How to treat non-skid?

shawzy44 · Post by **shawzy44** » Tue May 17, 2011 9:06 am

Hi,

Waxing smooth surfaces has done a good job at keeping the boat clean.

Any tips for what I can use on the top side non-skid areas to try and keep her cleaner? It seems to be very porous in its old age and stains very easily.

Thanks!

Peter · Post by **Peter** » Tue May 17, 2011 1:24 pm

here we go... to wax or not... everyones got an opinion...

koviak · Post by **koviak** » Tue May 17, 2011 8:28 pm

Starbrite non-skid cleaner with PTFE. Follow instructions on bottle, will clean and protect non-skid.

captainmaniac · Post by **captainmaniac** » Tue May 17, 2011 8:34 pm

I use Aurora Sure Step http://www.auroramarine.com/aurora/catalog/01420/

gettaway · Post by **gettaway** » Wed May 18, 2011 5:45 pm

been using zip wax car wash for regular washing, soft scrub with bleach when it gets really dirty

captainmaniac · Post by **captainmaniac** » Wed May 18, 2011 6:02 pm

captainmaniac wrote:I use Aurora Sure Step http://www.auroramarine.com/aurora/catalog/01420/

OOPS - realize now I misread the original question a bit. I also use the Starbrite Non-Skid cleaner (with 'chelating agent') to deal with cleaning. The Aurora wax helps seal things a bit to keep stains from penetrating into the gell (and is a special wax that doesn't get slippery when wet - it actually adds traction to the surface).

Paul · Post by **Paul** » Wed May 18, 2011 7:59 pm

The factory non skid finish on our F-26 was always a pain in the axx to keep clean until we started waxing it. I always thought that waxing non skid surfaces just didn't sound right however I saw other boats that were done this way and the results seemed good. It turns out that even with the shiny wax finish, the deep pockets of the Trojan non skid surface retains its grip.

We use the Meguiar's three step system on the boat every spring and it lasts pretty much until the fall. The de oxidizer and the polish are applied with the rotary polishing wheel and the wax is applied by hand. When it comes to applying the wax to the non skid surface, we use a coarse bristle brush wrapped in with a rag. This allows us to work the wax into the pockets. We buff it back out of the pockets using the same method.

The boat cleans up well all summer with a mop, boat soap a the occasional soft brush on the non skid surface. To clean up bird stains we use the one step Meguiars cleaner/wax.

Hope this helps.

gettaway · Post by **gettaway** » Wed May 18, 2011 10:34 pm

meguiars is good stuff!

shawzy44 · Post by **shawzy44** » Thu May 19, 2011 1:46 pm

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try some this weekend on a few spots to see which work best.

pnmudge · Post by **pnmudge** » Sun May 22, 2011 1:49 pm

Woody Wax non-skid deck wax. It's awesome, and easy easy to apply. I found a review in Pacific Sailor where they combined Aurora, Star-brite and Woody, and Woody came out on top. Works for us!

shawzy44 · Post by **shawzy44** » Mon May 23, 2011 12:06 pm

Thanks everyone for the input. I ended up using Sure Grip from Aurora. It went on easy and seems to have done just what I needed.

Next up is cleaning and painting the Bilge which I see an active post on already...