Sale of Boat Wax
Looking for the right product to polish and protect your teak deck or acrylic glazing? Then you can't do without wax. Check out the selection topRik marketplace offers: here you will find wax-based products to clean, polish and protect every part of your yacht - from gelcoat and deck to glass and furniture.
Every yachtsman knows very well that regular maintenance of the vessel is not a whim of glamorous yachtsmen and wealthy people with cleanliness obsession who have nowhere to put their money. Regularly maintaining a yacht in excellent shape means, in addition to the aesthetics, order and safety of the vessel, and it is also an investment. The better the boat looks on the day of sale, the higher its value will be.
In addition, if maintenance is constantly put off until later, the savings can turn into huge expenses, even if maintenance is carried out exactly on schedule and in the required volumes. But these costs, of course, can be eliminated if all the necessary procedures are carried out in a timely manner, not only for the maintenance of equipment, mechanisms and sailing equipment, but also for cleaning decks and premises, as well as interior parts.
Therefore, it’s time to find out what wax is used for when taking care of a yacht and what are the benefits of regularly waxing decks, glass and other surfaces of a yacht made of metals, acrylic and other materials.
Benefits from Regular Use of Waxes
Yachts and boats are almost constantly in a quite aggressive environment, which has a destructive effect on them due to:
- ultraviolet radiation;
- sea salt;
- the main part of the boat - the hull – constantly staying in the water;
- temperature changes;
- exposure to high (low) temperature;
- plankton and other representatives of the flora and fauna of fresh and salt water bodies, including shells, algae, etc.;
- mechanical damage due to adverse weather conditions or management errors, in particular during mooring;
- dust, dirt, technical contaminants in the form of machine oil, etc.
Before chemical manufacturers took notice of boaters' problems, shipbuilders had only scratches and paint, stain, putty and varnish to protect the vessel from the harmful effects of life at sea. But what is tolerable for metal and solid wood is completely unacceptable, for example, for fiberglass.
To preserve the gelcoat of a fiberglass yacht, it cannot be painted over with ship's paint after repairs. The modern chemical industry offers more gentle, but no less effective means of protecting gelcoat from harmful environmental influences - polishing and waxing, followed by polishing to a mirror finish. Of course, before this it is necessary to clean the gelcoat from fouling, sand scratches or repair holes. But a waxed and polished gelcoat will even improve the aerodynamic properties of the yacht. This is not to mention the fact that the wax film prevents the absorption of sea water, which prevents the development of osmotic processes.
Metal and wooden hulls of yachts are also treated with wax and then polished. This prevents corrosion of metal hulls and protects wooden yachts from the penetration of water and plankton into the pores of the wood, preventing algae growth, rot and mold.
Drying the deck of a luxury yacht the old-fashioned way is also a dangerous undertaking, which is more likely to damage modern teak flooring made of natural wood, destroying the soft fibers and giving the deck unnecessary relief. Modern care products for natural wood decking, as well as all solid wood parts, necessarily include a significant proportion of wax. It can be included in sealants for solid wood decks or natural wood decking. After cleaning from dirt, washing, impregnating and polishing with wax, such a deck will repel dirt for a long time, including industrial oils, its pores will not let sea water in, and from the sun's rays it will, of course, heat up, but will not dry out or crack and it won't burn out.
The glazing of a yacht can amount to hundreds of square meters, including windshields, circular glazing of the saloon and flybridge, portholes and hatches, partitions, doors and a lot of glass doors in cabinets, shelves, etc. Most of these surfaces are located outside, that is, they bask in the sun, are washed by rain and sea spray, and collect dust and dirt in marinas and ports.
It is difficult to constantly wash them even with detergent. A protective layer is necessary, and it should not be aggressive, because acrylic glass is used in modern yacht building. And modern chemistry comes to the rescue again. Just look at the selection of care products for acrylic glass and acrylic surfaces in the topRik marketplace - you will see wax-based compositions with a simultaneous cleaning effect. After processing waxes in any composition intended for cleaning and polishing acrylic glass, these surfaces will not retain water, salt, dust and other contaminants: salty sea water simply rolls over the wax film without accumulating or drying to white spots.
Ferrous and non-ferrous metals on a yacht can also be protected with products based on wax : you will not only give them a magnificent appearance - they, like glass, will not retain water, and this is a guarantee of protection against corrosion.
It is enough to treat the yacht with wax at the end of the season or before the start of the next navigation. And it will cost you much less than a major RO gelcoat repair or deck replacement.
And last in the list, but also important for yacht passengers and crew, is the ability of awnings and other textiles on board to maintain water-repellent properties. For this purpose, use special aerosols with wax, which, even after drying, do not leave a hard crust on the fabric. By the way, there are the same wax-based products to protect the coating and chambers of a transom inflatable boat from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation, water and salt.
Types of Waxes
Do not be afraid of the term “chemical agent”, which we used above in relation to wax-based protective compounds. Most ship waxes are designed specifically for use on ships, taking into account all the features of the materials used to make yachts.
Based on their composition, the following main types are distinguished waxes:
- synthetic;
- natural;
- hybrid formulas.
This does not mean that synthetic compounds are worse than natural ones, and hybrid ones are better than the first two types. This just means that you should be very aware of what material the part of the boat you are going to wax is made of.
For solid wood decks or natural wood coverings, it is better to use formulations where the maximum percentage of the volume is natural wax.
But for gelcoat it is better to use synthetic or hybrid formulas, as for glass or acrylic surfaces. Natural wax in gelcoat polish can be absorbed into the inner layers and trigger the process of osmosis, which will not happen with a synthetic composition.
Hybrid formulas of compositions with wax are complemented by washing, disinfecting, anti-corrosion and other effects, which can be useful when caring for glass, acrylic and metal surfaces and parts.
Choose 100% biodegradable formulas if you are concerned about the state of the oceans - these are also presented in our marketplace.
How To Choose Wax for A Boat
When choosing wax for your yacht, you should consider the following parameters:
- what part of the yacht needs to be processed;
- the main material of the processed surface, part or product;
- operating conditions and condition at the time of processing;
- desired results - presentable appearance, durability, savings on processing costs, etc.
Depending on these parameters and the allocated budget, select the appropriate products in the topRik marketplace , carefully reading the descriptions in the product cards.
If you doubt that you can independently treat the deck, glazing or gelcoat of a yacht with wax with all the previous manipulations, contact our experts - our company provides a full range of technical inspection, repair and care of yachts.
How to Apply Correctly
If you decide to wax the yacht yourself, carefully read the instructions for use - it usually describes how to apply the product to the surface to be treated and further steps.
But regardless of the product chosen, the surface to be treated must first be repaired and cleaned. Repairs are made depending on the damage, and for cleaning surfaces made of different materials, the topRik marketplace offers a large selection of products for metal, acrylic, fiberglass, glass, etc.
After the surface is prepared for waxing, the product should be applied according to the instructions:
- if it is an aerosol, spray the surface after shaking the bottle;
- if it is a gel or paste, use lint-free cloth wipes if the surface is not large;
- applying gel or paste to a large surface is done using soft brushes with a long handle;
- if it is a wax-based liquid with a cleaning effect, dilute it, if necessary, with water in the appropriate proportion, and to wash boats with this composition, use clean fabrics (but not rags!) without lint or a mop with soft attachments.
Typically, an aerosol, as well as a gel or paste, should be applied several times until completely dry. After the second layer has dried, the polishing process follows, which is best done using technical means. For the polishing disc, use special soft attachments. Polish the surface to be treated until it is completely shiny.