The Boat Doctor

You can’t give your boat hair plugs, Botox injections, or liposuction, but you can give it a face-lift. Want to
float Mom’s Mink in the Fountain of Youth? Following this list of dos
and taboos will shave years off your boat’s appearance and prevent
premature aging.

MAINTAIN A YOUTHFUL APPEARANCE

Bald Ain’t Beautiful Think of canvas, clear plastics, and vinyl as your boat’s hair. Without
it, your boat will look older than it is. Make your boat look years
younger by replacing all of its canvas and cushions.

Wax to the Max Keep your boat’s skin—its gel coat—looking young. How? Start with a
double coat of wax every spring; this is your boat’s sunscreen, which
will protect its skin and make contaminants wash away easily. Follow up
with thorough washdowns after every outing—use a boat soap that contains
carnauba wax for extra shine. If the gel coat looks old, chalky, and
dingy, rejuvenate it with an anti-oxidation agent such as Meguiar’s #49
heavy-duty oxidation remover ($13;
www.meguiars.com).
Yellow water stains and discoloration can be removed with Davis FSR
stain remover ($13;
www.davisnet.com). If your colored gel coat is screaming for
rejuvenation, contact the manufacturer and ask what brand of gel coat
was used and if it can be helped. In many cases, colored gel coat can be
wet-sanded until it shines like new, but some brands will just be harmed
more if you hit them with sandpaper.

There’s the Rub Replace your boat’s rubrail insert to get rid of its scuff marks. This
job is simpler than you’d think. A hair dryer can be used to heat most
rubberized rubrails. As they become flexible, they easily pop out of
their slots. A new insert can then be pushed into place.

AVOID PREMATURE AGING

Burn Baby Burn The sun isn’t the only thing that causes skin damage—caustic cleaners or
products containing bleach age gel coat fast. Minimize the use of these
cleaners. If you must use them, make sure you rinse your boat well
afterward.

Cowl Abuse Sitting an engine’s cowl on the ground upside-down is the number one
mistake made by outboard owners. Even on wooden dock planking, the
cowl’s finish will get scratched or scuffed, instantly aging it.

Cloudy Vision Clear plastic curtains and windscreens can also dull with age, which
will be worsened if you use ammonia-based glass cleaners on them.

Easy Does It Abrasion makes any boat look old, too. The main culprit is that
innocent-looking scrub brush. Using a stiff-bristle brush on glossy
surfaces, such as gel coat, outboard finish paints, and vinyl decals,
will eventually scrub their gloss away. Use a soft-bristled brush,
sponge, or rag to clean anything aboard your boat that’s smooth and
shiny.