Vinegar/water wipedown, what do you use

[IXFE]

Here's how I would rate the three main formulas I've used over the years:

1. Boat Bling Hot Sauce
2. Boat Candy Speed Gloss
3. Babes Boat Bright

[JeffC]

@IXFE have you tried Boat Juice?   I bought a bottle of both interior and exterior at the boat show, it seems to work really well, but I dont have a comparison to any of your three listed. 

[IXFE]

11 minutes ago, JeffC said:

@IXFE have you tried Boat Juice?   I bought a bottle of both interior and exterior at the boat show, it seems to work really well, but I dont have a comparison to any of your three listed. 

I haven't' tried that.  And I acknowledge there are other fringe options out there.  I just have so much Hot Sauce on hand right now it's going to be some time before buy more of anything.  

Boat Juice will go on my list.  I also want to try the faux Hot Sauce that @shawndoggy swears by.  I also want to try that stuff @Fman likes.  His recommendations are always on point.  

[shawndoggy]

25 minutes ago, IXFE said:

Here's how I would rate the three main formulas I've used over the years:

1. Boat Bling Hot Sauce
2. Boat Candy Speed Gloss
3. Babes Boat Bright

I kinda agree with this list.  IMHO the performance of each is pretty similar.  Cost and smell are really the deciding factors for me.  You don't want your wipe down spray to be so expensive that you want to use it too sparingly.  Or to say it a different way, the performance (for me) is directly tied to how much I use.  Use enough to re-wet dried on water spots, and performance of all is about the same.

I totally agree with @isellacuras about the underlying poop smell in the boat candy.  "mmmm, is that green apple?  Oh wait, did I just step in dog poop?"  Performance is fine, but the smell... I can't wait to kill the gallon I have on hand.

[Brett B]

21 hours ago, shawndoggy said:

three gallons for $65; smells just like boat bling.

http://pacificprodux.com/buy-2-zip-mists-get-1-free-plus-1-qrt-of-wash-n-wax-and-5-mf-towels-free/

I really wanted to try this out but they want $23 to ship a single gallon which makes it more expensive than just buying 1 gallon of Hot Sauce from Amazon. $50 to ship that 3-gallon package makes it slightly cheaper but almost not worth the trouble. Probably a much better deal for you west coast guys.

[Brett B]

2 hours ago, ibelonginprison said:

^^^^ Preach.

I've never introduced someone to the Menzerna (now called Jescar) Powerlock sealant that hasn't at some point messaged me these words "where has this been all my life."
Only step up from that is having the boat ceramic coated, imo.

I'd like to try it. Do you buff/wax the boat first to remove small imperfections and then apply the Jescar sealant on top? Does the Jescar help protect from the micro scratches/swirls in black gel?

[WakeSS]

I just wipe down with Eagle One (I think it's Nano Wax) and a microfiber towel. Works wet or dry, no film/residue, $8 a bottle, lasts me a season and smells like cotton candy. It even works great on the glass.

Just had it into the detailer and after 2 years they said no buff/wax required, just washed and re-seal.

[ibelonginprison]

1 hour ago, Brett B said:

I'd like to try it. Do you buff/wax the boat first to remove small imperfections and then apply the Jescar sealant on top? Does the Jescar help protect from the micro scratches/swirls in black gel?

Not much outside of ceramic coat will prevent improper washing techniques that generate microswirls.

Don't bother with wax. You want to polish the boat with a good polish, get out whatever you want to get out, then do a coat of sealant.

Apply the sealant, let it sit to cure cure, wipe off. Then wait 2-3 hours before doing another coat (to let the initial coat finish set)
You won't need to wax after that. (I like to do 2-4 coats, if I have a day or two to wait in between coats) and it will last 2-3 times longer than wax.

But you apply a very small amount on a black application pad for whatever rotary or DA polisher/buffer you have. You just want a haze on there, since you're wiping off all but the first few molecules that bond to the surface anyway. So don't go crazy on applying it. The term "less is more" almost applies here. 

 

[shawndoggy]

1 hour ago, Brett B said:

I really wanted to try this out but they want $23 to ship a single gallon which makes it more expensive than just buying 1 gallon of Hot Sauce from Amazon. $50 to ship that 3-gallon package makes it slightly cheaper but almost not worth the trouble. Probably a much better deal for you west coast guys.

ouch!  Yeah, def not worth the hassle at that price.

[RyanB]

I am a fan of the Hot Sauce.  So much so that during the last group buy, I bought 5 gallons of the stuff.

And I am also on the side of waxing the whole boat - including the bottom, twice a year.

