What is the best deck maintenance and cleaning solution? I have heard there is something you can use that minimizes the need for cleaning and keeps the deck looking great. Anyone have an idea what it is?

Is your deck teak or gelcoat? For gelcoat there is a product called Polyglo. You first strip all waxes and dirt from deck surface PolyPrep and some 1000 or 1200 Wet to Dry sand paper. Apply Poly Glo per instructions.

It really looks great for a season and then has to be re- applied the next season but not thoroughly stripped until about the 3rd or fourth season.

The down side: It is a very tedious and labor intensive job stripping your boat perfectly clean. If you don't the dirt will be traooed for the life of the application. It really is very beautiful when done correctly however. Use on the smooth gel not your non-skid or it will be difficult to navigate your deck on foot. It does a smashing job on the hull as well.

John M. Babcock:

Is your deck teak or gelcoat? For gelcoat there is a product called Polyglo. You first strip all waxes and dirt from deck surface PolyPrep and some 1000 or 1200 Wet to Dry sand paper. Apply Poly Glo per instructions.

It really looks great for a season and then has to be re- applied the next season but not thoroughly stripped until about the 3rd or fourth season.

The down side: It is a very tedious and labor intensive job stripping your boat perfectly clean. If you don't the dirt will be traooed for the life of the application. It really is very beautiful when done correctly however. Use on the smooth gel not your non-skid or it will be difficult to navigate your deck on foot. It does a smashing job on the hull as well.

I read a review in Practical Sailor within the last couple of months comparing various products for gelcoat and Polyglo was very well rated, but I'm pretty sure it's only for topsides and hull NOT decks. Anyway, the photos in the article were impressive and I decided to try it. I bought the product, but because you have to prep the surface like John says, I just haven't gotten around to it. For what it's worth, Practical Sailor is usually pretty reliable on product reviews.

John, it sounds like you've used the product for a couple of years and are satisfied?

I have used Poli-Glo on a trawler I previously owned. The gelcoat was faded and would no longer hold a shine. After applying poli-Glo the surface held a shine well and I was happy with it. One of the problems was that some cleaning products would damage the surface, in other words it would remove it, and since that was not the intention it would only remove in streaks and splotches. That means you need to know what the cleaning products are that will dilute it before cleanibg your boat! Repairing the streaks is possible!

The application was time consumming as well. It requires several coats. As many as 5 or 6 before you get the nice results without it showing streaks. Air bubbles can be a problem as well. Practice makes perfect.

This product as I know it would not be for the decks. It is slick! It will probably not wear well with traffic either.

The best method to getting a nice shine on your hull would be to repaint! Poli- Glo is a tempory method until you are ready to do that!