Teach me your methods and tell me what products you prefer to wax your cats.

[Nahbrown]

Originally Posted by Sparx

So....now is a good time to wax, but the boat is in the water. What techniques work for you to access the hull and get a good result when the boat is floating?

I have sat on the paddle board holding onto a line run from bow to stern to hold me and the paddle board close to the hull. Definitely not using a lines powered buffer for this situation.

Now is a pretty good time because we are at a marina with a floating dock. My wife actually applied new vinyl graphics on the outside hull today using our dinghy tied off to two cleats on the deck. Seems doable.

[MIRELOS]

always wash with a mild detergent first, I use Dove dishwashing soap, rinse well and see what to do next...wax/no wax

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by MIRELOS

always wash with a mild detergent first, I use Dove dishwashing soap, rinse well and see what to do next...wax/no wax

Why not use a dedicated boat soap? Some of the dishwashing soaps are effective in removing wax. It takes a lot of work to apply wax; why risk washing away your finish. I like this one, but there are many. I don't think the wax in it does anything much, but OTOH I'm washing waxed boat so if it adds a bit to the surface, then fine. And its biodegradable.

[DougM]

ok, I will admit my problem - i hate chalky or dirty fiberglass, but I also hate waxing. My gemini 105mc cat has a lot of deck and that was my biggest issue. Scrubbed and used woody wax twice a year, which did ok but it would still chalk somewhat. So at the start of last year, I figured I'd try a ceramic coating to see how it held up, but most of all, how much effort it takes to apply. So I got someone to do a light buffing with compound, and applied hydrosilex myself. The applicatoin was really trivial - it is water viscosity, give it a quick spray and wipe it with a microfiber cloth. In fact it was so easy it didn't give you a sense that anything useful was being accomplished. Half way through the season, I decided to try part of the deck and non skid. I picked the part that gets dirtiest - the stern walkway and the transom steps, where everyone boards the boat with dirty shoes. Hardest part was scrubbing it clean, almost trivial to apply the hydrosilex. I did about half the surface area of the boat, and used about 40% of the bottle. At the end of the season, everything i did looked great. The deck section, despite having the heaviest usage, looked dramatically cleaner then the other part with woody wax. I just looked at it a week ago after the winter. The hull looks shinier than I've ever seen it. The steps look great still, whereas normally they look really rough after the winter (the winter cover leaves them exposed and they usually collect dirt and grow a little bit of green algae. And I couldn't detect any chalk at all. So I'll chalk this up as a win (nice pun, huh? ). Going to do the rest of the deck and and superstruture this year, and my expecation is that afterwards i'll be doing a very light clean and once over, and meet my goal of keeping it looking decent and preventing deteriortation, with fairly minimal work.

[sailjumanji]

I hate waxing too. But i like a shiny boat. And despise gelcoat washing into the water! I hope that someone can come up with a coating that outlast paste wax. Remember that compound and polish provide for shine. The was is just the protectant. Itll never shine more than when you finish the polish step.

[ErnestV]

I would never, ever wax my cats. Would make their fur sticky and look ugly.

[skenn_ie]

Waxing a cat seems like a dangerous occupation ! Clippers are dangerous enough ;-)

[capnkev]

Not for everyone, but I had our Lagoon 450 ceramic coated with Ceramic Pro. We did all surfaces, gel coat, nonskid, hatches, windows and stainless. It took almost a month, but now the boat looks showroom ready and freshly waxed at all times. Cleaning is a breeze. Should last 2 years. It’s the ultimate solution if you can afford it.

[MIRELOS]

capnkev, did you do it yourself or had specialists do it?

[Cheechako]

Do nothing but wash for 15 years. Then paint the boat and it wont need wax ever.. :>) Of course you will have sold it at 6 years anyway...
I used to have mine professionally waxed each year at haulout, but frankly, it seems to last for about 5 minutes ..... OK... I lied, a month!

[David B]

Originally Posted by Nahbrown

Cats have a lot of real estate to clean and protect and I would love to know your process and products that you use to get the job done.

Ive got some extra time on my hands as we sit tight on our cat because of the virus so I want clean and wax the decks and sides of our L440.


Thanks

Lion Protect Gelcoat Sealer. If oxidised, it removes dead gelcoat, if in good condition, the nano particles just fill the pores and seal it. Lasts up to two years in exposed conditions. Just apply like car polish and once dried to a haze, buff off.