Fiberglass Restoration The outer surface of a fiberglass boat is normally a special resin called gelcoat which protects the hull and vessel’s interlinings in addition to giving the boat its color and shine. Unfortunately, time and exposure eventually erode the relatively soft surface of gelcoat, leaving it dull and chalky. Fortunately, the gloss usually can be restored through one or more of the following processes. Cleaning & Degreasing Our first step in fiberglass restoration process is simply cleaning. The gelcoat must be completely free of dirt, oil, and grease in order to obtain the absolute best results and highest shine from the restoration process. Hand Waxing Keeping gelcoat coated with wax from day one is the best way to prolong its life. Regularly waxed gelcoat (quarterly) can retain its gloss for 15 years or more. The real purpose of a coat of wax is to protect, however some of our cleaner waxes have some minor restorative properties if the gel coat is not too badly weathered. Most often though, an extended period of time has passed between wax applications, which allows the gel coat to weather and become chalky. Machine Polishing If the gel coat is beyond the restoring power of waxing, the next step is machine polishing. Polish is not a coating, but rather an extremely slight abrasive. Polishing removes the pitted surfaces rather than coating them. After polishing, we will then apply a coat of wax to protect the surface and improve the gloss. Machine …
