Topside cleaner?

[Divecoz]

Andy, numerous members here have painted those stripes.. The choice of paint is up to you.. I suggest spray application for the best results..That said , if your accustomed to the use of a spray gun and have the equipment..

For the black gel coat stripes - I'm about to give up... anyone tried having those stripes painted over with Awlgrip?

- Andy

[Crikey]

Cat, you've got to get another hobby!

[hart]

I really dig the Starbright and West Marine Pure Ocean's (eco friendly) non-skid cleaners. You just wet the deck down, squirt it on, agitate it with a brush, let it sit for a minute and rinse it off. It has PTEF in it too so it offers some mild protection. Don't let it dry on the black gel coat though, it will spot it and you have to re-wash.

I'm trying a new experiment: After I wash the topsides I'm wiping the black gelcoat down with 303 protectant per the directions for fiberglass. We'll see how it does this season.

Nothing wrong with good old fashioned boat soap (pick your flavor), a brush and some elbow grease too.

For tough stains on the topsides and hull (like rust) I like FSR. It's a blue gel looking stuff made by Davis and available at most West Marine stores.

+1 on Spray Nine - this is great stuff. I use it inside all the time to clean the galley, head, and to wipe down the head liner. A bottle stays in my head at all times for general clean up.

+1 on Collinites, Woody Wax, Awesome too, all great products. Simple Green is a great product to have around a boat too.

Be very careful with bleach. It won't hurt your fiberglass (that I'm aware of) but it will pit your stainless hardware. Yeah, we've all used it and it does have it's place just keep it away from the stanchions etc.

[Hardcrab]

hart,
In my quest to keep the blacks like new, I have also tried the 303 product.
In my case and sunny location, a dismal failure to say the least.
I regard failure as a "really nice shine not lasting the two week between visits to the boat".

I gave it the whole bottle (several months/ multiple applications)) to redeem itself, but it didn't happen.

Maybe the very sunny southern CA location cooking the blacks didn't help with a better result.

IHMO and, as always, YMMV.

(So far, the Collinite Pre cleaner/ Paste wax is without peer for my expectations).

[1st Sail]

IIRC Collinite was No. 1 in the Practical Sailor test last year. Starbrite, Meguiars were tope rated as well. I have been using both Starbrite and Meguiars, but not a fair test as my M is warehouse stored. Both are easy to apply and come in a range of flavor from cleaner wax combos to pure wax.

[hart]

Almost all the detailers that buy from us say the Collinites is the best. I haven't tried it yet, I've been working my way through the products we sell so I can rate them myself. Their product line is next on my list though.

(yeah, I work at West Marine, disclaimer yada yada yada).

Hardcrab, thanks for the heads up on the 303. I think I'm in the same boat. The gulf coast sun is hull on the black.

[ozz]

"mean green with bleach" only costs about $3..dont let it sit too long..takes off even those pesky little black spots. Make sure it the green with bleach.

[Divecoz]

I washed my boat yesterday.. First time in about 9 months ( don't ask grrrrrrrr )
I used a cheap power washer.. looked pretty darn good.. had a few of those areas beneath the Big Black Stripes... that Ran down the sides ( vert.) grabbed a spray bottle of the wifes simple green .. sprayed the sides and an issue in the cockpit from leaf accumulation and sitting for 9 months..then used my soft brush and the hull and deck.... look like new... I think all the wax I had put on her last year saved the day..

[jschrade]

- West Marine boat soap for general cleaning
- Starbright for the non-skid

No complaints in two years and my boat is kept in a slip in Florida.

The "BLACK STRIPES" are a constant source of effort. I use a light 3M Compound with Wax and it works very well (by hand). With my new Shurehold Buffer, I use the BuffMagic and follow with the Pro Polish. I think this works really well and is much less effort.

Somehow I see painting with AWLGRIP going very wrong. Compounding should be much easier.

[Divecoz]

Interesting...What do you see going wrong.. and why?

-
Somehow I see painting with AWLGRIP going very wrong. Compounding should be much easier.

[Mac26Mpaul]

The plastic things for the hatches are easy to clean with a brillo pad.

Unfortunately if it gets hot where you live, there is simply no answer to the black stripes other than paint... Gelcoat breaks down in UV and the stronger the UV is, and the darker the colour of gelcoat, the quicker it happens. The best thing you can do for your black stripes is to let them oxidize and look ugly, because this forms a protective layer. When you keep cleaning it, you are only taking away another layer of gelcoat and it will begin to oxidize again instantly...

Having said that, if you cant live without it looking nice (like most of us) the easiest product I'v now found is
https://www.whitworths.com.au/main_item ... lutePage=1
You just kind of wipe it on, let it glaze and then buff it off. It cuts away the oxidization and makes them look pretty again, but like anything else except paint, its just a temporary measure. I'v only used basic polishes and waxes in the past, but this 3m restorer (and I imagine any similar stuff) makes the process less labour intensive for sure..

I recently did the whole boat with it and was happy, but in truth I can already see its oxidizing again... the deck grip part requires a scrubbing brush.

Not having any spray paint experience, I was contemplating trying to paint the racoon stripes with a roller, but then chickened out

[Default User]

ZEP works great for mold, super easy, spay on, get distracted for 5 min, rinse off. Maybe not so eco friendly tho, but no worse than bleach.

Dave