Make boat paint look great again

[MajorJones]

I assume this question has been asked multiple times, but I struggle to find a single source of truth, so I'm asking it here.

Our narrowboat is 3 years old now, and the paint starts to look a bit dull after 3 summers. (And if I wipe it with my hand, it will leave a bit of oxidation "dust" on my palm - that's after the boat is washed and cleaned)

 

So two questions here, really, as I do not want to reinvent the bicycle -

 

1. How should I polish it, and what materials should I use to return paint to its former glory?

2. Are there any products/techniques I can use to prolong the "shiny look" of the paint?

 

Any ideas and advice are appreciated!

Edited August 1 by MajorJones

[LadyG]

Do you know what type of paint.

Brand?

What make is the boat , or who sold it.....

Spray or brush.

Is it red ( known to fade)

 

Edited August 1 by LadyG

[MajorJones]

@LadyG

all good questions, thank you! OK, let's go

 

The hull is Tim Tyler, and the boat is by Trinity Boats (huge kudos to them, by the way!)

 

The paint is HMG Coach Enamel (gloss). There are three colours - 

Roof  RAL 7001 (Silver grey)

The central part, bow, bottom stern line  - RAL 5014 (Pigeon Blue) 

Top and bottom lines - RAL 7016 (Antracite Grey)

 

So the majority of sides are Pigeon Blue (with Antracite Grey coach lines), all done with spray.

Edited August 1 by MajorJones

[Chris John]

Have you never polished it then? 
Mines polished in Spring and Autumn and still looks good as new after 6 years 

[haggis]

What do you wash the boat with ? Washing up liquid is not good for paint surfaces and canal water contains nasties .

I use clean water with Carnuba and I use a jumbo sponge and rinse the boat well after a wash 

.

[MajorJones]

2 minutes ago, Chris John said:

Have you never polished it then? 
Mines polished in Spring and Autumn and still looks good as new after 6 years 

Have to shamefully admit - I did not. In the first couple of years, I couldn't see any difference from when it was new; it's only recently that I've noticed the paint is a bit dull.

Just now, haggis said:

What do you wash the boat with ? Washing up liquid is not good for paint surfaces and canal water contains nasties .

I use clean water with Carnuba and I use a jumbo sponge and rinse the boat well after a wash 

.

Clean water and marine boat wash shampoo (can't recall its brand though!) - two buckets method with sponges

[MtB]

17 minutes ago, Chris John said:

Have you never polished it then? 

 

13 minutes ago, haggis said:

What do you wash the boat with ?

 

Got some right comedians here haven't we?!! 

 

I wash and polish my boats every 30 years, whether they need it of not. 

 

 

[PeterF]

Our last boat was coach enamel, hand painted, we washed and polished it once or twice a year with Craftmaster Carnuba Wash then Craftmaster Carnuba Wax. Kept the boat looking good for over 12 years before we sold it. The only proviso to too frequent waxing and polishing is the signwriting was fading after the 12 years as it was a single thickness.

[MajorJones]

17 minutes ago, PeterF said:

Our last boat was coach enamel, hand painted, we washed and polished it once or twice a year with Craftmaster Carnuba Wash then Craftmaster Carnuba Wax. Kept the boat looking good for over 12 years before we sold it. The only proviso to too frequent waxing and polishing is the signwriting was fading after the 12 years as it was a single thickness.

So does the wax here mean polish? Sorry if it sounds like a dumb question - I'm trying to create an analogy with car paint maintenance, where I wash, then polish, then wax.

 

Is the fact that I have oxidation residue on the paint mean I simply do not wash it 'hard' enough?

Edited August 1 by MajorJones

[PeterF]

I wash the boat first with the Craftmaster Carnuba Wash and dry it off with clean cloths, this will remove the dirt and some of the oxidation. I then use the Craftmaster Carnuba Wax, I rub this on, leave it to dry then buff it off with a dry soft cloth. This removes the last of the oxidation and leave a shiny polished finish with some residual wax left on the paint surface to give a water repellent protective coat. You do not want to use many of the car products which contain silicones because if you want to touch up your paint then you have to clean off these, which are hard to remove by design. 

