I have to admit I never clean our boat! It isn't that old either but I just fish out of it. It is a 2006 alumacraft and I know they use automotive type paint. The water spots are awful. Is there a good cleaner for this? I washed the boat off (finally) and then used a cleaner/wax and it helped but it took forever and was a pain. There has to be a product out there I can just wash off and dry the boat and it won't have all the spots! Same for the outboard of course. Thanks guys. Guess a little care would go a long ways too.

Better check out Larson Sales .... Give Skeeter a yell ....
Morton

You can use CLR or Lime Away household cleaners. I like to dilute the bottle with water to a 50/50 mix. But if you haven't cleaned them for a while use it straight up then rinse it off after. You can pretty much spray it on and wipe it off. Works well on aluminum boats. It will work on glass to, but leaves a white film that has to be wiped off of the glass boats.

Larsen sales-Restore-----works great!!!:bowdown:

"The Works" tub and tile soap scum remover. I have heard Skeeters products are spectacular, but not very cheap.

try cheap first.......vinegar! Works for me!
Scott

I second the vinegar water and I mix 50/50

Cheap first doesn't always work. Have to be very careful what you use on your clear coat unless you don't care about your boat much. We have a couple products made for boats and will make them look like new with little effort. Wonderfoam is used to clean the waterspots and scum lines due to water deposits etc. I do my boat in quarters because you only want Wonderfoam to set on boat or motor for one min. So I start off with front quarter of boat. Very important - wet down area to clean first with water. Spray on Wonderfoam and wipe it around so it covers the entire area. Let it set for one min or so and rinse off very well. If you still notice areas that are not clean repeat otherwise continue on to next quarter. When boat is clean and dry shake up your bottle of Restore and spray on boat or motor. Wipe it around (no reason to rub in) with a clean soft rag. As soon as it dries to a haze wipe off with another clean dry soft rag. If you notice any streaks get another rag and wipe it again. The rags do fill up so to speak and when they do you will see streaks. If you have anymore questions please feel free to email again. I have lots of before and after pics if you are interested. By purchasing these products you are also supporting Walleye Central. Thanks Nels AKA Skeeter

I use Jungle Jake from Fleet Farm. It's 5 bucks a gallon and you apply with a soft brush and let it soak a bit and rinse off. My boat was in water since opening day in Minnesota and just did it last night. Took one hour to clean all the hard water spots and lake slime off.

I have been doing it this way for over 8 years and the paint is still like new. Jungle Jake is non-phospate and biodegradable.

Al

Skeeter's products work awesome with very little effort. The cost per bottle is minimal compared to the cost of the boat, gas, tackle, etc. Plus they look better than new after cleaning with the Wonderfoam and polishing with the Restore. Simply put, very easy to use and work great.

I even use Restore on my truck ... you wouldn't believe how dust just falls off.
It even makes cleaning bugs off really easy.
I just got back to southern SD after a trip to Devils Lake ND this weekend. All I had to do was spray off the bugs with a garden hose and wipe 'er down with a shammy.
Looked like new again.

Sorry no fish reports .... 50 MPH winds kept me off the water.

I second the vinegar water and I mix 50/50

I third the vinegar/water.

Might need something a little more aggressive first if you have a heavy buildup.

I get the spray bottle out after every trip, give the boat a quick shot and wipe down, done.


Don J

I third the vinegar/water.

Might need something a little more aggressive first if you have a heavy buildup.

I get the spray bottle out after every trip, give the boat a quick shot and wipe down, done.


Don J

Vinegar for me also.

I posted some before and after pictures in my album using Skeeter's Wonderfoam. It's great stuff and it's almost effortless.

http://www.walleyecentral.com/forums/album.php?albumid=45

Great Pics. Sure can't beat the Restore and Wonderfoam. I bet that pickle juice won't put on a shine like that! Nice job, looks good. Skeeter

Vinegar and Water works for me, Also a product called Ducky is something I really like. I've never used Skeeters products but many viewers here like them. I would be inclined to do the Vinegar and water thing first and then see what improvements have been made.

Holy Crap that wonderfoam works well! My god it looks just like my boat with the water spots!!!

