Rubbing compound - a last resort?

[Cobra750]

Dear All. My hull (white) is far from shiny! I immediately thought Rubbing compound (with buffer) followed by wax polish. Some colleagues have said I should try various polishers / cleaners first as rubbing compund damages gel coat & should only be used a a last resort. Is that true...?

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[paulg]

If warm water+detergent +polish don't work try Teak Brite Hull Cleaner on hull or if you can source it-oxalic acid followed by polish. If that is not good enough I have never had a problem using fine grade compound on hull of my boat (Farecla springs to mind) over the past 10 years. Don't worry ,you won't rub the gel away and the difference is worth the effort. Try transom as test bed and finish with pukka yacht polish or some other.

<hr width=100% size=1>paul

 

[ashanta]

You can use rubbing compounds to great effect but using a machine is the danger. You must not allow the buffer to stay in one place to long and that is the problem. to remain consistant throughtout the whole project is not easy. You can do it by hand but obviously it takes longer and requires effort but you can maintain consistancy.

I have used 1200 then 1500 grade wet and dry by hand taking my time over a number of days, I have then used a very fine rubbing compound by hand. The final polish was with silicone polish and the results were excellent. 4 years on and I am still pleased. You must be patient and not look for a quick result. Take your time and remember the gel coat is really very thin.

Good luck.

Peter.

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[VicS]

This topic has been aired more than once on this forum. Try some searches and you will find plenty to read. Search for the word Farecla and you will find any that I have contributed to.

A rubbing compound and a foam compounding mop kept moist and revolving at a relatively low speed is the key to success.

<hr width=100% size=1><font color=purple>Ne te confundant illegitimi.</font color=purple>

 

[FullCircle]

When I got Second Chance it had been under a tree for a couple of years. There were brown stained patches. I got rid of those using Y10 available at chandlery. Use gloves.masks etc, as it is wicked stuff. It works too. Other than that, use Rubbing compound as in posts above and then a decent polish like Auto Glym Resin. Lots of care and elbow grease and the results are worth it.

Jim

<hr width=100% size=1>Second Chance - First Love

 

[longjohnsilver]

Farecla 10 is a very fine rubbing compound on liquid form, I've used it to great effect many times. Highly recommended.

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[Birdseye]

rubbing compound is simply a very fine abrasive, so you are removing a layer of the surface of the gel coat. so its probably better to try the chemical stain removers first, but if they dont work you only have 2 options - ignore the staining, or remove it with abrasives.

if the boat is any size, its a real pain trying to use rubbing compounds by hand. i use a polishing machine of the sort used in car spray shops, which is still fairly hard work because it is heavy. use plenty of water - the localised heating problem (which can turn your gelcoat brown) occurs when you stay too long in one spot and the mop dries out. one of the kitchen / bathroom cleaner bottles filled with water works well.

dont leave your car parked in spraying distance - i did that one year and it took months to get all the dried on farecla spots off the paintwork . dont try using as mop on a normal electric drill or sander. they can run way too fast for this exercise and you will burn the gel.

ultimately, i suppose you will wear through the gel coat. but it will take a very long time - gel is way thicker than paint.

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[kireonriley]

sent you a p.m to colect mesage go to user optipns

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[Rabbie]

When I bought my boat in March, the previous owner (over 20 years) gave me a 'shopping list' of hints. Under 'maintenance of hull' he wrote 'Y10 to remove stains on topsides - NOTHING ELSE WILL DO !!!!!!!'. I suppose that is a recommendation as the hull is in great nick.

<hr width=100% size=1>The line between balls and lunacy is very thin.

 

[petery]

Oxalic acid - any restrictions on use?

Oxalic acid is frequently recommended as a way of getting rid of stains from gelcoat - and there are several posts reminding us that it is poisonous and we should wear masks, gloves etc.

