degradation. It is smart to do this when new.
Collinite for me
I also recommend covering the boat in the slip (and on the hard) with two heavy-duty poly tarps, one from the mast forward in a V shape, the other from the mast back in a larger triangle shape. That protects the finish better than anything else except a garage.
I also recommend covering the boat in the slip (and on the hard) with two heavy-duty poly tarps, one from the mast forward in a V shape, the other from the mast back in a larger triangle shape. That protects the finish better than anything else except a garage.
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