Boat Soaps, Washes & Brushes

Marine Soaps, Washes, and Brushes Resouces and Information

PartsVu offers a complete selection of marine soaps, washes, and brushes to help keep your boat deck, hull, carpet, and vinyl components clean and free of mildew and corrosion. Browse boat cleaning products from the top cleaning manufacturers, including Shurhold, Star-Brite, Captain's Choice, Babe's Boat Care, Camco-Armada, Buffalo Rags, Meguiars, 3M, and more.

Looking for more boating and marine products? Check out our complete selection of Products and Accessories or Cleaning and Care products. 

Boat Soap, Boat Wash & Brushes FAQs

What are the best tools for cleaning my boat?

Gilmour Marine & Recreation Hose

Hosing down your boat is a simple but necessary task, as it rinses away harmful residue. This specific hose is powerful with high burst strength and easy to coil with kink resistance. It has a durable exterior that won’t mar your boat surfaces. The hose is ideal for use while boating or around the dock. It also meets FDA standards so zero impurities are imparted to the water.

Gilmour Plastic Nozzle

This high-quality nozzle easily attaches to the Gilmour Marine & Recreation Hose. It’s specifically designed for marine use, as it resists corrosion caused by saltwater. The durable polymer body on this nozzle includes an internal spring mechanism, making cleaning your boat safe and easy.

PVA Towel

Star Brite’s 27″ X 17″ PVA towel is a must-have for all boaters. It absorbs 50% more than natural chamois making it an excellent tool to try key areas of your boat before turning in for the day. It’s highly resistant to mold and doesn’t leave behind any lint residue or streaks when drying off your boat. It’s also conveniently machine washable.

Star Brite White Cotton Diaper Polishing Cloths

Super soft and absorbent for special cleaning jobs. 17″ X 17.5″ 100% pure cotton diapers are the best cloth for polishing.

Reggae Sponge (or Mitt)

Both of these products are made of microfiber that is highly absorbent yet soft, so you can be sure it won’t scratch your gel coat or painted surfaces. You can use either the sponge or mitt wet for washing, or dry for dusting. The sponge has a special scrubbing side that quickly removes tough stains and scum lines. Both products are machine washable.

Star Brite Microfiber Reggae Sponge (or Mitt)

Both of these products are made of microfiber that is highly absorbent yet soft, so you can be sure it won’t scratch your gelcoat or painted surfaces. You can use either the sponge or mitt wet for washing, or dry for dusting. The sponge has a special scrubbing side that quickly removes tough stains and scum lines. Both products are machine washable.

Microfiber Cleaning/Detailer Cloths

These premium cloths are made of non-scratching microfibers that are ultra-absorbent and super gentle on almost all surfaces. The ultra-fine fibers act like dirt magnets to all coated and non-coated finishes, fiberglass, windows, polished and plated metals, brass, and electronics. Put away that old t-shirt or dish rag and grab a microfiber cleaning cloth. These cloths are reusable and machine washable.

Shurhold 6’ Telescoping Handle

Easily reach any surface with this durable, six-foot-long handle. With the SHUR-LOK quick release system, this handle can be locked at any of four different lengths from 40-72 inches. This product makes cleaning easy and hassle-free. There are also over 30 different attachments from Shurhold that fit this telescoping handle, including brushes, squeegees, and mops.

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 maintain my boat’s gel coat? 

Use a mild pH-balanced boat soap and avoid using dish soap. Dish soap typically includes heavy-duty degreasers that can strip the wax from your boat’s finish. A boat soap cleans but also preserves the wax. Also, avoid bleach or harsh detergents, which can also damage the gelcoat.

First, rinse your boat with fresh water to remove salt, dirt, and other debris from the surface. Rubbing the surface of your boat without removing these abrasive particles can scratch your gelcoat, which will, of course, reduce its luster. If you are a saltwater boater and there is a lot of salt debris on your boat’s surface, you’ll need to use a product like CRC Salt Terminator or Starbrite Salt Off.

Use a soft cloth like a wash mitt or a microfiber towel to wash, then rinse with fresh water. After rinsing, wipe down your boat with a fresh microfiber, soft cotton cloth, or chamois so that mineral deposits don’t form, which will happen if you let the water dry on its own.

If your boat’s finish is in great shape, you can likely skip this step. If you are trying to bring back the shine, you will probably need a cleaning step—more aggressive than a wash. However, we recommend using the least aggressive cleaner possible, then using a more aggressive product if necessary.

Starbrite Cleaner Wax, Mothers Cleaner Wax, Meguiars Cleaner Wax, and other products of this nature will remove light oxidation and restore your finish. These products also contain wax protection, which extends your wax’s life—reducing the number of times you need to wax your boat per year.

However, if you need to remove heavier oxidation, you will need to use a product like 3M’s rubbing compounds. Just like selecting a cleaner, start with the least aggressive rubbing compound possible.

Always follow the application directions on the product’s packaging, but generally, you will apply with a foam pad and buff out with a clean microfiber towel.

If you would like to use a bit less elbow grease, use an electric applicator—we like the Shurhold Dual-Action Polisher.