Boat Maintenance

In an update to our June 2006 and January 2007 metal polish test, we pit three products against PSs favored metal polish: Miracle Cloth (the top pick for both stainless steel and bronze). The challengers-Sure Shine from Weems & Plath and Metal Polish Pros Mirage Polish & Sealant and Prism Polish-debuted in the bronze cleaner test published in January. This time, we put them to work on a stainless steel bow railing. Both Sure Shine and Prism Polish performed well, but the hands-down winner for shiny stainless remains Miracle Cloth.

Teak decks can last a century, if theyre properly cared for, and a major factor in successful teak deck maintenance is choosing the right caulk-and applying it correctly. In June 2006, testers applied seven caulks used for teak deck seams to test panels. The products: Simson MSR (Marine Special Range) Deck Caulk Plus, Maritime Teak Deck Caulking, Teakdecking Systems SIS 440 Teak Deck Caulking, West Marines Multi Caulk Sealant, and three from BoatLIFE (Life-Caulk, Teak Deck Sealant, and Life-Calk Type P). We rated each for ease of application in the September 2006 issue, so after eight months, its time to take a look at their durability, adhesiveness, and resistance to chemicals.

The value of space onboard a boat means that just about every piece of equipment has to have at least two uses. For the portable Wonder Wash, may we suggest colors and whites?

In our bi-annual test of marine antifouling paints, Interlux Optima and a new bottom paint from Sea Hawk Paints, Biocop CF, produce the cleanest bottoms after six months. Interlux VC Offshore (hard) and Interlux Micron 66 (ablative) emerge as the most effective ablative paint after 18 months.

When it comes to marine metals, appearances can be deceiving. The shiny surface on that brand new stainless steel cleat could really be concealing cheap, highly ferrous metal, while that green crusty silicone bronze seacock could be as structurally sound as the day it was fabricated. As part of a series of articles focusing on problems that plague older boats (as well as poorly built new ones), Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo helps pinpoint potential trouble spots for metal parts and hardware.

Used boat buyers beware. Some potentially serious problems turn up with discouraging frequency during a routine search for bargains in the used boat market.

Whether it is, as the iceboaters say "soft water" or "hard water," the principles are exactly the same. However, because when iceboating the apparent wind behaves so much more radically, the sailtrimming techniques are considerably different. By the way, an airplane wing is just a sail turned horizontal; thats why so many airplane pilots own sailboats or iceboats.

Bronze portlights, even those coated with a thick layer of patina, give many sailboats a salty appearance, but if you want your portlights to look shiny, what is the best bronze polish? We apply the top products in our stainless steel polish test to some bronze portlights that had not been cleaned since the Carter Administration. Our test field features 19 different products, including: Miracle Cloth, Nevr Dull, Noxon 7, Prizm Polish, Flitz Metal Polish, Collinite No. 850 Metal Wax, Star Brite Chrome and Stainless Polish, 3M Metal Restorer and Polish, Turtle Wax Chrome Polish and Rust Remover, Meguiars Mirror Glaze, and more.

No matter what brand outboard engine you have Yamaha, Suzuki, Mercury, Tohatsu, or Johnson youll want to be wary of ethanol fuel. Owners of older sailboats with gasoline inboards like the Universal Atomic 4 should also be on alert. Ethanol fuel presents a wide range of problems for owners of gasoline engines. The new blend of fuel can attack tanks, hoses, seals, and can gum up your engine if you don't take certain precautions. We examine the issues surrounding ethanol fuel and offer some tips for safely storing a boat that runs on ethanol fuel.

With the rising awareness of the new lead-acid battery "Desulfator/conditioner" products that are currently hitting the market, we tested the claims of two leading products to see if they are worth the money.