Post by Rick Schott on Sept 20, 2010 8:43:55 GMT -5
Recently I purchased an older Aquaterra Chinook sea kayak (all plastic), I got a pretty good deal I think but it's an older boat and well used. Being a yellow plastic boat it was showing signs of some UV-fading, and the hull has scratches from many launches and landings on rocky shores.
I decided that while the boat would never look brand-new, I could do what I could to improve it's looks and maybe increase it's useful life-span a little bit.
I started by using a "cleaner car-wax" for the hull. Turtle Wax Cleaner Wax This got the hull cleaner than I could get it with soap and sponge, also I reasoned that the wax should fill in some surface imperfections to make the hull a little slicker, and protect from UV damage. One downside is that the scratches are now more obvious as there is white wax in them... I'm hoping to find a color-match yellow wax I can use to minimize this.
The deck is in better shape but more faded. I used up some Black Magic Tire Wet I had on hand which really helped the boat's appearance. Now I'm wiping the deck down with Armour-All which again reduces the fading aspect and should provide some UV protection. I have no illusions that this is a permanent fix, but I have no issue with wiping the deck down once a week during the season, and before winter storage.
Hey, I know it will never look brand-new, and even if it did it's way out-of-date, but I don't think it looks too shabby for a boat that's probably close to 20 years old!
So.... what do YOU do to keep your boat pretty?
I decided that while the boat would never look brand-new, I could do what I could to improve it's looks and maybe increase it's useful life-span a little bit.
I started by using a "cleaner car-wax" for the hull. Turtle Wax Cleaner Wax This got the hull cleaner than I could get it with soap and sponge, also I reasoned that the wax should fill in some surface imperfections to make the hull a little slicker, and protect from UV damage. One downside is that the scratches are now more obvious as there is white wax in them... I'm hoping to find a color-match yellow wax I can use to minimize this.
The deck is in better shape but more faded. I used up some Black Magic Tire Wet I had on hand which really helped the boat's appearance. Now I'm wiping the deck down with Armour-All which again reduces the fading aspect and should provide some UV protection. I have no illusions that this is a permanent fix, but I have no issue with wiping the deck down once a week during the season, and before winter storage.
Hey, I know it will never look brand-new, and even if it did it's way out-of-date, but I don't think it looks too shabby for a boat that's probably close to 20 years old!
So.... what do YOU do to keep your boat pretty?
