Faded grey strips on hull

I regularly polish the 36 meter motor which I look after. Over the last 5 years I have used various methods and products and have now settled on a process which works well and keeps the vessel looking sparkling and easy to clean. I have used a range of the 3M products and I find them good to use although they can be expensive. But if you want to use a range of products from one manufacturer then 3M have a full range for vessels in various conditions and are available worldwide. The 3M websites have plenty of additional information .

If your vessel is in poor condition or has heavy oxidization of the gelcoat I would suggest -

1. Wash with 3M Marine Boat Soap or any good quality boat wash.

2. Use a cutting compound like 3M Marine Rubbing Compound or similar.

3. Machine polish with 3M Finesse -It 11.

4. Hand apply a wax like 3M Marine Ultra Wax or 3M Marine Liquid Wax.

If your vessel is in reasonable condition with light oxidization of the gelcoat I would suggest-

1. Wash with 3M Marine Boat Soap or any good quality boat wash.

2. Machine polish with 3M Finesse -It 11.

3. Hand apply a wax like 3M Marine Ultra Wax or 3M Marine Liquid Wax.

If your vessel is in as new condition still with good gloss retention I would suggest-

1. Wash with 3M Marine Boat Soap or any good quality boat wash.

2. Hand apply a wax like 3M Marine Ultra Wax or 3M Marine Liquid Wax.

The "compound" is used to removed oxidization and stains and removes gelcoat as it works. Compounds come in various levels of abrasiveness - often referred to as 1. 2 or 3. 1 being the less aggressive and 3 the most.

The Finesse "polish" is a much finer abrasive than a "compound" and includes a polish which remains on surface to provide protection to the gelcoat and some gloss.

The  "Wax" forms an additional protective film over the gelcoat and gives a high gloss.  The Marine Liquid Wax is easier to use than the Ultra Wax which is a thick paste.

Here in the tropics with very strong sun I would polish and wax twice a year. I think in less severe weather areas once per year would be enough.

To make the job as easy as possible you need the right equipment - a large (200mm) variable speed electric polisher, I prefer to used foam pads to apply compound or polish rather than lambs wool pads. The lambs wool pads are preferred by professional but are more difficult to use. I find the foam pads easier to use for us non "professionals". The foam pads I use are about 125mm in diameter and about 50mm thick and screw onto the polisher. I use the blue coloured pads. In Aust these pads are available in 4 different hardness and each hardness is a different colour. The harder pads are more aggressive but a bit harder to use. I find the blue pads are a good combination of being easy to use and not too aggressive. You need plenty of clean towelling to clean off the products. When it gets to applying the wax by hand I use 100mm diameter microfiber polishing mitts. These cost about AUD$4 each but are much easier than using a piece of cloth. You probably need scaffolding or trestles and a plank or a work platform to be able to reach all the areas on the hull safely assuming you are polishing whilst the boat is on the hard. Polishing the hull with the boat in the water is more difficult and presents more problems. Not impossible just more difficult.

At this point you need to assess if you should spend your money on all the polishing equipment, supplies and scaffolding and commit several days of your time to polish your hull or pay a tradesman to do the work? I think to polish and wax a 35 ft hull which is in fair condition to start with will take about 20- 25 hours of fairly hard work. If your boat is in poor condition and with heavy oxidization I would think very carefully about having  tradesman do it this year and then you could take over the polishing/waxing next year.   

To start the process =

First rinse the hull with plenty of fresh water then wash the vessel hull, or area you wish to polish, well with a specific marine wash/soap.

Next - use the electric variable speed polisher to apply either a cutting compound or polish. I use a firm foam pad (blue colour) which is moistened with water. Apply the product to the pad and then spread it over the work area without starting the machine. If you just turn the machine on a lot of the product will fly off. Leave the machine in contact with the work area and then start the polisher and move it slowly over the work area trying to cover the area evenly. The pad should remain flat on the work surface. I have a small spray bottle with plain water in it which I use to make sure the area I am working on does not dry out. If the product dries out and you continue to  polish it can "burn" the surface. I set the polisher on speed 2 ( on a scale of 0=nil, 9 = scary fast). If the polisher is too fast the polish flys off and makes a mess. If the polisher is on high speed it is also easy to damage the surface. I rinse the compound or polish residue off with a damp cloth and then hand buff with towelling once the remainder has dried. I make sure the foam pads are washed out frequently - every 2 square meters of polishing, rinse out the damp cloth several times for an area polished (about 1 square meter) and I make sure the towelling does not get too much compound/polish build up. The more product you can get off by rinsing the easier it will be to buff off remiander.

Note - be very careful when applying the compound or polish with the electric polisher as it can be easy to cut through the gelcoat in areas where there are sharp edges. In smaller areas apply the compound or polish by hand.

Once compounding is finished ( if compounding was needed) use the same procedure to apply and remove the polish.

After  a large area or one side of the hull is finished I then I apply the Wax by hand, buff by hand and then a final buff with a lambs wool pad on the electric polisher set at speed 3. When hand applying the wax I use the small microfiber round applicator pads. Again I change these pads over after say 4 square meters of work. I find you need to make sure there is no build up of polish residue or wax on the applicators or towelling as any buildup makes it more difficult to remove the product off the boat. Because we have so much polishing to do we buy large bags of old towels from a commercial laundry for polishing. A bag costs about AUD$25 for the equivalent of about 30- 40 towels and are often ex hospital or hotel towels. Once the towels become worn out from the polishing they get used in the engine room and other cleaning and they then get thrown out. We have about 20 of the microfiber applicators which we wash out and dry for their next use. They last about 25-30 uses and washing cycles.

After the polish/waxing process is complete regularly wash the boat with a good quality marine wash or shampoo. Don't use aggressive detergents like "truckwash" as they will remove the wax and damage your gelcoat. Always start the washing with a good fresh water rinse to remove salt and then shampoo the boat.

There are a lot of " miracle one shot" products around - you know the ones that promise to wash, polish and wax all in one easy and fast process. I have used some of these products and have not found them to be as good as the full, labour intensive separate wash, compound (if necessary) , polish and wax.

You may find variations to the above procedures are better for you  and your boat in your location but start with this and see how you go.

A well polished boat is a beautiful thing to behold and very satisfying if it is a product of your own labour. Happy polishing.