Fiberglass hull maint/ freshening?

[Mars]

So I've had my Mohawk Blazer for a couple years now and other than cleaning with a mild soap I'm wondering if there is some other preseason maintenance you folks do/ recommend?

Wax?

It's in fine shape as far as surface damages. A few minor scrapes/ scratches but otherwise healthy.

I did a search here but didn't find anything.

Thoughts?

 

[cflcanoe]

Their have been a few threads on this site about maintaining gel coat. Do not use wax. Wax will "grab" the water. The only reason to use wax would be if you used buffing compoud that wax in it. I think Yellow canoe wrote about that. Check out the end of this thread. http://www.canoetripping.net/forums...-discussions/solo/46522-affordable-solo-canoe. Penetrol was used on a Bluegill. Turned out very well. Canoes are like pickup trucks. If they do not have scratches or dents you are not using it correctly. Now having said that we mostly wet foot our launches and take as much care as possible of our boats.

Now if you had my 1979 Mohawk Blazer you would need a LOT of work to make it pretty. It is my beater. Started its life a a rental. Then was sold to a privet owner who used latex paint to try and hide the scratches who then sold it to some one else who then sold it to me. Have been able to get most of the paint off along with the rental numbers. In a weird twist of fate it is now stored indoors. There are three places we use it for that the good canoes do not go. Less wind catching than the Explorer and turns easier than the Northstar. Stable platform for log hopping. Another scratch can you tell ware? Bet you cant.
Best upgrade for a Blazer would be wood seats with webbing.

 

[Alan Gage]

So I've had my Mohawk Blazer for a couple years now and other than cleaning with a mild soap I'm wondering if there is some other preseason maintenance you folks do/ recommend?

Sounds like you're doing just fine. Is it stored inside or outside? If outside it should be covered to protect if from UV rays. If covered with a tarp the tarp should be suspended over the hull so there's an air gap to keep moisture from being trapped and to promote airflow.

If it has wood trim that would benefit from being oiled once or twice a year (or more if you use it a lot) or else varnished for less maintenance.

Alan

 

[frozentripper]

...other than cleaning with a mild soap I'm wondering if there is some other preseason maintenance you folks do...

Something that happens with gelcoat here is staining if it is white (mine is) and maybe other light colors... in my situation, the gelcoat is old, about thirty years, and if fallen leaves stay on it in wet weather, they leave a stain. Spring paddling may also leave a stain at the waterline... this seems to be from something oily floating on the surface, maybe dead plant and animal particles decaying after being frozen all winter. Since the gelcoat is old, the surface may be softer and porous enough now to allow stains in... this didn't happen when it was new.

Anyway, painting is the obvious solution, but something that's easier and faster is to scrub out the stains with an abrasive bathroom cleanser, like Ajax. The first scrubbing will remove any surface gloss and what's left is a nice matte finish that looks good... since the gelcoat is a thick layer maybe 1-2 mm deep it can take the mild abrasion and scrubbing. I really don't know how this would affect darker colors.

|That's about it for that one, I have an older fiberglass canoe that's coming up on fifty years and a couple of coats of paint and outwale replacement was all that was necessary. Plus about a dozen patches on the inside where it was damaged. It's been stored indoors most of the time and the fiberglass is still good. Last year me and my fishing bud were paddling at a good clip in the dark when we hit a stump pretty hard... I thought the fiberglass would be brittle and water would start pouring in. But no, it held and I'm sure if that if the canoe had been stored outdoors and damaging UV, the hull would have broken open.

 

[Alan Gage]

When I have dirt or stains that can't be removed by regular washing with soap I use an abrasive pad with the soapy water. Grey synthetic steel wool works good. So does 1500 wet/dry sandpaper.

Alan

 

[Muskrat]

I use marine wax. Millbrook recommends wax. It can still be paddled across the water. I haven't gotten stuck yet. I'm sure the massive amounts of scratches aren't helping frictional resistance either, but hey, I'm a river guy.

303 is garbage for UV protection, it washes off the second it touches water. Wax is the best clear lasting UV protectant. But that's just like my opinion man.

 

[Guest]

Just fine sanded, penitroled, and 303ed my two boats I have for sale. that penitrol worked magic p[articularly on my Osprey. Ajax works even better than sandpaper, but is a lot of work.
Turtle

 

[Mars]

cflcanoe- Mine is set with wood framed and cane web seats. It had a few scratches when I bought it but the previous owners were very much, light weekend, lake paddlers and took good care of it.

I, on the other hand, have had a fully different usage as I primarily do "camping" trips of varying lengths from 4 day to 2 weeks, mostly solo. Between those and some river paddling on the Susquehana, it has seen a little more life on its hull.

So yeah, some character marks, like scars, tell us we have done somethings and probably have a story attached.

And thank you for the link. I hadn't seen that in the brief search I did.

Alan Gage- Stored outside but under an overhang so not directly impacted by weather, leaves or direct UV. My barn has a "car port" off one side. It's under that but it's open air flow. I put "car port" in quotes because my wife thinks it's a misnomer since she can't get her car under it because of all the boats. She thinks I have a "problem." The trim is aluminum which I think is unfortunate as a nice wood trim would make a much more appealing look. I suspect that it can be replaced if I choose to.

Frozentripper- I'm using Softscrub on it to clean it and since the hull is white I don't even see any residue. I've had very little staining other than the discoloring I get on my longer trips where the boat has spent a lot of time on the water. Especially the river.

Thanks for the input folks.