The Spring Ritual We Love To Hate

With warm weather finally upon us, the spring ritual every boater loves to hate has arrived. That’s right, its time to dust off the polishers, buy some wax and circle the weekend you’re going to get the boat water ready.

Normally an all day (or two) job, waxing the hull can be a painful experience, but it doesn’t have to be.  A few simple steps can save you some time, hassle and have your boat looking like new.  I know a lot of people who fantastic their entire hull before waxing, I even used to be one of them.  “Fantasticing” is not only tedious and time consuming but it also doesn’t remove all the dirt and grime that builds up over a long winter on the hard.  If your boatyard has water, I suggest washing the hull with a brush and boat soap then shammying dry to prep for waxing. You’ll save yourself some time and end up with a cleaner surface to polish.  If your yard doesn’t have water yet or you’re not sure, give a quick call to the office and ask when the water will be turned on for the season.

Before waxing we need to ensure the hull has a nice shine.  Most folks skip this polishing step and it really shows in the finished shine.  If your hull is in decent shape and just needs a tad more shine I suggest the Smoove Pro-Cut 1000 Professional Polishing Compound.  However, if you’re dealing with a more heavily oxidized surface, you’re going to want to go with something that has a little more firepower.  For this type of job, I suggest the 3M Marine Restorer and Wax. 3M makes a great product here and it really brings back the shine of your hull.  For the ultimate finish and shine, I use a Makita 7” Machine Polisher (model 9237C) to apply the polish and remove any oxidation or dull spots.  You are actually using the polish to remove a small amount of paint and expose a “new” layer underneath the oxidized gelcoat - so be careful.  Go slow and keep the RPMs below 2200.  

Once you are ready to wax, pop open a beer and take a deep breath.  Now that your hull is free of dirt and has a smooth clean shine, waxing will be a breeze.  I suggest using a high performance paste wax that’s going to protect your hull and give it a shine that lasts.

We’re huge fans of Collinite’s Fleetwax. It always does a great job and buffs out to an even, vibrant shine.