[NorNevRider]

So I use my boat in a saline lake (Pyramid) and at the end of the day I previously used vinegar and water to take the salt scale off the boat. Yes, it also takes the wax off, so that resulted in putting it back on.  The last couple of weekends I've been waiting until I get done with the weekend trips, use my pressure washer lightly with soap, then wipe it dry with spay and wax products. Option number 2 is a lot let work for me. You just can't get careless with the pressure washer. I'm usually more tired from all the cleanup than I am from the surfing/play.

[cWonka]

4 minutes ago, NorNevRider said:

So I use my boat in a saline lake (Pyramid) and at the end of the day I previously used vinegar and water to take the salt scale off the boat. Yes, it also takes the wax off, so that resulted in putting it back on.  The last couple of weekends I've been waiting until I get done with the weekend trips, use my pressure washer lightly with soap, then wipe it dry with spay and wax products. Option number 2 is a lot let work for me. You just can't get careless with the pressure washer. I'm usually more tired from all the cleanup than I am from the surfing/play.

Amen! I always dread the tow home because I know its another 2-3 hours to get everything clean, dry, and buttoned up.

[shawndoggy]

19 minutes ago, NorNevRider said:

So I use my boat in a saline lake (Pyramid) and at the end of the day I previously used vinegar and water to take the salt scale off the boat. Yes, it also takes the wax off, so that resulted in putting it back on.  The last couple of weekends I've been waiting until I get done with the weekend trips, use my pressure washer lightly with soap, then wipe it dry with spay and wax products. Option number 2 is a lot let work for me. You just can't get careless with the pressure washer. I'm usually more tired from all the cleanup than I am from the surfing/play.

that pacific produx stuff linked above is money at pyramid.  Wipe at the ramp and it will get ALL of the crusty water spots off.  And allegedly it doesn't remove the wax.  

[srintx]

Performance boat candy for the hard Texas water works wonders, you can go wrong.

[IXFE]

8 hours ago, shawndoggy said:

I kinda agree with this list.  IMHO the performance of each is pretty similar.  Cost and smell are really the deciding factors for me.  You don't want your wipe down spray to be so expensive that you want to use it too sparingly.  Or to say it a different way, the performance (for me) is directly tied to how much I use.  Use enough to re-wet dried on water spots, and performance of all is about the same.

I totally agree with @isellacuras about the underlying poop smell in the boat candy.  "mmmm, is that green apple?  Oh wait, did I just step in dog poop?"  Performance is fine, but the smell... I can't wait to kill the gallon I have on hand.

Totally agree it’s about balancing function and smell. My prior ranking was based solely on function. If I take smell into account here’s how I’d amend the list. Points awarded are for  function + smell (in that order)... lower is better, like in golf! 

Boat Bling Hot Sauce : 1 + 2 = 3 (works the best and the fruity vinegar smell grows on you; reminds me of summer)

Babes Boat Bright : 3 + 1 = 4 (works well as long as you don’t boat in hard water, not really meant as a spot remover like the others, more of spray wax, smells so amazing I’m tempted to drink it)

Boat Candy Speed Gloss : 2 + 3 = 5 (works well as a spot remover, I find that it leaves streaks on black, smells like somebody stepped in dog poop, solid advertising though)

Edited June 26, 2018 by IXFE

[skurfer]

1) Speed Gloss. I hated it at first, streaky but called. Less is more and works a bit better than hot sauce. Don't care for the smell.

2) Hot Sauce. Works good. Don't care for the smell, spilled a bottle in my truck one time... Ugh. 

3) Meguiars Ultimate Boat detailer. Smells the best, works pretty good. Doesn't remove waterspots like 1 and 2, leaves a nice shine. 

Meguiars Extreme Marine Waterspot Detailer. Not enough time to rate.

[Brett B]

16 hours ago, ibelonginprison said:

Not much outside of ceramic coat will prevent improper washing techniques that generate microswirls.

Don't bother with wax. You want to polish the boat with a good polish, get out whatever you want to get out, then do a coat of sealant.

Apply the sealant, let it sit to cure cure, wipe off. Then wait 2-3 hours before doing another coat (to let the initial coat finish set)
You won't need to wax after that. (I like to do 2-4 coats, if I have a day or two to wait in between coats) and it will last 2-3 times longer than wax.

But you apply a very small amount on a black application pad for whatever rotary or DA polisher/buffer you have. You just want a haze on there, since you're wiping off all but the first few molecules that bond to the surface anyway. So don't go crazy on applying it. The term "less is more" almost applies here. 

 

Great, thanks. Yes I should have replaced "wax" with polish.

