[Joseph10]

All,
I was hoping that someone could suggest a good way to clean my aluminum boat hull. I have some water spot deposits and a faint waterline I am trying to get off.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Best regards,
Joseph

[CATransplant]

Is this bare aluminum or painted? Makes a huge difference.

[Joseph10]

Hello. Thanks for the reply. The hull is 1/2 red paint and 1/2 bare aluminum. However, the water line and spots I am concerned with are on the bare aluminum (lower hull area). The red painted upper area looks good - I will just wash and wax that area.

Thanks,
Joseph

[CATransplant]

Originally Posted by Joseph10

Hello. Thanks for the reply. The hull is 1/2 red paint and 1/2 bare aluminum. However, the water line and spots I am concerned with are on the bare aluminum (lower hull area). The red painted upper area looks good - I will just wash and wax that area.

Thanks,
Joseph

Try some CLR on it applied with a rag, then rinse it off right away. Or use a 3M pad, applied with elbow grease and gently, but it'll remove the protective oxide coating on the aluminum, but that will grow back quickly. . Here's the deal: Your bare aluminum is going to have water spots if you use the boat. It comes with the territory.

There's almost no way to prevent it, unless you carefully dry the boat after each use, right after you take it out of the water.

Sounds like a Lund. They do that red and bare aluminum, but others do, too.

Still, if you really have to remove that water line, you'll probably not be happy until you polish the whole bottom of the hull, since any treatment you use will make the area you treated look different from the rest of the aluminum.

[5150abf]

Fine 3M Scotch Brite pad and only go inline with the boat, it will leave a nice "grain".

[Wee Hooker]

Just wondering (since both my aluminum boats are fully painted). Will a coat of a good wax slow the spotting process down once it's polished?

[Joseph10]

Thanks for the replies. I will try these techniques out this weekend. They both sound like good suggestions.

By the way, here is a picture of my boat, it is a 2005 Bass Tracker PT175.

Thanks again,
Joseph

[Joseph10]

Trying again.

[grego]

Talk to an air cond. contractor. they use a spray on alum. cleaner. when they clean your ac. unit, they will spray it to prove that they were there and all is clean. and YES! wax the alum or paint,as often as possible.