Boat Cleaners - Protectants - Degreasers

Marine Cleaners, Protectants, and Degreasers Resources and Information

When it comes to keeping your boat clean, don’t trust just any generic cleaning products. PartsVu offers marine cleaners, protectants, and degreasers from the most trusted marine cleaning product manufacturers, including Starbrite, Megular’s, Whitecap, Sudbury Boat Care, Presta, Shurhold, 303 Products, and much more. 

Looking for more boating and marine products? Check out our complete selection of Products and Accessories or Cleaning and Care products. Or, browse Cleaners, Protectants, and Degreasers by category, including:

• Salt Removers and Cleaners 
• Bilge Cleaners, Protectants, and Degreasers
• Boat Vinyl and Fabric Cleaners & Canvas Waterproofing Products
• Marine Vinyl and Boat Carpet Cleaners 
• Boat Deck & Hull Cleaners
• Glass Cleaners
• Boat Mold and Mildew Stain Removers & Cleaners
• Boat Rust Removers and Treatments
• Teak Cleaners & Protectants
• Boat Moisture Absorbers, Odor Eliminators, and Air Fresheners 
• Boat Water Fresheners and Conditioners

Boat Cleaners, Protectants, and Degreasers FAQs

How does a boat cleaner or boat soap help to protect my 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.

What are some of the best boat cleaners?

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 concentrated 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.

How do I clean my bilge? 

Use a specially designed biodegradable bilge cleaner like:

• Seachoice’s Biodegradable Bilge Cleaner
• Starbrite’s Sea Safe Bilge Cleaner
• Starbrite’s Heavy Duty Bilge Cleaner
• Sudbury’s Automatic Bilge Cleaner

Don’t be tempted to use a generic cleaner. These soaps are generally not biodegradable which damages the aquatic ecosystems we love so much if your plug is loose, or if you make a mistake. Biodegradable cleaners will not leave long-term residue in the water or on your boat itself. You can also use your biodegradable bilge cleaner to clean carpets, seating, and other areas of your boat. 

Open your boat’s bilge area and liberally add the cleaner. Additionally, you can mix in some water to ensure the cleaner reaches all surfaces. While you are free to dive right in and start scrubbing, we recommend letting the cleaner soak and do its magic for two-four hours.

After two to four hours of soaking, it is time to do a little scrubbing. However, unless you have really procrastinated this job, it shouldn’t be too bad. Which scrubber should you use? You can really use anything you like, as long as it has a bit of abrasion. We like Captain’s Choice Scrubber Sponge and also find that Captain’s Choice 8.5″ Bottom Scrubber Brush can come in handy.

After scrubbing, rinsing with clean water can help get rid of other dirt or debris. However, we strongly advise that you don’t allow your dirty bilge water to dump into a lake or ocean. It’s common for some oil to be present in the dirty water. Not only is it not right to dump oil into the water, in most areas you could be fined. Instead, park the boat at the top of a hill so any dirty water and bilge cleaner can easily drain out into the street. Or, if this is not a practical option, use a small hand bilge pump to transfer the dirty water into a bucket. The bilge cleaner will have helped to suspend the oil in the water-detergent solution so that it is easier to dispose of safely.

How do I clean my boat? 

As a checklist for a thorough boat cleaning, the following are the parts of your craft that you’ll need to clean and detail:

• Hull
• Decks
• Superstructure
• Flybridge
• Swim platform
• Interior (ie. cabin, engine room, bathroom)
• Stainless steel/chrome elements
• Seating/upholstery
• Windows
• Fenders
• Carpeting
• Outboard motor(s)

It’s often easier to tackle a DIY job in one block of time. Some products, as a wax and color restorers, take time to set, but you can busy yourself with other tasks in the meantime.

You should clean your boat every 4 – 12 weeks to protect your boat’s surfaces. Buildup of salt and dirt interferes with a metal’s ability to resist corrosion. Additionally, Gelcoat and marine vinyl are porous surfaces, thus have characteristics that allow them 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.

However, you may need to clean more often due to a number of factors:

• Geographical location
• Water temperature
• Water salinity
• Usage (frequency and duration)
• Boat speed

Boats that are used heavily at high speeds will experience less fouling of the hull, whereas boats that sit in the dock will accumulate more than a boat that is used frequently.

The hull of your boat is under constant exposure to the elements. Given enough time, water and sunlight can degrade the gel coat of your hull and other exposed material, leading to corrosion and browning.

Luckily, regular cleaning can protect and restore your hull. While many boating enthusiasts recommend a mixture of dish soap with warm water for regular boat cleaning, there are a number of drawbacks to this method (see tip #9 below). Also, avoid using any abrasive cleaners, such as bleach or ammonia, which can weaken the hull or cause dangerous chemical reactions.

For the best results, use boat products specific to your hull material and coat – including cleaners, protectants, and degreasers. By following the directions of each product to clean according to mixture recommendations, you can make sure your hull gleams out on the water.