Cleaning hull

[jsmac51]

Pullling the boat next weekend. This is a 191 Starcraft Islander with a painted aluminum hull color white. I know that there is a summers worth of accumulated crud on the hull. I need the hands down best advice on what product will be best for the job of cleaning this thing up. I know this is the best place to gat that advice. I also know that lots of good old fashioned elbow grease will be required as well and have got a couple of helpers lined up to assist.

[Pennay]

I have an 18ft Sylvan sportsman with a painted alum hull. Go to walmart and buy the Atwood hull cleaner. You can pour it into a spray bottle and spray it on the one side of the boat. Let it sit for a couple minutes, you can work some areas with a sponge to loosen. Spray it off everything, towel dry. This stuff works great! It is a mild acid so make sure you rinse good. Then I wash again with car soap, drip dry then spray wax and hand towel dry. Makes it look new again. Mine is an 84 and it looks much newer.

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[Splitshot115]

Try this thread:::: viewtopic.php?f=12&t=24457&hilit=cleaners

[spoonfed-1]

Spray it with Slimy Grimy and pressure wash.

Very easy.

Glen

[gotaway]

spoonfed, where do you get the slimy grimy? Is it a boat cleaner or general purpose cleaner

thanks, Joe

[Sea Lion]

I have an aluminum boat too that's been in the water since April. Bottom is covered with growth and is in real need of a good cleaning. I've tried Slimy Grimy (Boiling water / Slimy Grimy in a sprayer)..does ok but leaves alot of the growth still on the bottom. I am thinking of Muriatic Acid but then I hear horror stories on it eating up your boat. Any advice out there?

thanks,

Bob

[spoonfed-1]

I have an aluminum boat too that's been in the water since April. Bottom is covered with growth and is in real need of a good cleaning. I've tried Slimy Grimy (Boiling water / Slimy Grimy in a sprayer)..does ok but leaves alot of the growth still on the bottom. I am thinking of Muriatic Acid but then I hear horror stories on it eating up your boat. Any advice out there?

thanks,

Bob

Interesting.

I've been doing my boat with it for quite a few years and never had any growth left on it.

Do my 25 footer in about an hour and a quarter and it's in the water from as soon as the ice goes off the Little Salmon until the end of October.

Takes everything off the lower unit of the outboards as well with one application and they are painted aluminum.

Mike at Mikes marina uses it on dozens of boats every season with no issues. He's the guy who turned me on to it.

The one time it didn't work well was when I left my sprayer at home and tried brushing it on. Didn't work worth crap.

I spray it on in a fine mist.

About the only thing I can tell you is I do the bottom within a few hours of when I pull it and I do it in four sections. I spray it on a 1/4 of the boat and pressure wash. I don't let it dry on the bottom.

Muric acid is brutal. Take every precaution if you use it.

Good luck

Glen

[Splitshot115]

I've used the barkeepers friend and the stuff worked great. It can be found at most of your larger stores.

[Rob]

Slimy Grimy did not get the scum at the water line on my boat even with pressure washer.

It works good for the very bottom of boats where no sun hits.

The sides and transom of my boat have longer algae strands at the end of year were the sun hits.

Slimy Grimy did not work in that area.

[ERABBIT]

I have an aluminum boat too that's been in the water since April. Bottom is covered with growth and is in real need of a good cleaning. I've tried Slimy Grimy (Boiling water / Slimy Grimy in a sprayer)..does ok but leaves alot of the growth still on the bottom. I am thinking of Muriatic Acid but then I hear horror stories on it eating up your boat. Any advice out there?

thanks,

Bob

I'd stay away from the muriatic acid , where I usta work we used it on the concrete floors didn't take long to "ruff" them up. IF you have to use it have pleanty of water ready to dilute the area you are covering with acid and do it in a well ventalated (sp) area.

[Sea Lion]

For the record, I yanked the boat, took it home immediately, used a power washer to get the big stuff off as well as I could and then via boiling water/slimy grimy and a sprayer, sprayed the boat. Hardly did a thing. Still have a lot of growth on my hull and particularly on the transom. The joys of boat ownership!

[spoonfed-1]

Pulled the boat Sat. morning

Before.

15 minutes later using nothing but Slimy and pressure wash.

Partly done on one side.

Again nothing but slimy and pressure wash

[Has Been]

Don't know if Muriatic Acid will eat your alum boat ,but I do know it will eat up the Galv & metal on your trailer & make it rust. Works great on the fiberglass boat .

[Sea Lion]

Hi,

Spoonfed, thanks for the photos. They tell me a lot other than I'm envious of you horsepower. My old old boat was wooden and had the anti fouling paint on the bottom (copper based) and when I took it out each season I would spray it with Slimy Grimy and the algae and whatever melted off...super clean. I suspect you have that anti fouling paint on as well. I unfortunately can't have that on an aluminum boat due to how it interacts with aluminum but that explains why you are getting such a different result than what I'm getting. Us aluminum boat owners need an effective anti fouling paint that doesn't cost $100/qt.

Thanks for all who responded.

Bob