Home
>
Small Business
>
Boat Hull Cleaning Procedures for Owners and Detailers

Boat Hull Cleaning Procedures for Owners and Detailers

For really tough boat hull cleaning you will need to break out the acid. Muratic acid is the best for this. You'll want to have a 50/50 mix of muratic acid of 6-8% concentrated (12% is the highest concentration you can legally buy over the counter), water and a good strong sprayer. You can purchase muratic acid at Wal*Mart, K-Mart, Pool Supply Stores, Home Depot, Lowe's, Van Waters and Rogers Chemicals. Sears Craftsman makes a nice strong sprayer or try a local store for another brand of commercial pump-up sprayer.

Spray onto the boat directly after doing a presoak with a good strong blast of water. Let it sit for approximately 2 minutes. Just let the acid do its work breaking up and removing the algae. If it is still there try it again for longer and longer periods of time, but not more than 10-15 minuites. You'll be amazed how nice it looks even by the time you come back to rinse it off. Usually you can remove all this excess with a good strong brush after the acid shock treatment.

You may have to get with a smaller scrubbie into some areas around the drive system and other nooks and crannies underneath. If it's on a trailer and the bunks are on it, that's just the way it goes, you can't get around those - you can't move that boat on the trailer. On a hoist, you'll have full access to the boat.

Once you've scrubbed off one side of the boat, rinse, and repeat the procedure on the opposite side. Give it a very strong thorough rinse getting all the residual acid off the trailer as it can sometimes cause rust spots and corrode. Only use this muratic acid mix for boats that are extremely algae covered, heavy in barnacles, and other growth associated with long-term in-water moorage. Often times you can use Slimy grimy and hot water or Starbrite's buffered acid will work just fine for cleaning a mildly dirty boat bottom. For cleaning diesel soot found around the transom, aft deck ceiling and along the water line around exhausts, but not bottom paint, you can use Meguiar's #50 first, then proceed with compound Monster Agua-Blue 200, Maguire's #44 or #49 if this doesn't work.

If you are cleaning along the waterline and boat bottom that is not painted, you will want to reach for the bottle of On/Off by Maritime Products Company. You will remove all barnacles, moss growth and browning incredibly fast. Don't get this stuff on your hands or on any bottom paint as it will streak the paint and will burn your hands. This is corrosive, but will not harm gel coat and neutralizes with water. Don't get it on the trailer, it will streak and etch it. It is an oxcillic acid mix and is available at West Marine stores. If you are a contractor and doing this for a living the pricing usually goes from $3.00 to $4.50 a foot. Again, market conditions in your area may be a little more or a little less. You can adjust to fit those market conditions.

The Marina-Tec boat wash system is great. If you are contractor and have lots of work you may want to consider leasing a location to wash boat bottoms. GMBH & Co. has a hull-leaning machine that uses two brushes that rotate horizontally along the hull and two brushes that rotate vertically at the heel. It is an automated system and does not use toxic chemicals. It is similar to an automatic car wash only for boats in the water.

Do it right the first time, do it efficiently and think about it.

"Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.worldthinktank.net/wttbbs

eco-friendly cleaning service Bannockburn ..

In The News:

The Federal Trade Commission says criminals are posing as IRS agents, law enforcement officers, or other officials, often over the phone or online, to steal thousands of dollars at a time.

AI phishing scams now use voice cloning and deepfake technology to trick victims, but Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals warning signs to watch for.

Inversion Space unveils Arc, a reusable reentry vehicle that can deliver up to 500 pounds of cargo from orbit to anywhere on Earth in under an hour.

Red flags like processing fees, urgent countdowns and requests for full Social Security numbers expose fraudulent settlement sites targeting consumers.

Comprehensive analysis of Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps examines usability, routing accuracy, data handling and features across the top navigation platforms.

Expert analysis reveals whether wired Ethernet or wireless Wi-Fi connections are safer for home internet use, plus practical steps to secure your network from attackers.

Australian construction robot Charlotte uses sand, crushed brick and recycled glass to 3D print fireproof, floodproof homes with reduced carbon footprint.

Cybercriminals are using fake invitation emails to trick recipients into downloading malware and stealing personal information and data.

Flying drones could help retailers fight a 93% increase in theft rates as Flock Safety promotes airborne security systems to track suspects and deter crime.

The Fox News Artificial Intelligence Newsletter brings you the latest news on the emerging technology every Saturday, highlighting top stories.

Hacker group Radiant stole data from 8,000 children at Kido nursery chain, demanding ransom and directly contacting parents with intimidation tactics.

As 18 states implement bell-to-bell cell phone bans, creative students use Google Docs, iMessage on MacBooks and Post-It notes to stay connected in class.

A sheriff's captain says deputies often spend hours writing reports between calls, but Axon's AI program, Draft One, helps them save crucial time in the field.

Sora 2, OpenAI's new video-generation app, can create AI-generated videos based on a singular prompt. The results are both mind-blowing and terrifying.

iPhone and Android users can reduce Wi-Fi calling battery drainage through settings adjustments, background app limits and stronger Wi-Fi connections.

Work email scams are becoming harder to detect as criminals use AI and spoofed addresses to trick employees into opening malicious attachments and links.

From her Arizona living room, Christina Chapman ran a covert hub that helped North Korean operatives infiltrate U.S. firms, netting $17 million in stolen salaries.

UC Santa Barbara researchers developed a soft robotic intubation system that achieved 100% success rates for experts and 96% for paramedics with minimal training.

Scammers exploit probate filings to target grieving families with fake fees and debts, Kurt "Cyberguy" Knutsson reports.

Automotive giant Stellantis becomes latest victim of widespread Salesforce breaches affecting companies like Google, Cisco and Adidas this year.

A woman from Washington reunited with her missing Maine Coon cat Louie after 11 days using Love Lost, a free AI-powered pet recovery platform.

Expert cybersecurity tips help Mac owners remove malware infections and strengthen defenses with antivirus software, password managers and system updates.

Meta's AI chatbot training rules bans sexual roleplay with minors and block access to child abuse material as regulators scrutinize its safety measures.

Online banking users face a new threat: web injection scams that overlay fake pop-ups to steal logins. Here’s how to spot them and protect your accounts.

Meta introduced Teen Accounts to Facebook and Messenger while launching a School Partnership Program for U.S. educators to report bullying within 48 hours.

Boat Hull Cleaning Procedures for Owners and Detailers

Small Business