How do you wash your boat?

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ffiill

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Not so much below the water line but above including superstructure.
On my 34 footer I just use those large household foam pads with the course weave on one side plus detergent but its slow going on a grp broad beamed heavy displacement long keeler.
 
Warm sudsy water, microfibre wash mitt, sink brush for awkward bits, cheap own-brand "creme cleaner" for stubborn marks.
 
Rarely, but with a longhandled brush and Cif for the deck and white scouring pads and Cif for the smooth bits in the cockpit.
 
Bring over from other side of river then get Ben or George to get a wash brush and start washing.... :cool:

I've started buying Autosmart Active XLS. Then go over with an everyday wash and wax. Fantastic. You don't want anything too foamy or it sits on the water and goes up the river.
 
As the above with soapy water never scrub the teak deck. Im thinking of using Turtle Wax Hybrid Sealant Hydrophobic Spray Wax. Im very impressed with this on my car just spray when the car is wet and wipe off with cloth. Very easy no polishing .
 
Topsides, out of the water: I use the household long-handled squeezysponge thing even though I know I will get railed at. First with gelcoat cleaner, then washed off with a long-handled gadget and a 'sheepskin' pad. Possibly an anti-yellow agent if I have been through the Netherlands.

Coachroof: usually just a bucket of Starbright 'Boat Wash' with a sponge for the smooth bits and a brush for the textured bits. For heavy dirt, as in the spring, I use the gelcoat cleaner.

Teak decks: only Patio Magic and an occasional hose down with a very soft brush across the grain,

Stubborn marks, such as guano or diesel spills: just a brush off with seawater and they always fade away.
 
dolabriforn is being disingenuous; his boat is as clean as the next one, or at least, it was when I saw it. Actually, there are reasons for cleaning a boat. In the first place, one's lady may decline to come about a scruffy yacht. Secondly, dirt can hide faults such as a crack in the glass, and thirdly, GRP absorbs dirt and will be much harder to clean or sell if allowed to get grimy.
 
johnalison said:
dolabriforn is being disingenuous; his boat is as clean as the next one, or at least, it was when I saw it. Actually, there are reasons for cleaning a boat. In the first place, one's lady may decline to come about a scruffy yacht. Secondly, dirt can hide faults such as a crack in the glass, and thirdly, GRP absorbs dirt and will be much harder to clean or sell if allowed to get grimy.
Click to expand...

True, but if you have a MAB it perhaps doesn't make much difference.
 
Nothing cleans decks and superstructure like ornery dhobey dust sprinkled sparingly onto a wet surface, left for five minutes and brushed off with a multifibre brushes, long and short handled. Hose or bucket rinse after.
Just use common or garden non-bio washing powder, and not too much of it. Half a tablespoonfull will easily do an area the size of a table tennis table. This is good for all deck and structure materials as well as canvas.
It even removes thick, years-old encrustings of green.
Stubbborn smear marks on GRP (dark rubber shoe-soles for instance) I use Jif locally afterwards.
 
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For grey streaking on the topsides from hydrocarbon washout in rain, I use Autoglym Engine and Machine Cleaner on a sponge when out of the water. Its (detergent) formulation is very effective for such deposits, rarely requiring a second application - but it does nothing for waterline yellow, for which oxalic acid is necessary.
 
Not that I do this much, as the Admiral insists that I’m not much good at it, so she normally does it.... But a scrubbing brush plus the detergent of your choice gets most things off. For stubborn marks she use a Magic Eraser like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00VU3BRXA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_O5ZUDbNA7BRBG . They really do work, although it usually takes two of them to make a good job of the deck.
 
I very rarely bother but occasionally swab down with salt water and soft brush. CIF or also equivalent for stubborn stains and follow with Turtle wax liquid polish once or twice a year.
 
I apply Autoglym super resin polish to the GRP twice a year, at haul-out and at launch. In between I wash her down with a hose, a soft brush and car brand wash and wax. I also apply patio magic to the teak deck twice a year. I’m happy to clean while on my hands and knees as it gives me the opportunity to look over her at very close quarters.

Earlier this year I found a teak plank starting to lift. I don’t think that I would have noticed if I didn’t have a thorough cleaning routine. It cost a relatively small amount to fix the deck. Left unattended, it may had led to a very different outcome.
 
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