Thread subject: Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos :: Cleaning

Posted by jgortva on 07/01/16 - 6:01 AM
#7

Boston Whalers are pretty much, "hose" down boats. I keep my 1995 dauntless 15 foot in the water for the season. My regular cleaning regimen is to spray the boat down with simple green and scrub with a soft boat brush. This followed by hosing the boat down pushing the cleaner and water mix thru my scuppers or in your case your bilge.
The downside is no matter what you use to clean the boat, whether it is car soap, simple green, deck wash, or even dish soap, everything will take any wax you have on the gel coat off and sooner or later it will not be glossy. This is not only unpleasing to the eye, but now more stains and stuff will stick to the chalky surface requiring more effort and cleaner to get off. At this point you will have to polish the boat with a buffer, the non skid with a orbital buffer or by hand, and then put protective coats of wax over that to maintain the shine as long as possible. Once a boat that is used heavily is 5-6 years old this buffing, waxing, and cleaning cycle becomes something you do seasonally. Basically, I buff and wax my Whaler in early spring, use the boat and clean it all summer, and by the end of the season it looks like I never buffed it at all. If a boat is stored indoors, not left in the water, and used lightly you will not have to do this until the boat is probably 10 years old and you would probably get away with buffing it every 2nd year.

Jim G.