Clean her up with Wonderfoam and use the Restore and your boat will look new. Restore can be used on your truck, car, boat, camper, jet ski's, and will make the next clean up a breeze. Thanks for the pics. Skeeter

Skeeter,
I've never used that product although it sounds like good stuff. My first thought after reading your post was, "if I have to be that careful using it, how much safer could it be than vinegar?" I wouldn't soak my entire rig in vinegar either and leave it sit. There's an auto store close to me that sells a product called "quick spiff" It's used primarily for the car show guys that want to give their cars a "once over" before judging. It's like a light wax almost. Spray on and wipe off. It seems to work well too. I think bottom line is, there is no substitute for keeping a good wax job on your boat to PREVENT having a major problem. Clean up is always easier on a well maintained surface.

Scott

Vinegar and water will take off most anything you get on your boat. Including road grime. I would not be without a 50/50 mixture.

I mixed up some vinegar and gave it a try last night. Man that works pretty good on water spots. I think it did better than dawn on removing scum line. Only problem is I pulled something in my neck. Suffered all night and can't hold myself straight this morning.
Need to discuss with the wife about getting a couple of young girlfriends to help me with this kind of work. Sure would be nice to have some help to unload and load the boat then clean fish and wash the boat. Just the discussion on that subject might get this crick out of my neck :raisin:

So, since the wonderfoam can't be used on molded plastics, what is there to use on the Motor Cowl? Mercury says no acids. Straight vinegar is what I had to use on the rest of the boat and work my arse* off to get the heavy season long build-up of water spots off. But the vinegar is not working on the motor cowl plastics....

What are the tricks for cleaning water spots off the motor cowl?

*It was bad enough I had to wash the boat, then scrub like **** with the straight vinegar before it would come clean so I could wax it! :shocked:

Cheap first doesn't always work. Have to be very careful what you use on your clear coat unless you don't care about your boat much. We have a couple products made for boats and will make them look like new with little effort. Wonderfoam is used to clean the waterspots and scum lines due to water deposits etc. I do my boat in quarters because you only want Wonderfoam to set on boat or motor for one min. So I start off with front quarter of boat. Very important - wet down area to clean first with water. Spray on Wonderfoam and wipe it around so it covers the entire area. Let it set for one min or so and rinse off very well. If you still notice areas that are not clean repeat otherwise continue on to next quarter. When boat is clean and dry shake up your bottle of Restore and spray on boat or motor. Wipe it around (no reason to rub in) with a clean soft rag. As soon as it dries to a haze wipe off with another clean dry soft rag. If you notice any streaks get another rag and wipe it again. The rags do fill up so to speak and when they do you will see streaks. If you have anymore questions please feel free to email again. I have lots of before and after pics if you are interested. By purchasing these products you are also supporting Walleye Central. Thanks Nels AKA Skeeter

My boat hasn't been cleaned good since early summer and we cleaned it yesterday. We used white vinegar and water in a spray bottle, it removed all the water spots off the hull and off my Mercury motor. Just spray it on and let it sit a minute or so and then wipe it off with a microfiber towel. All water spots were gone very easily. Then we sprayed it with Skeeters Restore and wiped it down to a beautiful shine, again with a microfiber towel.
As for the vinyl seats we used Mequire's Flagship vinyl cleaner and protector with UV protection, we could not believe how beautiful the seats came out. The white is whiter and the blue is bluer, it made them look brand new again. The whole job was very easy and took only a short time to do.

The discussion would get the crick out in conjunction with the mighty swing of the baseball bat on the side of your head for talking this way.

When I first received my boat the manufacturer recommended the following three products that I keep in the boat and use as needed.

1. LCR or lime a way to remove hard water deposits.

2. IRON OUT to remove rust stains, or yellow, red, or orange water line from running in water that has heavy iron deposits. Also the use of this product in conjunction with a scrub brush removes lots of other stains on the boat.

3. Westley's Tire bleach - to remove everything else. This product is especially good to remove any dock scrubs from rubber based rub stains from docking which have rubber bumpers or tires around the dock area.