[Brett B]

16 hours ago, shawndoggy said:

ouch!  Yeah, def not worth the hassle at that price.

Interesting enough, if you look in Safety Sheets on the Pacific Products website it tells you a bit about the main active ingredients.

The Zip mist and wipe contains acetic acid at 1-3% by weight. Vinegar is typically 5-20% acetic acid.

The Zip mist also contains Polydimethylsiloxane and an emulsifier, both at likely less than 1%. Polydimethylsiloxane is a silicone that is used in lots of cosmetics and is likely the reason why the Zip mist doesn't leave your gel looking dry like plain vinegar/water. This is also probably the "polymer wax/sealant" referred to in the Hot Sauce marketing. The emulsifier is probably just to keep the Polydimethylsiloxane from falling out of suspension.

Pacific Products also sells the Blue Mist final wipe. This looks a lot like the Zip mist but without the Acetic Acid, and with a higher amount of 0.5-2.0% of the Polydimethylsiloxane. This would be good to try for a quick detailer that had more of the wax/sealer properties without the vinegar smell, but of course would not be as good at removing water spots.

http://pacificprodux.com/pages.php?pageid=10

 

Edited June 26, 2018 by Brett B

[INCOPPNITO]

On 6/23/2018 at 4:57 PM, oldjeep said:

The eagle one works pretty decent on the boat and tow rig. Gave them both a shot this morning before heading out.  The boat has a base of collonite from april, the truck doesn't have anything unless the factory put something on it. 

Chuck - which collinite products are you using? Thanks

[oldjeep]

4 minutes ago, INCOPPNITO said:

Chuck - which collinite products are you using? Thanks

920 Fiberglass boat cleaner followed by 885 Fleetwax paste wax - 2 coats

The last time I cleaned the boat up - a couple weeks ago I used

920 Fiberglass boat cleaner followed by Jescar Powerlock Plus sealant - 2 coats.  Initially I was liking it, but what I'm finding is that the hard water spots really seem to bond to the Jescar stuff.  Not sure if I'll use it again,  If I do I'll put some wax over the top of it.

 

[jmiller17]

On 6/22/2018 at 2:46 PM, DAI said:

Same here

Hot sauce awesome stuff especially on the black gel coat water spots dont stand a chance

[Dodger40]

I’m also a hot sauce guy. The black on my boat is unforgiving. If I just go to the river it’s no big deal. But there is a lake in Central Oregon that leaves nasty water spots. Hot sauce is the only product that works for me. I usually have to wax it again after a week there. I need to try the sealent.

[racer808]

On ‎6‎/‎25‎/‎2018 at 2:14 PM, ibelonginprison said:

Not much outside of ceramic coat will prevent improper washing techniques that generate microswirls.

Don't bother with wax. You want to polish the boat with a good polish, get out whatever you want to get out, then do a coat of sealant.

Apply the sealant, let it sit to cure cure, wipe off. Then wait 2-3 hours before doing another coat (to let the initial coat finish set)
You won't need to wax after that. (I like to do 2-4 coats, if I have a day or two to wait in between coats) and it will last 2-3 times longer than wax.

But you apply a very small amount on a black application pad for whatever rotary or DA polisher/buffer you have. You just want a haze on there, since you're wiping off all but the first few molecules that bond to the surface anyway. So don't go crazy on applying it. The term "less is more" almost applies here. 

 

I wanna do this but sounds like an entire Saturday of Logan doing work.  

I still use the 1/4 vinegar to 3/4 parts water.  I also use NuFinish which is synthetic wax so the vinegar isn't breaking it down.  Our lakes water is so gross & spotty I am starting to think it doesn't matter what we use, boat has to be scrubbed after every use, not just wiped down.

[footndale]

1 hour ago, racer808 said:

I wanna do this but sounds like an entire Saturday of Logan doing work.  

I still use the 1/4 vinegar to 3/4 parts water.  I also use NuFinish which is synthetic wax so the vinegar isn't breaking it down.  Our lakes water is so gross & spotty I am starting to think it doesn't matter what we use, boat has to be scrubbed after every use, not just wiped down.

I would really try the Hot Sauce. It worked on a boat I used, when everything else didn't. Scum would wipe right off.

 

[Wakesetter67]

On 6/22/2018 at 4:38 PM, ahopkinsVTX said:

I’ve been using speed gloss for th  last four years. A quick coat once a month seems to be all I need for our lake. Two quarts lasted me almost three years. I was going to try hot sauce the next round but there was a big sale on gallons of speed gloss so I couldnt pass that up.

I have just about tried them all, If Hot Sauce worked better then Speed Gloss....I would be using it, For Me Hands down Speed Gloss works better,