Buckets - Pails - Mixing Containers

Buckets, Pails, and Mixing Containers - Resources & Information

If you’re doing maintenance or customizing your boat, having mixing containers and buckets on hand are invaluable tools with plenty of uses. Whether you’re measuring cleaning chemicals, need a container for polishing your boat, or touching up the interior with some marine paint, every DIY boater should have plenty of them on hand. Plus, buckets and pails can be used in a pinch for leaking engine oil or other fluids. 

PartsVu offers a complete selection of Buckets, Pails, and Mixing Containers from quality manufacturers. Whether you need a 5 quart pail, multipack paint buckets, and more, PartsVu has everything you need to get the job done right. 

Need help servicing your boat and outboard engine? PartsVu regularly publishes helpful how-to guides and other valuable maintenance information to help boaters properly service their boats and engines. Browse our outboard maintenance blog for a wide range of relevant topics and see the FAQ section below, covering everything you need to know about maintaining your boat in confidence.

Buckets - Pails - Mixing Containers FAQ

What should I know about Buckets, Pails, and Mixing Containers?

Here’s some info you need to know about Buckets, Pails, and Mixing Containers:

• It’s important to designate certain buckets and mixing containers for certain tasks. For example, don’t use the same buckets you’d use for painting that you may use for painting. Even if you’ve done a thorough job of cleaning, even tiny soap residue can create an uneven look on paint; vice versa, leftover paint fragments may break down in harsh abrasive, leaving behind unsightly paint streaks that are difficult to remove.
• When mixing paints of different colors to achieve a blend, use two separate mixing containers to ensure that you’ve got a uniform mixture. “Eyeballing” a mix may seem fine when it’s in the bucket, but if you’re mixing multiple coats, it’s easy to create unintended hues that look poor. 
• Another point of accidentally missing chemicals is that you may cause a dangerous chemical reaction. For example, mixing ammonia you may be using for cleaning windows with bleach used for cleaning a bilge can release chloramine gas, a dangerous gas that can be fatal when inhaled. Even small bits of foil (commonly found in wrappers) mixed with household cleaning products like Liquid Plumber can cause explosive effects from hydrogen gas. 
• Disposal of leftover chemicals and paints is always an issue when you’ve completed maintenance. Be sure to always dispose of chemicals at appropriate recycling/waste management centers. As an example, most engine oil can be collected at a marina or automotive retail store for disposal. Additionally, it’s always a smart move to keep around plastic containers that can be refilled with matching chemicals.
• Unless otherwise indicated on a product’s label, always go with plastic buckets and plastic mixing containers when using chemicals. Metal pails may corrode over time, creating a mess of loose metal fragments that you may not see until it is too late. Similarly, a rubber bucket liner may be used for oil and other chemicals, but be sure to have a funnel on hand when it comes time to transfer that 
• When measuring chemicals, it’s always best to follow the old carpenters adage: Measure twice, cut once. Instead of cutting, you’ll want to follow markings on all containers, but double check to see if the same measurements apply on all mixing containers. Due to evaporation or plastic expanding in storage, measurement markings on these containers may not always be accurate. 
• Use an appropriately sized container for the task on hand. If you’re just doing small jobs, like touching up some paint in the cabin, a 5 quart mixing bucket might be unwieldy. Similarly, a 1 gallon measuring bucket can have you running back to the garage each time you need to mix a new batch of soap to clean your deck. 
• PartsVu has plenty of resources for boaters to read when it comes to using buckets, mixing containers, and pails during maintenance. Read these articles and more to get a better understanding of what you’ll need on hand and plenty of best-practices for a job well done:
• What Are Good Safety Precautions When Fueling Your Boat?
• Bilge Cleaning in 4 Simple Steps - PartsVu Xchange

What are paper buckets used for?

Paper buckets are useful for painting due to their disposable nature. Because paint can coat the interior of a bucket, paper buckets are a great biodegradable and renewable alternative to plastic when you need something you can safely dispose of. 

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. 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.