Shiny boats

[billyfish]

Having gone from wooden 'rustic' boats ,gavinized fitting etc, to plastic fantastic, I realise you have to keep cleaning them, not something I'm known for, how do you keep the stainless fittings looking good pulpits, pushpits etc .

 

[ChromeDome]

Regular maintenance with a made-for-purpose product.

Several around, some of them very good and quite long-lasting. Actually might be the same one you use for polishing the GRP.

 

[billyfish]

Polishing grp ? Wow

 

[ChromeDome]

Polishing grp ? Wow

You might be on the verge of starting a clean, cut, polish, and wax tuition thread

 

[Praxinoscope]

Polishing grp ? Wow

I polish my grp boat hull twice a year, before lift-in and then after lift-out, the stainless steel fittings get cleaned with a proprietary kitchen S/S cleaner. It's 42 years old and the hull is still 'shiny' and the colour (light blue) still has a depth to it.

 

[Momac]

Try this (on GRP as well as on stainless steel).

But guess if you don't really do cleaning it may be something more potent is required .

If the stainless steel is tarnished or showing some rust stains try this - apply an leave to work as long as you like then rinse off.

 

[ylop]

I polish my grp boat hull twice a year, before lift-in and then after lift-out, the stainless steel fittings get cleaned with a proprietary kitchen S/S cleaner. It's 42 years old and the hull is still 'shiny' and the colour (light blue) still has a depth to it.

View attachment 158907

Is there an advantage to doing it after lift out and again pre-lift in? Eg do you think the second one is quicker or people are more careful around a “clean boat” in the yard?

 

[Praxinoscope]

Whoops not sure what happened here.

 

[Praxinoscope]

Is there an advantage to doing it after lift out and again pre-lift in? Eg do you think the second one is quicker or people are more careful around a “clean boat” in the yard?

I have no absolute evidence that the pre-winter polish has any major advantage, but I and two thers do this and all three boats seem to 'look better' when lift-in is on the horizon.
It just seems to me that it's a little bit more protection for the gel coat and certainly isn't going to do any harm.

 

[johnalison]

There is too much stainless steel around the boat to be worth polishing regularly. Since it is mostly of good quality it doesn’t show signs of rust and doesn’t need protection. The chief exception is the pole supporting the radar in the stern. I occasionally polish this with whatever metal polish I happen to have, but it is not very conspicuous if it tarnishes in a few places.
My hull and cabin top I polish at fit-out and during the season if it looks tired, but after 23 years it still looks pretty good and a lot better than a sister ship that I saw last week that doesn’t get the same attention and is six years younger. For the hull I just use a gelcoat cleaner and plain wax. For the more exposed coachroof and cockpit I use a standard polish, occasionally using Starbrite Color-Restorer polish on areas that have stained a bit, such as around the exhaust. I do all this by hand, apart from the HR blue line which has to be cut first.

 

[billyfish]

Ahr. I have a blue lime, looks s--t cut it first then

 

[Concerto]

billyfish, if you think you have a problem polishing your yacht, you should have bought a motorboat. They take a lot less time going from A to B and many owners find cleaning and polishing is a way of spending the spare time before going out for a meal.

 

[Wansworth]

billyfish, if you think you have a problem polishing your yacht, you should have bought a motorboat. They take a lot less time going from A to B and many owners find cleaning and polishing is a way of spending the spare time before going out for a meal.

Of course most of us remember being told grp boats didn’t need maintenance

 

[LittleSister]

Of course most of us remember being told grp boats didn’t need maintenance

They don't.

But it's so long since you've had one you've forgotten that it's all sunshine, Force 3 to 4, sea state smooth to slight, and comely maidens draped about the foredeck, as your boat slices through the turquoise water, headed for the palm trees on the horizon that identify the white sand fringed islet you'll have to yourselves.

Honest!

 

[Rappey]

Compare the cleaning to your car. Never clean it and things "lose their shine" wash it regularly and it stays shiny.
Its a lot of work to keep washing a boat. No doubt the ones cleaned regularly are more shiny.
Boats tend to polish back up after a long period of time with a lot of hard work so why waste time cleaning in the interim (unless it really needs it)

 

[Wansworth]

They don't.

But it's so long since you've had one you've forgotten that it's all sunshine, Force 3 to 4, sea state smooth to slight, and comely maidens draped about the foredeck, as your boat slices through the turquoise water, headed for the palm trees on the horizon that identify the white sand fringed islet you'll have to yourselves.

Honest!

You have been reading the properganda or improperganda

Compare the cleaning to your car. Never clean it and things "lose their shine" wash it regularly and it stays shiny.
Its a lot of work to keep washing a boat. No doubt the ones cleaned regularly are more shiny.
Boats tend to polish back up after a long period of time with a lot of hard work so why waste time cleaning in the interim (unless it really needs it)

When I did have a grp yacht I was quite content to just sluice water over it but I was ganged upon by other yacht owners who persuaded me to Polish it,maybe they felt hard done by having to polish their yachts whilst I just chilled out

 

[johnalison]

Compare the cleaning to your car. Never clean it and things "lose their shine" wash it regularly and it stays shiny.
Its a lot of work to keep washing a boat. No doubt the ones cleaned regularly are more shiny.
Boats tend to polish back up after a long period of time with a lot of hard work so why waste time cleaning in the interim (unless it really needs it)

Cleaning the boat must have been drummed into me in the cradle. My earliest experience of larger boats was on the Broads, and using the mop to keep the upper works clean was a regular and enjoyable task. My recent boats get a clean pretty regularly, though I don’t go so far as some by washing the boat down after every trip to sea. Gelcoat seems to absorb dirt, so just getting the worst of the grime off must be doing some good, and a quick swab round every now and again is a lot easier than having to knuckle down with cleaners, polishes and cutting compound.

 

[Snowgoose-1]

Cleaning the boat must have been drummed into me in the cradle. My earliest experience of larger boats was on the Broads, and using the mop to keep the upper works clean was a regular and enjoyable task. My recent boats get a clean pretty regularly, though I don’t go so far as some by washing the boat down after every trip to sea. Gelcoat seems to absorb dirt, so just getting the worst of the grime off must be doing some good, and a quick swab round every now and again is a lot easier than having to knuckle down with cleaners, polishes and cutting compound.

Apparently Acid Rain levels have fallen by 80 per cent since 1990 It must have taken a bit of shine off. Don't know if the Ozone Layer is still taking a bashing though.

 

[William_H]

Cleaning a boat topsides and hull should all be a pleasure and done when you get the urge. So mine gets a bit of attention in winter when it is home but in summer on swing mooring mostly I am concerned with weed on the bottom. Cleaning sea gull mess is not a pleasure but done out of embarrassment when crew see it.
I do a few times the oxalic acid type stuff just above the water line with a spray bottle to clean off that horrible brown stain. Polish the hull. No never. Perhaps a touch up of paint keeps it semi respectable. As said it is all a question of what owner wants to do. I respect those going for concourse de elegance but for me it is just keeping it tidy. ol'will

 

[MikeBz]

To reply to the OP's question (stainless steel fittings, pushpit etc.) - WD40 and Scotchbrite works well for cleaning SS.