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Cover Waterproofing--longevity


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Hey everyone. 

Last year I took my cover and gave it a good coating of 303. It worked VERY well for about 3-5 weeks. 
I don't know how long it had been since it was treated before as I was 2nd owner and I only had the boat 1 year before treating it. 
But I know it wasn't waterproof at all! 
Is it just because it had been so long since it was treated? I gotta believe it should last longer than a month? 
Should I do it twice this season? 

Thanks! 

Ryan 

 

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if you cleaned it well before it should work.  many claim better results with heavy applications of star brite waterproof that supposedly does not have UV soaking both top and bottom of cover, seems those who used 303 luv it except those who reported the same short term benefit,  so either not enough applied, or 303 not long lasting( ones that didn't like it ssid it worked short  term but never saw good beading of water)

i quit using 303 cleaner and with it i thought the top of my captains chair was permanently grey, wish i had used boat bling from the start, now it gets white when i use boat bling

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4 minutes ago, granddaddy55 said:

if you cleaned it well before it should work.  many claim better results with heavy applications of star brite waterproof that supposedly does not have UV soaking both top and bottom of cover, seems those who used 303 luv it except those who reported the same short term benefit,  so either not enough applied, or 303 not long lasting( ones that didn't like it ssid it worked short  term but never saw good beading of water)

i quit using 303 cleaner and with it i thought the top of my captains chair was permanently grey, wish i had used boat bling from the start, now it gets white when i use boat bling

Interesting. 
Maybe I'll try the Star Bright this year. If I remember right it's half the price. So doing both sides HEAVY will be about the same price at the end. 
Thank you

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One thing that I've noticed is that water seems to soak into my cover but doesn't appear to soak through my cover.  Is there any reason to waterproof it besides it looks cool beading water off?

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I do my original Sunbrella cover every two years now, inside and out using 303 FG. I machine washed the cover once about 5 years ago which is when I started using the FG.

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That's good stuff everyone. 
Maybe my cover was just so far away from a waterproofing session it needs a few rounds to get it back to the level I expect. 

Once a season would be fine. 2-3 times is not acceptable. 

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I've had same issues with 303 and have switched to using Starbrite, seems to hold up much longer, also as far as treating both sides, I find that a heavy coat on tops side saturates the material so no need to do other side.

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If you use a garden sprayer don’t forget to clean it out right away. I forgot and went to spray weeds some time later and it was totally F’ed. The lid was seized and broke it trying to get it off. The interior parts were also destroyed.  :Frustrated:

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1 hour ago, martinarcher said:

I use a garden sprayer.  Makes it easy to apply, it's cheap, and it's labeled for the job from here on out.  :) 

This is exactly what i do too. Use up the whole gallon and then put it away until the next time i need it. I do clean it out though as @jrvs23 mentioned, but never use the waterproofing sprayer for anything other than waterproofing.

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I get nervous about laying the inside of the cover on the ground. I don’t want dirt and stuff from the driveway getting on the inside of the cover and risking that scratching the boat when I put the cover back on. So, I get a few ladders or something tall to spread it out and keep it off the ground. Like others said soak it. Let it air dry. After it is dry, blow it off real good to assure you get any dirt off the cover.

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I drape it across chairs, deck railing etc, I agree, don't put it on the ground.

If you do it on the boat you will likely get waterproofing on gelcoat, interior, glass etc.

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The cover spread out on a very large tarp on the lawn and a garden sprayer (on a windless day) works well.  As a teenager (in my infinite wisdom and many boats ago) I used Thomson's Water Seal on my mooring cover.  Actually worked pretty well but the cover weighed probably 3x as much afterward  LOL. .. Much better products on the market these days..

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