 

[MajorJones]

Just now, PeterF said:

I wash the boat first with the Craftmaster Carnuba Wash and dry it off with clean cloths, this will remove the dirt and some of the oxidation. I then use the Craftmaster Carnuba Wax, I rub this on, leave it to dry then buff it off with a dry soft cloth. This removes the last of the oxidation and leave a shiny polished finish with some residual wax left on the paint surface to give a water repellent protective coat. You do not want to use many of the car products which contain silicones because if you want to touch up your paint then you have to clean off these, which are hard to remove by design. 

 

Ah, so the wax is the part of the polishing bit - got it!

 

Makes sense re silicone - I didn't scratch sides yet (only below the gunwale so far!) so haven't experienced touch up on the sides (yet).

 

 

[Chris John]

12 hours ago, MajorJones said:

Have to shamefully admit - I did not. In the first couple of years, I couldn't see any difference from when it was new; it's only recently that I've noticed the paint is a bit dull.

Clean water and marine boat wash shampoo (can't recall its brand though!) - two buckets method with sponges

It’s not about the shine it’s about the protection the polish gives the paint. 
 

[MajorJones]

2 hours ago, Chris John said:

It’s not about the shine it’s about the protection the polish gives the paint. 
 

Perfect! Back to the question then - what products/techniques do you use to polish it?

[LadyG]

I scrub my roof with dilute Suagar soap, to get rid of organic growth , and in prep for another topcoat, but this year ive found a small rust area, so it will need to go back to bare steel,  not all over!

PS Ive inherited enough brilliant white eggshell to paint the roof, will it be OK to add some black, both oil based, different  brands.

I thought I would do a test area, but how long would it take to cure / show incompatibility? 

I painted my boat all over five years ago. I wouldn't say it's much different to when first done. A few chips where it was not properly  prepped. Its not high gloss. Not powdery either.

 

[Tony Brooks]

59 minutes ago, MajorJones said:

Perfect! Back to the question then - what products/techniques do you use to polish it?

 

The answer already given. Probably any other "marine" wax polish would do as well.

 

14 hours ago, PeterF said:

I wash the boat first with the Craftmaster Carnuba Wash and dry it off with clean cloths, this will remove the dirt and some of the oxidation. I then use the Craftmaster Carnuba Wax, I rub this on, leave it to dry then buff it off with a dry soft cloth. This removes the last of the oxidation and leave a shiny polished finish with some residual wax left on the paint surface to give a water repellent protective coat. You do not want to use many of the car products which contain silicones because if you want to touch up your paint then you have to clean off these, which are hard to remove by design. 

 

 

Remove dust, mud, duck poo, and grit, so later process do not scratch the paint -- hence the wash, but just clean water might do in some cases.

 

If the polish does not have any instructions:

 

Apply polish in a circular motion, one area at a time. Best not to do it in full sun or the hat of the day.

Allow to from a haze on the paint.

Polish off, again in a circular motion and frequently turning the cloth. Mutton cloth seems to do a good job.

 

 

 

[MajorJones]

15 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

The answer already given. Probably any other "marine" wax polish would do as well.

What's your view on: clean/wash -> polish with compound polish -> pre-wax with prewax glaze -> wax with carnuba blend

instead of polishing with wax as suggested above?

[BEngo]

Auto glym polish is effective at removing light oxidation.  Follow it up with something like Simoniz wax. A piece of an old clean towe or a  yellow duster is good at application.   Mutton cloth  for polishing off.

 

If Auto glym doesn't cut the oxidation use Farecla G3.  Hard work by hand- do small areas, one bit at a time. Easier if you can get a decent random orbital polisher or have the skill to use a powered rotary polisher.  Use a firm sponge mop. Again polish off with mutton cloth.

 

 

For maintenance use a car shampoo then Simoniz.

[MajorJones]

1 minute ago, BEngo said:

Auto glym polish is effective at removing light oxidation.  Follow it up with something like Simoniz wax. A piece of an old clean towe or a  yellow duster is good at application.   Mutton cloth  for polishing off.

