Brand new boat

L

lark

Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2007
RO Number
26900
Messages
197
I ordered a brand new boat. Let's skip over the financial stupidity of that move for now.
It will be delivered from the factory this winter, stored on the hard and launched this spring.

So this is a once in a lifetime (of the boat) opportunity to put some protection on the fiberglass, what should I do? Just wax it?

BTW it's a Four Winns cruiser. It will only be used in fresh water.
 
Who's setting up the boat for you? and When? Is the dealer leaving the adjustments and check-out until the spring? I would expect that the dealer will deliver the boat to you cleaned and waxed. Check with him. I would expect that running the engine to check the things that need to be checked will be left until warm weather. Why start it in the winter and then have to immediately winterize it? Which also means that you should check whether or not the boat is being delivered winterized. You've got some real questions to ask the dealer before you take delivery and hand over that big check. Happy boating and welcome to the club. Hy.
 
it makes a lot of sense to get a new boat surveyed before closing, along with a sea trial... dont' assume a new boat is problem free.

many dealers, once they got the check, put new owners in line like everybody else before they fix problems, especially when busy in the spring.
 
The boat will be delivered winterized and shrink-wrapped. At that point I will inspect and buy the boat. No sea trial, the lake is frozen. No survey, unless I want it. What could a surveyor find that I can't. He can't run the engines, and the hull has no moisture. He can't check the water systems, generator or air conditioner. I guess he could check the fridges. It will sit outside until spring. Then the dealer will do all the prep work, plus I have some electronics to install and then they will deliver the boat to me. This is the deal I made, I went in knowing this and I understand the risk. This is my third new boat, I know it won't be problem free. The other two were leftovers, already in the water, this one is fresh out of the mold.

Back to my original question, I'm sure part of the dealer prep is throwing quick coat of wax on it. But given a opportunity to have brand new gelcoat, is there something better to start with?
 
As far as I've found...a good MARINE wax is best. I use West Marine Carnuba paste wax on my 20 year old Carver and it stays looking new all season (hull). The topsides I wax more frequently. What color did you order?
 
Any good quality wax will do on a brand new boat. Paste, liquid, etc. Just do it soon and regularly and it will stay looking new without too much effort.
 
This may sound silly, but I think a new boat fresh out of the mold has so much mold-wax on the hull that just buffing by hand should suffice for the first six months.
 
How about starting off right with a barrier coat on the bottom?

MJK
 
There are boats made without a built in barrier coat?
 
Another person on this forum once said that a boat is made to be put in the water and why would you have to put a barrier coat on. I kinda of agree with this. The boat companies know that a boat will be in the water. I know nothing about barrier coats other than it prevents bottom blisters. I also know that fiberglass can be pourus and absorbs water. How boat companies sell a product that they know stays in the water yet might get ruined if it is not protected from the water. Can anyone shed some light on this
Al
 
Carver and Cruisers both build their boats with a barrier coat between the gelcoat and the fiberglass. The fiberglass is not the porous item...it is the gelcoat which is. All gelcoats are and the boat manufacturers have no control over that which is why most companies are building with barrier coats right from the factory.
 
Barrier coat is something to think about. The boat does come with a barrier coat, pretty much all new ones do. But maybe a little extra protection couldn't hurt. I have to look into this, how is it applied, and is there a downside.
 
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