So, I do as follows:
1. Take the boat and tow vehicle to the car wash and blast down the boat and tow vehicle and wash as usual.

2. When the boat has been been gone over with the car wash and scrub brush, then go over any remaining water spots with LCR or lime away and rinse off.

3. If there are any remaining iron stains or hard to remove stains go over the boat to get it wet and then use a sponge and rubber glove to apply the powdered Iron Out. The chemical in the Iron out combine with the iron based stain and turn it into a soluble solution. Come back 10 minutes later and rinse off the Iron out and stain and rinse it away with no rubbing.

4. Finally for any rub marks or anything else still remaining, spray the spots with Westley tire bleach and use a scrubby to remove the spot. Finally rinse the entire boat and then wax as desired.

Generally this entire procedure takes 15-20 minutes.

I always keep containers of these products in the boat. If I happen to be on an extended fishing trip, I will often just take the boat out into the lake during a lull in the action and do a good clean up of the boats interior using one or more of these products. Easy to do, and it makes it nicer to fish out of a clean boat, rather than one that has gobs of good and grime in it from days of hard fishing.

Take care
REW

I second the WonderFoam and Restore!!! I have been using these products for a couple years now and am convinced. Just bought a new truck and had some road tar on it, right on the driver's door in the middle. Not a huge glob but just enough to notice and make ya' do a double take. Truck was BRAND new and wanted to show it off to my brothers. Grabbed the closest bottle of Restore and gave the spot a couple squirts and waited a half minute. The tar came right off!!! Easiest products I have ever used to clean a boat with!!!

I mixed up some vinegar and gave it a try last night. Man that works pretty good on water spots. I think it did better than dawn on removing scum line. Only problem is I pulled something in my neck. Suffered all night and can't hold myself straight this morning.
Need to discuss with the wife about getting a couple of young girlfriends to help me with this kind of work. Sure would be nice to have some help to unload and load the boat then clean fish and wash the boat. Just the discussion on that subject might get this crick out of my neck :raisin:


Thats funny. It would definitely make you forget your neck pain and make you concentrate on your other other bumps and bruises. It would be kind of fruitless any way because aluminum boat guys don't get the longing looks of the girls like the fiberglass boat guys do!

Cheap and effective on glass or hulls. 50% Windex and 50% vinegar in a spray bottle.:rockit:

In this case, cheap first works. 50/50 vinegar water will take off all water spots. Warm soapy water will remove water scum and a little WD40 will remove grease and tar spots. Now, if you don't wipe your boat down after each use the water spots will be back.

Visit your local bone cracker and one good pop, and your neck will be as good as new.

Some folks who have never used a Chiro - discount the help that they can do for a person.

If you have a bone that is in the wrong spot, they can generally put it back. Then, it is up to you to take care of your skeleton with exercise etc. to keep it there.

Good luck
REW

I was once a firm believer in chiropractors. During my late teens, I injured my neck in a biking accident, and I hurt my back in a diving accident. Those injuries started causing problems in my mid thirties, and continues today.
Lower back pain is just a part of life. I refuse to have surgery because I know no one that was made better from it. Nine times out of ten I hurt my neck washing my hair in the shower. I try to remain cognoscente of how I stand and hold my head when doing this but from time to time, it just gets me.
The last Chiro hurt me and it took a long time to get over it, it will be even longer, before one gets the chance to do it again.
When I was young all I herd was the old guys complaining of their hurts and pains, I just laughed at them. Now I'm that old guy. Cats in the cradle, huh!

Skeeter makes some great products, and I like this place, and anybody that will put up with me, deserves support :happy:. But, during hard times like now! I have to refrain from spending so I go with the 1/3 vinegar-1/3 water-1/3 windex and it performs well in helping afford the cost of fuel, bait and stuff for fishing. Sorry Skeeter :grin:.
The vinegar also works good in the live wells for cleaning and disinfectant without damaging the plumbing like clorox will. It's just a good cheap alternative until one can have the best.

After using vinegar, wonderfoam or washing with dish soap you need to get a coat of wax or restore on the boat to help prevent future water spots. In between washes I wipe the boat down with Meguiars Quik Clean or Ultimate Detailer.