Black Gelcoat questions

[Bgould]

I recently purchased a 2004 Air Nautiqe 226. It is black. When I first saw the boat at the dealer the bottom of the boat had some cloudiness in the gelcoat. They told me that they were still cleaning the boat and that they would get the cloudiness out. They did get 95% of the black to come back and shine like new. I was satisfied with the boat so I went through with the purchase. I took the boat out for the first time this weekend and when I took it out of the water the cloudiness came back. I am guessing that they put something on the boat that it washed off. The dealer did tell me that they wet sanded the boat but didnt want to go to far because they didnt want to sand through the gelcoat.

Can anyone give me recomendations on how to bring the gelcoat color back to black and how to maintain it so it doesnt go back to being cloudy? I know that black boats require a lot of maintenance but I would like to do it the correct way and with the best products.

[TxHr]

I have the exact same problem on my 226. I keep a nice coat of HotSauce on it and the cloudiness goes away, for the most part. I am interested to see what there's have done to eliminate this problem.

[DanielC]

The top surface of the black gelcoat is oxidised, or contaminated. You are going to have to remove that. the ideal is to remove as little as possible.

This is what I like to do. You will get other answers, and product recommendations. If the gelcoat is just hazy, but in good shape, I would use Meguires color restorer, or one of their cleaners. I have, depending on the how aggressive I wanted to get, used heavy cut cleaner, medium cut cleaner or fine cut cleaner, with a rotary polisher. I then follow that with Meguires swirl remover, again with a rotary polisher. So far, all the products are actually automotive polishing compounds, and can be gotten at auto parts stores, usually cheaper than marine products.
I then use Meguires boat/RV polish, #45, applied with a orbital buffer. Finally, I use Meguires Pure Wax, #56, again applied with an orbital buffer. Wipe that off with a microfiber towel, by hand.

Keep the pads for different products separate. Use new clean towels. I believe you can get microfiber towels at Costco, and you can get new cotton towels there too. If you drop a towel, do not use it on the boat. it will pick up dirt, and scratch the gelcoat, and you know black is very unforgiving.

What I have suggested is not the only way, or the only products to use. 3M makes some excellent products. So does Mother's, and there are others.

[swc5150]

DC's advice is what I'd do to. Use Meguires Flagship for the final coat of wax, which will offer you UV protection, which you'll need with a black boat. Black looks awesome, but takes work to keep looking shiny. Every little waterspot will show up, so a good wipe down after each use is a must. If my boat were black, I'd make sure the hull was covered or kept out of the sun when not in use too. I had a reverse red hull 196, and even that took way more work than a standard white or gray. Love the look, but it comes at a price unfortunately.

[DanielC]

Meguires flagship wax is a Cleaner/Wax. It is a very good produce, but it was designed as a "one step" product. I would use it after you have used the pure wax, and taken the boat out, and you want a quick touch up.

[swc5150]

Good to know, I didn't realize it was a one step product. I've used 3M as well with great results.