Cleaning (washing) your boat and keeping it clean all the time isn’t just a matter of pure satisfaction; it’s also an important part of basic boat maintenance. How often should you clean your boat? Doing it frequently will be bad or good for a boat?
On average, cleaning (washing) a boat once every 2 weeks is recommended. However, if the boat is not used and kept in closed storage, it doesn’t need to be cleaned, but if it is used quite often (daily or 3-4 times a week), it needs to be cleaned once every week or 2 based on the boat’s condition.
Nothing will happen to a boat if it is cleaned daily. However, cleansing products are not required for a boat if you are cleaning (washing) it daily, but if there are any tough stains, it’s good to use some cleansing products. Ensure not to scrub the boat harshly; otherwise, your antifoul wouldn’t last long.
Apart from aesthetic-related issues due to not cleaning your boat, there are some serious issues. Since boat engines intake water (raw water from the lake) to cool it down through water inlets at the engine’s bottom, it can suck any dirt, weeds, mud, etc., and if those things are stuck inside the engine, they create problems.
Slime, algae, barnacles, etc., can form on the boat if it is left in the waters for long periods without bottom paint. Boats kept in water need to be inspected often and should be cleaned accordingly. Like this, there are so many factors that matter while deciding how often to clean your boat. We will now see them in a detailed way.
Some of the factors to consider
Many factors come into action here, like how often you go boating, where it’s kept (in the water or on a trailer or covered slip or open slip), where it’s used (salt water or fresh water or brackish water), water temperatures, and when it was last waxed.
- How often do you use your boat? If you go boating daily (3-5 times a week), then it’s OK to clean (wash) it once every week or 5 days. But if you are boating in saltwater daily, all the salt particles could stick on the boat and inside the boat engine’s interior walls, corroding the engine.
- Then it is highly recommended to clean your boat after every ride, and flushing the outboard is also crucial. Flushing the outboard after every ride will prevent most of the issues and removes all the particles that are stuck inside the engine.
- However, it is good to clean your boat after every ride, but doing it once every week is manageable, except if you are using your boat in saltwater, where it is highly recommended to clean it after every ride.
- Where will you store the boat? If it is kept outdoors in the water or on the trailer or in the outdoors storage facility, etc., and if it is covered with a boat cover, it need not be cleaned every week or 2. But if it is uncovered, dust, bird poops, rains, etc., could ruin your good-looking boat.
- Then it needs to be inspected and cleaned every week or two accordingly. If you cleaned (washed) the boat and stored it in an indoor or enclosed storage (garage, etc.), it doesn’t need to be cleaned at all since, unlike outdoors, you don’t need to worry about dust, bird poops, rains, etc.
- Even if it is kept in an uncovered slip at the marina, it needs to be inspected often, and accordingly, you need to clean your boat. A biweekly or triweekly inspection is crucial if it is kept in the waters, and based on the effects, you can decide whether to clean it or not.
- Where will you use the boat? If you often go boating in saltwater, it’s highly recommended to clean your boat and flush your engine after every ride. The salt particles can cause corrosion and damages your boat. The same principle might not be needed if you go boating in freshwater.
- If that’s the case, cleaning the boat after every ride is crucial. But if you are boating in freshwater, you can clean the boat after two or three rides. That doesn’t mean that if you go boating once every week in freshwater, clean your boat after two or three weeks.
Spending 15-30 minutes after every ride on cleaning the boat is good practice. But depending on the boat condition, if it is good, you can clean every week or two. But if you go boating daily, you better be cleaning it every week. And in salt waters, after every ride.
Some cleaning tips for a boat
- Use a microfiber cloth for cleaning the boat. It is a soft cloth, and you can clean things well with this cloth, and it will not leave any lint or dust on the surface of the boat.
- Use any cleaning liquid. Don’t clean the boat only with water; use any cleaning liquid. If you have any tough stains on the boat, it will remove the stains easily.
- Use a soft brush for general cleaning and a stiff bristle brush for tough stains. Don’t rub too hard with a stiff bristle brush; it can peel off the paint.
- A 50/50 mix of vinegar is a good mixture to remove any water spots on the boat. Use it to remove water spots on the windshield and anywhere else in the boat.
- Some dirt might settle inside the boxes or near the hinges. So, open all the boxes and clean near the hinges properly.
- Use the pressure washer (if you have one) and put some cleaner in the soap/cleaner injector and spray it on the boat. Then wait for some time and then clean with normal water.
Check this small video on cleaning the boat to know all the necessary checks before and while cleaning (washing) a boat.
Flush the boat engine
- Connect the earmuffs to the hose and place them over the water intake at the bottom of the outboard and start pumping the water. The water will go inside the motor, and it will clean the inner walls with fresh water. After starting the process, leave it for 10 min.
- So, it will clean the inner walls properly. While pumping the water, don’t forget to start the outboard motor. And ensure that you don’t start a boat engine without the water connected; otherwise, it will melt the impeller since water acts as a lube.
- It is essential to flush the outboard motor, with freshwater, after every use. If you are using the boat in saltwater, then flush the outboard motor after every use. If you are using your boat in the freshwater, then flush the outboard motor after one or two rides.
Recommended cleaning products
Fiberglass hull cleaner – Starbrite Hull cleaner (linked to Amazon) will easily remove all the dirt, yellowing, rust, and waterline stains on a fiberglass boat.
Aluminum hull cleaner – Starbrite aluminum hull cleaner (linked to Amazon) will easily remove all the stains and rust on an aluminum boat.
Mix the cleaner with the water accordingly, spray on the boat, let it sit idle for some time (10-15 minutes), and wipe it out if there are tough stains. Otherwise, just pressure washing it is enough. It also removes all the barnacle stains on the hull easily.
Stain removers – Boat scuff eraser (linked to Amazon) will remove all the tough stains on the boat’s vinyl seat covers and on the boat as well.
Check this small video on how to clean your boat well by using all the products in less than 20 minutes.
Key takeaways
As a general rule, cleaning your boat once every 2 weeks is recommended. However, if you are using your boat quite often or daily, it needs to be cleaned (washed) every week or less accordingly. But if it unused and kept in closed storage, it need not be cleaned (washed).
Many factors come into action here, like how often you go boating, where it’s kept (in the water or on a trailer or covered slip or open slip), where it’s used (salt water or fresh water or brackish water), water temperatures, and when it was last waxed.
If you are boating in salt waters daily, it is highly recommended to clean the boat and flush the outboard after every use to prevent corrosion. If you are boating daily in freshwater, you can clean it once every week or once every 4-7 days.
Cleaning (washing) your boat and keeping it clean and looking good all the time isn’t just a matter of satisfaction; it’s also an important part of basic boat maintenance.