Boat Cleaner, Boat Soap - Which Products are Best to Keep Your Vessel Shipshape?

Protecting and cleaning boat surfaces on scheduled intervals is necessary to extend the life of your fun on the water. It also keeps your boat’s appearance in mint condition every time you take it out for a spin. However, there are a multitude of boat cleaner and boat wash products on the market – which ones are the best? If you’re new to working on your boat or need a quick brush up, keep reading. We’re going to share the best, most effective products for cleaning and protecting boat surfaces in marine environments.

How Does a Boat Cleaner or Boat Soap Help to Protect Your Boat?

Buildup of salt and dirt interferes with a metal’s ability to resist corrosion. Gelcoat and marine vinyl are porous surfaces, meaning they have the ability to absorb water, dirt, and grime from their surroundings. Unprotected vinyl seats are more likely to develop mold and more likely to fade and crack with frequent sun exposure. Lastly, fiberglass that is uncared for will stain and discolor more easily over time, notwithstanding simply degrade through oxidation and literally chalk away.

These are all reasons why cleaning your boat’s many surfaces is the single most important step in protecting them. It’s important to understand that there are different types of cleaning solutions for different parts of your boat. It’s a dangerous belief that household bleaches and cleaners are OK to use on your boat; they might appear to do the trick at first, but in the long run they could end up causing unwanted deterioration.

To make protecting your boat a lot easier, PartsVu has assembled a list of recommended boat cleaner products from leading brands like StarBrite, 303 Products, 3M, Meguiar’s, and more.

Best Marine Metal Polish

Nevr-Dull Magic Wadding Polish – This easy to use product is excellent for cleaning and polishing all metals. It removes dirt, rust, and tar, while not scratching delicate surfaces. The polishing compound is soaked into what resembles a big ball of cotton.

TIP: For extended storage, some DIYers leave the polish on the metal acting as a barrier to the elements until the boat is ready for use. The polish is then removed using a soft cloth wiping metal surfaces clean.

Flitz Polish – Very popular for cleaning and polishing all types of metals, this product comes in a potent liquid formula. Flitz Polish works powerfully against rust, tarnish, water stains, grease, and tar.

Collinite Metal Wax – This top of the line marine wax cleans and shines all metals while leaving behind a durable wax coating that further protects from the harsh and corrosive elements found in the marine environment.

Recommended Products for Cleaning Vinyl

Star Brite’s Ultimate Vinyl Clean

Star Brite Ultimate Vinyl Clean is formulated to blast away the toughest dirt, grime and greasy stains from vinyl, plastic, rubber and leather surfaces. While you can use this product of a multitude of applications, it is particularly effective on marine vinyl.

Meguiar’s Vinyl & Rubber Cleaner & Conditioner

Cleans and revitalizes vinyl and rubber surfaces. Restores color with a rich natural sheen, not the typical artificial shine produced with conventional protectants. Screens out damaging UV rays that can dry out and crack the surface.

303 Multi-Surface Cleaner – Formulated for all fabrics, carpeting, and upholstery, this cleaner removes even the most difficult of stains including dirt, oil, grease, coffee, and ink. Even better, it rinses off residue free.

3M Marine Vinyl Cleaner And Restorer

3M Cleans, shines, conditions and protects vinyl, rubber and plastic surfaces. Deep cleans dirt and grime, enhances appearance. Restores natural sheen, protects surfaces.

Recommended Boat Cleaner Products

Star Brite Instant Hull Cleaner – Remove scumline, rust stains, and grassy marine growth quickly and easily with this cleaner. You don’t even have to do any rubbing, simply wipe on and rinse off the solution to reveal spotless fiberglass.

Star Brite Instant Black Streak Remover – This popular spray-on cleaner instantly removes unattractive streaks caused by water run off. It can also be used to lift dirt and grime on metal and painted surfaces in addition to fiberglass.

Marine Spray Nine – Another convenient spray bottle cleaner, this product is an excellent degreaser. It also eliminates odors, kills germs, prevents mold, removes streaks and stains caused by food or drink. It’s safe to use on almost any hard surface.

Orpine Wash & Wax – This environmentally friendly boat soap and wax comes in a highly concentrated formula so a little bit goes a long way. It’s an excellent product for removing salt and dirt from fiberglass as well as metals, wood, and plastic.

Star Brite Sea Safe Boat Wash – This boat wash is very concenrated and powerful against stains, dirt, salt, grease, and oil. In addition to fiberglass, you can use it on metal, glass, or rubber.

Orpine Bilge Cleaner – This heavy duty, concentrated cleaner dissolves oil, grease, and fuel from your bilge. With its fresh scent, it also effectively removes mildew odors from bilges.

Star Brite Non-Skid Deck Cleaner – This is a high quality deck cleaning product that is used by the pros. It’s safe to use on textured fiberglass, painted decks, vinyl, teak, and metal. The cleaner leaves a protective coating that repels dirt, stains, and UV damage.

Looking to learn about the best products to maintain and restore fiberglass shine, visit – Best Products to Maintain & Restore Fiberglass Shine