 

If Auto glym doesn't cut the oxidation use Farecla G3.  Hard work by hand- do small areas, one bit at a time. Easier if you can get a decent random orbital polisher or have the skill to use a powered rotary polisher.  Use a firm sponge mop. Again polish off with mutton cloth.

 

 

For maintenance use a car shampoo then Simoniz.

Perfect! Thank you very much!

 

I believe I only have some light oxidation, so I'll start with Auto Glym as I already have it for my car.

I wonder if I can use karcher to wash the boat properly - but too scared it can damage the paint even on a low mode.

[Tony Brooks]

47 minutes ago, MajorJones said:

What's your view on: clean/wash -> polish with compound polish -> pre-wax with prewax glaze -> wax with carnuba blend

instead of polishing with wax as suggested above?

 

Use a compound polish regularly will destroy and sign writing you may have. Sign writing paint seem far softer the coach enamel and compound polishes takes it off nicely. I think you said it has been spray-painted and if so the paint film is likely to be thinner that brush painting, so less for the compound to remove before the undercoat shows through. It sounds as if you are into car detailing. I have never seen much point in any of the glazes and would be concerned how they would age and adhere (or not).

[BEngo]

You can use a pressure washer.  If the paint is in poor condition, or the inter-coat preparation was lacking it may remove one or more layers of paint.  It will also probably get water where you were not expecting it.

 

Personally, I think a hand-wash will give you a better understanding of the state of the paint, where the dust and crap traps are and where any mould/algae  is building up. A good tool is a car wash brush on a jiggle pump.  Using that I can wash all round Jarrah ( 60ft) but not the roof with a 10 l bucket of soapy water and a 10 l bucket of clear for rinsing.

[MajorJones]

38 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

Use a compound polish regularly will destroy and sign writing you may have. Sign writing paint seem far softer the coach enamel and compound polishes takes it off nicely. I think you said it has been spray-painted and if so the paint film is likely to be thinner that brush painting, so less for the compound to remove before the undercoat shows through. It sounds as if you are into car detailing. I have never seen much point in any of the glazes and would be concerned how they would age and adhere (or not).

Yes, and hence many questions I have. I don't feel car detailing / car paint maintenance directly translates to boats. I'll try just the wax first and see how it goes. Thank you!

37 minutes ago, BEngo said:

You can use a pressure washer.  If the paint is in poor condition, or the inter-coat preparation was lacking it may remove one or more layers of paint.  It will also probably get water where you were not expecting it.

 

Personally, I think a hand-wash will give you a better understanding of the state of the paint, where the dust and crap traps are and where any mould/algae  is building up. A good tool is a car wash brush on a jiggle pump.  Using that I can wash all round Jarrah ( 60ft) but not the roof with a 10 l bucket of soapy water and a 10 l bucket of clear for rinsing.

Makes sense, thank you!

[Stroudwater1]

I would do the least invasive first. It’s only 3 years old so I’d be surprised if it needed much other than Craftsmaster wash then Craftsmaster canuba wax. That’s what we were recommended by our boat painter. Neighbours boats around 6 years on from painting and doing that has kept it looking like new. 
 

Farecla is good stuff but hopefully the bloom isn’t that bad. 

[MajorJones]

Just now, Stroudwater1 said:

I would do the least invasive first. It’s only 3 years old so I’d be surprised if it needed much other than Craftsmaster wash then Craftsmaster canuba wax. That’s what we were recommended by our boat painter. Neighbours boats around 6 years on from painting and doing that has kept it looking like new. 
 

Farecla is good stuff but hopefully the bloom isn’t that bad. 

Yes, definitely do not want to overdo it - so I'll start with wash and wax first.  

[ditchcrawler]

18 hours ago, MtB said:

 

 

Got some right comedians here haven't we?!! 

 

I wash and polish my boats every 30 years, whether they need it of not. 

 

 

I can't quite get away with that, maybe 5 years. I did buy an electric polisher many moons ago, its in the garage in its box with lots of other stuff I try not to use 

Edited August 2 by ditchcrawler
I like adding bits

[GUMPY]

I used a Waterless Car Wash on my boat before I sold it and it worked very well. You do need a lot of  Microfiber cloths  🤔. 

 I still use it on the Caravan when I CBA. Cars I just take to the drive through.