I'm thinking of using it - but am I allowed to wash the surplus into the harbour/marina/river or onto the hard-standing/beach. With the tight controls on the ingredients for antifouling, are chemicals like Oxalic acid similarly controlled/banned?

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[Cantata]

I've noticed that polishes marketed for boats usually say they don't contain silicone, unlike car polishes or so I understand. A car polish and also a silcone polish are mentioned in this thread - any views on this e.g. is silicone in polish alleged to damage the gelcoat?

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[Riccardo]

Don't do anything until you talk to the 3M agent in UK.

My hull was the same as yours, and I tried loads of remedies, but none worked out 100% - 3M agent does a pack for hull restoration which includes buffer, compounds, mops etc - costs approx £450 - but results from a little elbow grease are superb! - don't have details to hand, but will send to you tomorrow - Peter Furby is UK 3M agent, and as regards F/Glass restoration is the only one in 35 years that I have come acorss that knows what he is talking about!

Richard

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[Riccardo]

Don't do anything until you talk to the 3M agent in UK.

My hull was the same as yours, and I tried loads of remedies, but none worked out 100% - 3M agent does a pack for hull restoration which includes buffer, compounds, mops etc - costs approx £450 - but results from a little elbow grease are superb! - don't have details to hand, but will send to you tomorrow - Peter Furby is UK 3M agent, and as regards F/Glass restoration is the only one in 35 years that I have come acorss that knows what he is talking about!

Richard

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[Gunfleet]

Re: Oxalic acid - any restrictions on use?

I don't think you need a mask, Peter. It is dangerous because it's poisonous and can migrate through your skin. But unless you put your gloved fingers in your mouth there shouldn't be a problem!!! It is a naturally occurring chemical (rhubarb leaves) and I don't think you could use enough on a boat to fear causing a serious pollution problem. But then the environmental lobby is such maybe they'll want any runaway trapped and dealt with. It depends on your local rules.

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[ashanta]

Oxalic acid and Y10 clean the gel coat but they do nothing to bring the gel coat back to it's former shine dulled by UV. The question asked in the initial post was what could be done to improve the dull gel coat. I use oxalic acid each season but I have to clean and polish to keep the gel coat shiny. The important thing is you cannot use abrasives many time in the life of the boat as the gel coat is too thin and will easily be worn away but a few time in it's life will mean you do not have to resort to expensive paint jobs. Especially if your gel coat is coloured. (blue is particularly prone to UV and dulls very quickly compared to white)
Regards.

Peter.

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[Riccardo]

I have looked up a post that I sent previously re 3M fibreglass polishing products:

Some time ago, there was a reference to Peter Furby regarding new Fibreglass maintainance products from 3M. He put me in touch with DMS (Diverse Marine Products) in Newbury, Tel 0163 525 5346, who supply a complete kit with dedicated slow speed electric polisher, various wool heads and compounding/polishing material, and finishing wax.

Having used it on my hull, topsides, cockpit over the last few days, I can say that I have never seen such a good finish on any boat outside of a boat show. What is more, the ease with which a superb finish can be achieved is amazing! The polisher is as light as a feather, but still has plenty of grunt to easily cut and polish the most jaded hull in about a quarter of the time and effort required with the usual car-type buffer.

At £350 for the complete kit, I was a bit hesitant at first, but now consider it the best money I have spend on a boat in a long time - even SWMBO was impressed!

Both Peter and the people at DMS are extremely helpful, and know their products inside out.

Highly recommended!

Richard



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[Birdseye]

As I understand it, gelcoats deteriorate over time and start to oxidise on the surface forming a white powder. You can remove that with a mild abrasive, but the new gel surface then exposed will again oxidise. So you need some sort of protective coating.

I have used resin polishes on the waterline bit where I suffer from yellow staining, and these seam to slow the process down but not stop it. In the end, you will prob have to repaint - but that need not be too expensive if you find a spray man working in the black economy . Several have done it at our club (in the open air) with very good results

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