hull stains

B

blackfish

New member
Hi all
we are looking at buying a used c-dory that has spent most of its life
in the water, it has bottom paint but from the pics it appears to have
some staining just above the water line
do you think i can remove these stains?
I'm not familiar with fiberglass boats our current boat is aluminum so of course staining is not a real problem
 
I'm pretty sure you can get it off. The trick is to do it without disturbing the gel coat or at least a minimum amount. Lots of traffic on the site about cleaning the hull.

Charlie
 
There are many ways to clean a hull. I would start with a product which has oxylic acid as its primary ingredient. (Davis Fiberglass Stain remover gel is an excellent example)--Bar Keeper's friend and Zud, both also have oxylic acid--but contain a mild abrasive, so I would avoid them at first.

Then you want to compound the boat with a moderate rubbing compound. Then 3M Finessit, and a final coat of Colinate Fleet paste wax, and there is a good chance you will not tell the boat from new. The C Dories have an excellent reputation of gel coat quality and being able to be brought back to like new condition.
 
According to the MSDS the Mary Kate "On/Off" contains:
Hydrochloric acid: 20 to 25% by weight
Phosphoric Acid 5 to 10% by weight
Oxylic Acid 1 to 5% by weight

You want to watch the skin and eyes.
 
Blackfish,

Polyglowproducts.com is the website for a company that is advertised on Ship Shape TV. I have used the products to re-finish the gelcoat on my 1995 22' cruiser and I am sold on it. The kit includes Poly-prep which is used to clean the gelcoat in general and Poly-glow which restores the shine of the gelcoat. If you have very stubborn staining near the waterline or on the transom from oil exhaust, you can add Poly-ox to the kit which did a great job on mine.

Good Luck...Tad
 
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