detailed a boat but the oxidation came back

proshine · 10-11-05, 08:45

Hey guys, I detailed my first boat the other day. When I was done it looked great and my clients were very happy. But the next day I went back to do there car and I looked at the boat and alot of the oxidation came back. Did I not buff it enough? I used meguires 1 step boat compound an polish and a foam cutting pad. I told them I wll be back to fix it for free. please help, thanks

psl car wash · 10-11-05, 08:59

this is why i dont do boats!! lol i do cars, trucks,rv's, bikes, and planes thats all.
boats never come out just right unless u start at day one with reg maintnance

flatstick · 10-12-05, 06:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by proshine

Hey guys, I detailed my first boat the other day. When I was done it looked great and my clients were very happy. But the next day I went back to do there car and I looked at the boat and alot of the oxidation came back. Did I not buff it enough? I used meguires 1 step boat compound an polish and a foam cutting pad. I told them I wll be back to fix it for free. please help, thanks

Boats are tough as heck, they have a gelcoat that can become oxidized very easily. my bassboat is well taken care of and you still have to stay on top of it. my friends have used 3M fiberglass cleaner and wax on boats that have been a little neglected with some success. I have to admit that the cutting pad idea scares me , I have heard of people using them but those gelcoats are touchy and can be expensive to fix. if the owner has not taken care of it, their gelcoat will require lots of work on your part. I always keep my gelcoat polished and top it of with Collonites 476s, you may want to see if you can get their fiberglass boat cleaner, not sure if I would use the aggresive pad , mabe a couple of polishing pads, then the owner or you can maintain it with their fiberglass boat wax or 476s ( I use the 476s because the boat wax has carnuba and I go for the durability) not sure this helps you out good luck and keep us updated.

the other pc · 10-12-05, 06:36

What probably happened is that you didn't quite get all the oxidation off but the polishing oils in the product acted as a glaze and reduced the visibility of it. You may need to buff again and/or longer or move to a more aggressive product, pad or machine.

It might help to use an alcohol/water solution to wipe off the oils after polishing a section and inspect the finish without the oils.

Don't know if One-Step leaves protection, the description on Meg's site isn't clear (sounds to me like they mean compounds and polishes in one step). I would call them to find out and/or follow up with a wax.

PC.

Detailer 4 Life · 10-12-05, 04:14

was this boat in salt water or fresh water?
many things to consider when detailing a boat what kind of machine did you use? what rpms?
did you try claying it before buffing it? just would like to know more about your process thanks

Scottwax · 10-12-05, 06:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by psl car wash

this is why i dont do boats!! lol i do cars, trucks,rv's, bikes, and planes thats all.
boats never come out just right unless u start at day one with reg maintnance

Sadly, that is very true. Even worse when you are doing one that is deeply oxidized but the owner doesn't want to pay to remove it.

Oxidized gel coats can take several polishing passes to completely remove the oxidation.

You might want to PM mirrorfinishman and rlspringer a link to this thread since they both do a lot of boats and both are very familiar with Meguiars products. Don't just PM them the questions you have, if they have this link and answer here, we all get the benefit of their knowledge.

opass · 10-12-05, 08:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scottwax

Sadly, that is very true. Even worse when you are doing one that is deeply oxidized but the owner doesn't want to pay to remove it.

Oxidized gel coats can take several polishing passes to completely remove the oxidation.

You might want to PM mirrorfinishman and rlspringer a link to this thread since they both do a lot of boats and both are very familiar with Meguiars products. Don't just PM them the questions you have, if they have this link and answer here, we all get the benefit of their knowledge.

Good ideal. Athough I never detail boat but like to know the degree of difficult to maintain boats.

ToddW · 10-12-05, 11:48

My father has had his boat for ~23 years and has always been detailing it since it was new. For 23 years old it still shines and all he's ever used on it were car waxes. Just goes to show you don't need anything fancy smancy to keep something looking new.

When we are at the lake we get compliments all the time on how nice it looks and when they here how old it is they are taken back! It's amazing what waxing it a few times a year will do.

This boat has been stored outside many years, and inside some as well. Outside it's under a cover during summer and a tarp in winter.

And if you think it doesn't get used... we go houseobating atleast once a year, the boat used to be stored at the river, and was used every other week. Now it's used weekly during summer and still gets taken on houseboating tripps yearly. To give you guys an estimate of how much we use our water toys we put as many hours on our jetskis/sea doos in 1 year as our friendS do in a couple years.

I remember getting yelled at as a kid sliding a hydroslide across the bow to my father

Anyway... sorry for long post just wanted to say car products work TOO on boats but becareful what you use.

geno · 10-14-05, 03:04

You might want to try to use Collinite 920 which is there fiberglass cleaner and then 870 Fleetwax. Depending on the oxidation you might have to use 3m rubbing compound and then do a pass with 3M Finesse It II.
Geno

mirrorfinishman · 10-16-05, 11:12

The key to keeping a boat looking good, with no oxidation, is to keep it polished and wax on a regular basis from when it is new. Regular mantenance at least two to three times a year minimum.

Once you can see oxidation on the gelcoat it's usually too late to do anything to keep the oxidation from reappearing. And yes, on a boat that contains heavy oxidation, it is possible, and usually very likely to actually begin to see the oxidation reappear within a few days. That's because the oxidation is coming from within the gelcoat itself. Of course there are a number of good products on the market that can be used to make the surface look clean, smooth and shiney, however that good looking finish on a boat that contains any amount of oxidation usually does not stay looking good for very long.

You can think of oxidation coming from within the gel coat of the fiberglass, similar to the way rust comes from within the surface of metal. If you were to take a piece of metal and grind away the rust and then coat it with car wax you would probably see the rust begin to bleed thru just like the oxidation comes back on an oxidized boat.

From a business standpoint, my basic rule is if the boat is over five years old and it has not been polished and waxed on a regular basis from when it was new, then I will not take on the job. Generally speaking, if you see oxidation then it's a sure sign that the boat hasn't been taken care of on a regular basis.

The key is polishing and waxing on a regular basis from when the boat is new. That's the only way to keep a boat looking good.

gbackus · 10-16-05, 11:19

ABC works WONDERS on oxidized gelcoat finishes.

rlspringer · 10-16-05, 12:52

I agree with Mirrorfinishman, but since I deal a lot with morrons that do not take care of boats, I am left to deal with bring back the badly oxidized boats. Oxidized boats are a real pain in the tush and it takes a lot of work to bring them back. They can be brought back and looking good for years after with proper care. Some boats that are serverly oxidized can never be brought back since the gelcoat is bad all the way through. Do not worry about foam cutting pads, generaly gel coat is about a 1/16" thick and I have seen thicker. The better boats have thicker gel coat. Never do a sailboat as they are nightmares. My process has taken me almost 2 years to perfect.

My secret is 3m heavy duty compound, 3M medium grade compound, 3M Finesse It II polish, and Collonite wax. I currently do these steps and they pay big bucks for this process:

1. Heavy compound the whole boat twice with a wool pad (use clean pad on second time).
2. Wash to remove oils and verify everything is done right. It should be looking good at this point.
3. 3M medium grade compound usually one time.
3. 3M Finesse It II polish twice with a polishing pad (not foam)
4. Appy two coats of Collonite wax

I get big bucks for this process usually $30ft., and then make sure they get on contract with me all year long to protect the boat.

Hope this helps!

rlspringer