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I spent a good many hours cleaning the top deck, from the front of the bow all the way back to the motor. Looks great and wondering if that's good enough or should I coat it with something (wax?) to help protect it from getting dirty again. I don't want to use any polymer type stuff like Poliglow, been down that road already. Any suggestions?

Well, of course you don't want to put anything on areas where you will step else you might create a serious hazard.

I put a polymer on smooth, non tread surfaces like the inside of the cockpit etc. It helps keep stuff from sticking. I heard once that wax isn't the best but I don't remember why.


--Russ

Steve,

Don't ever wax the deck. That's an accident waiting to happen The second year I had my Phantom (Think Sunfish), I decided to wax it until it shines like the sun. I forgot that the shiny deck is also the place where one sits On the first sail of the season, I thought I had ball bearings on the seat of my pants I learned my lesson quickly

You have already gone the SoftScrub route, so what's done is done. An abrasive such as Softscrub works by wearing away the surface you are applying it to. In the future, try a good detergent first. Maybe a product like Dawn. It works well on grease. It that does not work, you can always go the abrasive route.

Ray

I use hull cleaner bow to stern and topside, every time I pull her out of the water.

- one bucket
- a little boat soap
- a few shots of hull cleaner
- a good soft boat brush
- 10 minutes of elbow grease
- a good fresh water rinse

Works well for us. (I don't think I'm are damaging the gel coat, and the boat always shines and is not slippery)

p.s.
I do use Softscrub every now and again on the hull when I get a small black paint mark from it rubbing the trailer during a not so perfect loading. I can scub "until Dawn" with dish soap and nothing happens, but 2 seconds with Softscrub and it's gone.

Had to use softscrub this time b/c the boat has been sitting over a year and a half and had mildew embedded in the fiberglass. I'd maybe like to coat the topsides to prevent them gettting dirty so soon, but then again, it may be fine the rest of the season.

One thing that REALLY concerns me is the rear hatch cover is chipping to where I can see the black fiberglass under the white. I think I'm going to roll some topside paint on it later this season.

NiceAft wrote:Steve,

Don't ever wax the deck. That's an accident waiting to happen The second year I had my Phantom (Think Sunfish), I decided to wax it until it shines like the sun. I forgot that the shiny deck is also the place where one sits On the first sail of the season, I thought I had ball bearings on the seat of my pants I learned my lesson quickly

You have already gone the SoftScrub route, so what's done is done. An abrasive such as Softscrub works by wearing away the surface you are applying it to. In the future, try a good detergent first. Maybe a product like Dawn. It works well on grease. It that does not work, you can always go the abrasive route.

Ray

Steve wrote:I don't want to use any polymer type stuff like Poliglow, been down that road already.

What happened?

Victor

After cleaning the non skid area I use a product called sure step by Aurora products from Canada. It is like a non slip wax however it just gets a sheen to it and not a real reflective shine. During the rest of the season the bird droppings, spider and bug feces wash away easily using a non skid boat cleaner.

After 2 years in looked like crap and was impossible to get off. I eventually ordered 4 cans of Poliglow remover from the company. Most of it's off now, but just not worth the effort. It also started yellowing after two years also in spots.

vkmaynard wrote:

Steve wrote:I don't want to use any polymer type stuff like Poliglow, been down that road already.

What happened?

Victor

Everytime I pull it out of the water I wash it down at the coin op car wash. With the soap thats in the machine.I use the brush then rinse. I then wax it with Meguires boat wax top to bottom inside and out. I use it on the decks with no slip problems. My black window stripes shine like new. Since I was a Sea Cadet back in the day , my boats are always to top white glove inspection shape.The pressure wash at the car wash gets all the dirt out of the corigated top side. My only complaint is I wish I had the faster white hull....My blue hull shows every mark which I seem to get a new one each time I take her out.

What about using some turtle wax on the top and sides? I have some in the garage already and would save having to purchase something else.

Steve wrote:What about using some turtle wax on the top and sides? I have some in the garage already and would save having to purchase something else.

That's basically what I used.

However, NEVER, NEVER wax something you need to step on (or sit on). Unfortunately on the Mac, that's just about everything. What I did wax was the vertical surfaces like the pedestal, inside combing, transom areas and some of the inside cockpit. I also put some one the windows and sides because I won't be stepping on them. It cleaned up the glass very nice.

I used the same stuff on the hull and last week had a guy in the marina ask me to do his. When the blue hull is shiny, it does look nice.

--Russ

RussMT wrote:

Steve wrote:What about using some turtle wax on the top and sides? I have some in the garage already and would save having to purchase something else.

That's basically what I used.

Ditto. Works fine.

Well I have gotten alot of flack for waxing my topside.....However my forward hatch was looking grey...Looking so bad I had to do something...I have all the Maguire car products for my car......So I body scrubed it then polished it then waxwed it.....I DON'T SLIP ON THE DECK. I thought I would and common sense would lend you to belive that you may slip....Sperry top siders, the girls have teva water shoes...Doesn't seem to be a problem. I did the entire boat...Looks great. When crusing by in your Mac do people ask if you are James Bond?????

Aurora Marine carries a product called 'SureStep' It is intended for non-skid surfaces and one container just covers the Mac topsides. I used it a couple times and found it helped keep the topsides cleaner and easier to clean after getting dirty. I guess it is getting time to order online again.

Another non skid "wax" to try is Woody Wax.
Find it online.
Of the two products I've used for the job, Woody Wax is the easiest to use, and gave the best results.
I get about 3 months between applications.
It really makes the black forward hatch look good, by the way.

The other product I've tried is the Aurora Sure Step.
It worked, but I kept looking, not quite satisfied.

Wash the boat good, Softscrub any deck areas that need real cleaning, re-wet the area, squirt the stuff on a finer haired deck brush (available from the vendor), mop it around the entire wet topsides, (a little goes a long way), be very, very careful not to walk on the freshly applied surfaces, (it's extremely slick while wet before cured) start at the bow and work your way back to the boarding ladder, wait 20 minutes, hose it off, let it dry, buff if you desire a sheen by doing a dance with two rags under your feet.

The stuff isn't super duper-best thing since sliced bread, but it was designed for and does work at keeping the non skid areas in decent shape with some sheen to it, and it's not slippery after it's done.

No affiliation, etc., etc., just a satisified customer who'll buy again rather than keep looking for something better.