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hey all,
as you know I have picked up a 14 foot aluminum boat...I want/need to clean it up..it has some oxidation on it, and the plate for info is caked over with some stuff...its crusty...white..and feels like sand I dont know what it is. I have found some stuff that is cleaner and all, but it has a form of acid in it...I dont know what kind. I am concerned though since I have two dogs and a kid I dont want wading through this stuff as I clean it in my driveway....and I dont want crap all over my drive way. anyone have any suggestions on something "safe" I can use to clean up this dream? It is in good shape and the metal is not oxidized through, but I dont want to wire brush the whole boat...I just want to clean it to put some coats of sealant and such on it, and to prep the inside for the vinly coating I am putting in...its similar to the truck bed liner they spray on....anyhow any help is appreciated.
Laters,
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I just redid the outside of my haul I chose the harder path. I chose to do it by hand. I used the green abrasive schotch brite pads and used laundry sope and a ton of scrubbing.
you can take the low road and just wash off outer hull and then after it dries use a buffer with the abrasive pad simmilar to the schotch pad. then I suggest you wax it. and just keep waxing it to keep it clean and non oxidizing. I have painted the aluminum boats in the past and if you dont get the serface perecty prepaired the paint will peal in a couple years....
and by all means a waxed aluminum finish dose not look bad at all you can even pin stripe if you like. Turtle Was dose a nice job. just dont wait to long to take off the wax or you will be buffing forever....
I beleive the chemical you found is called "Xylol" spelling may be off. it works and dose pull off old paint as well. the smell is strong, you will need to be outside and wear a mask and protective clothling. it did not seem to bother me too much but it did a nasty job on some of the other guys who worked with the chemicle.
I have a picture of it posted on one of DDR's post if you want to see the finish.
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Hey Dave,
I have a pressure washer, I know it will clean it...but I am looking for something to "brighten" up the aluminum...It looks more and more like I will have to bust out the old aluminum wheel cleaner and brightener....maybe the foam stuff they have at autozone would do the trick...just thought of that..here I am looking for a chemical in home depot and all those places..when I should have gone to the guys that sell my auto parts...sheesh..I will go there tonight.
Laters,
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well what will happen is if you dont buff it out you are going to leave untreated pits. you realy need to remove the oxidized aluminum
brighting up the aluminum was just the same thing I wanted to accomplish. I susceeded to some degree. puttong on a coat of wax is the key to preserving the sheen after the cleaning prossess is done. (it will also make it tread water better as well - faster)
what ever solution you are planning on using will have to be removed in order to wax it.
to redoe the outside hull 75 dollars is well worth the cost of a cheep buffer from your auto store and a can of wax and a schotch brite pad. the electric buffer will take hours off labor. you should be able to buff out the entire hull in an hour then buff the wax off in half an hour.... you can actualy do this job in about 3-4 hour max on a sunny day....
the results will be well worth it....
if you go with the easy chemical rout let us know how the job turns out. and the number of man hours vested...
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got a chemical from a auto supply warehouse...it is aluminum cleaner brightener and oxidization remover...it bubbles. I tested a spot about 12 inches by 12 inches, in less than 5 minutes I had a fresh clean patch of aluminum, it looked like the weld patch I just put on..all shiny and new....yee haaa..I found the easy way..its made for older cars with aluminum wheels..not polished or anything, just aluminum designed to take off tar, brake matter, grease, anything you may have on a boat too I thought..I think its duragloss aluminum cleaner. got a quart of it, planning on it takeing me what 20 minutes of spraying the boat down, and 5 minutes of rinsing...just rinse with hose...after you let it bubble for a few minutes, second coats at will...it took all the stuff right off, It says dont get it on paint or plastic. I am guessing it will take that stuff off..or ruin it.
Laters,
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thanks, I will look for it the next time I am in the toy store...
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