Polish and Waxing Your Yacht - What Do You Use

Overall I like Collinite fleetwax. I've found that certain manufacturers gelcoats do react better to other wax such as the 3M with scotchguard. When it first came out it was a great wax, but seems the quality has dropped off on it. The Meguiar's in the blue bottle used to be the gold standard in the 90's, it's quality has now been dropped to one step above garbage. The flagship Meguiars is fairly good, but would put it behind the other two.

Hard to beat the 3m compounds. Although Aquabuff is pretty good as well. Being in Michigan, you're waxes tend to last 3 times longer than down here in Sunny South Florida.

+1 on the Collinite.

What's recommended for 8 year old awlgrip? ( besides repainting! Ha ha)

I understand newish awlgrip should be compounded or waxed. But is it worth a try to compound and wax?

Where did you get an understanding that newish Awlgrip should be compounded or waxed?

1. Do not use traditional waxes. General: Traditional waxes break down rapidly. The residue can cause the topcoat to appear yellow, plus it attracts dirt. This creates the need to maintain the wax, increasing overall maintenance. Traditional waxes which contain no abrasives probably do little harm to the coating, but offer no benefit. Awlgrip has developed Awlcare Protective Polymer Sealer 73240 for those who want to enhance their finish and need the additional cleaning power of a hand applied, dry wash product

2. Do not use abrasives, scratch pads or polishing compounds. Scratching the surface gives dirt a place to cling while wearing out the resin layer. Using abrasives of any kind will reduce the overall life of the finish and voids the Awlgrip Limited Warranty.

While there are products designed and acceptable for "waxing" Awlgrip, the above sections from their manual provide warnings as to care. Similarly Alexseal has their own instructions.

Now the OP's question was regarding Gelcoat. This is just following up on your post.

And I suggest the same with Awlgrip and Alexseal and Teak and all other surfaces. Go to the manufacturers site or manual and follow it carefully. Awlgrip could also tell you what products other than the ones they make are acceptable. Alexseal actually lists others on their site.

www.awlgrip.com click on care and maintanence.

Awlgrip new or old should never be compounded or waxed, at a very last ditch resort would you compound it around the 12 year old mark. Washing with Awlwash soap (or at a very minimum soap without Ammonia like staying away from Orpine) is a must. Awlgrip makes a product called Awlcare that is similar to waxing gelcoat but for Awlgrip and works more like hand moisturizer on dry hands. I would try washing it a few times with Awlwash, then putting Awlcare on it.

+1 on the Collinite, also like the 850 Metal Wax

I have used Permanon for the last 8 years and its been great. No waxing.

If you put a coat of Collinite insulator wax on your stainless after metal waxing it, it will last 3x longer between having to polish it.

First thing is don't use Never-Dull until / unless the stainless is rusting, and then only as much as necessary. You don't want to use any abrasives unless absolutely necessary. Keep the stainless coated. Everybody claims to have the magic potion, but what isn't as important as how often. I've always used CRC-656, but Corrosion-X is also good as is waxing with various products. Boeshield T-9 is great for the stainless near the waterline, as it leaves a hard shield, but it yellows. So don't use it on the stainless that's on display.

Most of the stainless produced for boats today is good, but salt will eventually get to all. You, being in Michigan (fresh water), should have very little problem from it but you do have acid rain. That's also why you need to keep up with the topsides wax even though you're not subject to the salt and UV rays of Florida.

Stainless I do on an as needed basis. Depending on the type of stainless, if you see a few pieces getting surface corrosion then I'll generally do it all, or if it is discolored. I use metal wax as directed. Then I'll wipe on a thin coat of Insulator wax, let dry, rub off, in michigan you probably only have to do it once a season.

If you wax often enough, you will almost never have to compound. I think a good wax at the beginning of your season should last you all season. This depends on other factors, if you get overzealous with the concentration of boat soap you use etc will shorten the life. I like the Aquatech boat soap to use on gelcoated boats.

I'd add to CaptJ to wax the topsides and transom at least one more time mid-season as the topsides have the sun beating on it and the transom you always want looking good. Plus it makes cleaning any diesel soot off easier.

Lots of memories from this thread as I paid my way through college detailing yachts. Key things from my experience:
-Makita buffer is a must, random orbitals are useless. Heat generated from a spinner gets the wax in, imho.
-Rain dance paste had ridiculous longevity, this thread inspired me to get some off Ebay the other day for my truck. NuFinish paste is great as well, and readily available.
-FinesseIt 2 is a great light polish when compound is just too much. I did a black Fountain with this before I waxed it, really took care of the light scratches.
-Thumbs up on the Corrosion-X and the Boeshield!

I stopped using true waxes years and years ago. Zaino, Pro Polish, Rejex, Exhaust Guard, etc. way out last old school waxes. And you get far less dirt rain streaks. Plus the ones you do get come off far easier.

All of those products can be used on SS as well as glass too.

Yeah, I haven't tried any of those. I know that Rejex you cannot apply down here in South Florida. If you look at their website you have to apply it below 83F, and a few other this' and that's and if you try to apply it above that temperature, the results are horrible as a few detailing friends of mine have found out. I've been happy with Collinite fleet wax and stick with it.

This stuff works great on stainless & aluminum. The new sealer keeps the product working for about 6 months. Woody Wax with sealer. Also can be lightly brushed on the non skid cockpit floor to keep stains off.

I guess I've always some how managed to pick a day below the magic temperature number. I have not had trouble with it yet.

But then again, if you read the web site closely, you'll see there is nothing magic about the "85" deg. number after all.

"When ambient temperatures are above 85° F, RejeX should be applied out of direct sunlight. If the surface is too hot, the coating will dry before it has properly bonded to the surface, and it won’t last to its full potential. If the surface becomes hot to the touch, cool by rinsing liberally with water, dry, then apply Rejex."

You just apply it late in the day.

You can buy it at B.O.W. as well as other places here in S. FL. So somebody must be using it from time to time besides me.

Here's the problem. In addition to the 85F, if it's much above that it just smears on and doesn't apply right but another problem in South Florida, it cannot get wet for 8-12 hours, so it's not a wax you want to be messing with in the summer time.

When applied, the RejeX monomers (polymer building blocks) attach to the surface being treated and polymerize (cross-link) into a crystal-clear, flexible, chemically resistant film. It is very important to allow RejeX to cure for 8-12 hours after the haze has been wiped off. If the coating is exposed to contamination such as oil, fuel, soot, water, cleaners, etc. before it has cured, the contaminants may interfere with the structural integrity of the film, affecting its visual characteristics and release properties.

1. Allow RejeX to cure for 8-12 hours out of the elements.
   

I bow to the superior knowledge of some one who has never used it. And I will never use it in South Florida again.