| It has been our experience that nothing so | | | | radiation from the sun which will oxidize |
| much insures the beauty and longevity of a | | | | and dull your boats finish. |
| fiberglass boat than the continual | | | | |
| maintenance of a good coat of high quality | | | | Interesting Carnauba Facts |
| wax. In this article we will explore the | | | | |
| preparation, methods, and best practices for | | | | - Pure Carnauba in its natural state is |
| the long term maintenance of your boats gel | | | | harder than concrete. |
| coat through the use of wax. | | | | |
| | | | - Typical retail waxes contain 3% to 5% |
| The Problem | | | | Carnauba by volume. |
| | | | |
| Gel-coat, the exterior finish on fiberglass | | | | - Less then 5% of retail Carnauba waxes |
| boats, is a porous mix of polyester resins | | | | contain Brazilian No.1 Carnauba, the finest |
| and pigments that must be sealed from the | | | | of all waxes. |
| damaging effects of salt, dirt, weather, and | | | | |
| ultra-violet (UV) radiation. | | | | - The greater the concentration of Carnauba, |
| | | | the greater the level of protection and the |
| The primary purpose of gel-coat is to protect | | | | higher the quality of shine. |
| the underlying core from water, air and | | | | |
| sunlight, which in combination will quickly | | | | How Does It Work? |
| loosen the chemical bond and render the | | | | |
| structure useless. Neglect this gel-coat, | | | | - 3 things are needed in order for the |
| and it becomes more porous, resins oxidize | | | | chemical reaction which causes oxidation to |
| and what remains is a faded, dull finish | | | | occur. |
| prone to absorbing water into the laminate | | | | |
| and destroying it. | | | | 1. - Oxygen |
| | | | |
| In addition to the above functional | | | | 2. - Heat |
| definition we also need to say a few words | | | | |
| about the beauty factor, the shine of a newly | | | | 3. - UV Radiation |
| polished and waxed boat. In a great example | | | | |
| of form following function, gel-coat kept | | | | Eliminate one or more of these and you slow |
| clean and shiny, with a good coat of wax, | | | | the process. |
| will perform it's primary function pretty | | | | |
| much in direct proportion to the way it | | | | - A protective layer of Carnauba wax keeps |
| looks. | | | | airborne contaminants from reaching the |
| | | | gel-coat and starting a chemical reaction. |
| The Players | | | | |
| | | | - This wax layer diffuses (refracts) both UV |
| Now that we've named the problem, what are | | | | and infrared radiation from the sun. Without |
| the choices for solving it? The simplest | | | | it the radiation is absorbed by the pigment |
| solution would, of course be to keep the boat | | | | in the gel coat causing it to over heat, and |
| away from sun, water, and oxygen. I said | | | | trigger the chemical reaction that will dry |
| simple, not practical. | | | | out, dull and oxidize the surface. |
| | | | |
| All of the "New", "Easy On-Easy Off", "Modern | | | | - A waxed boat will have a lower surface |
| Chemical Miracle", products may look great | | | | temperature than an unwaxed one. The darker |
| on TV (we've tried them all too ;-) but in | | | | the color, the greater the difference |
| the real world of salt water, sun, fishing, | | | | |
| spills, and air pollution, they simply don't | | | | Using a high quality paste wax applied over a |
| hold up compared to the simple, natural, God | | | | clean polished surface will give you 3 to 4 |
| made it, "Tree of Life", Brazilian No.1 | | | | months of protection here on the Emerald |
| Carnauba wax. | | | | Coast. This doesn't mean the wax is gone in |
| | | | this time but the appearance and protection |
| Unlike the modern marvels of chemical | | | | will begin to fade rapidly. (based on our own |
| engineering, Carnauba comes from a tree, the | | | | experience, independent testing, and the |
| Copernica Cerifera palm tree, to be specific. | | | | reports of most of our clients) |
| The color and quality of the wax are | | | | |
| governed by the age of the leaves and care | | | | For more information on the properties of |
| used in processing of this hard, brittle, | | | | different waxes, please see Wax Comparison |
| lustrous wax. It runs from a golden yellow | | | | Table |
| in color to nearly white and has an | | | | |
| unmistakable but pleasant "tree" smell to it. | | | | Tying It All Together |
| | | | |
| Due to the fact that carnauba is a natural | | | | By keeping the wax protective layer up, (3-4 |
| plant by-product, it will not react with gel | | | | waxings per year) your boat will always look |
| coat or painted surfaces. The Carnauba Wax | | | | good and you shouldn't need any hard yearly |
| acts as a protective barrier providing a | | | | compounding to keep it that way. This will |
| very hard film over your boats surface that | | | | save you money right now and add years to the |
| protect against sun and weather damage, | | | | time before the boat will need to be painted. |
| airborne contaminates, such as acid rain, | | | | |
| spills, fish remains, salt and bird | | | | On the boats that we've maintained for |
| droppings, etc. | | | | several years we usually give it a thorough |
| | | | going over with a very fine compound in the |
| Carnauba even swells and closes its pores | | | | spring just to give it that "bright" look. |
| tighter when exposed to water. In addition, | | | | This removes only a very thin layer of |
| Carnauba dramatically reduces gel coat | | | | oxidized pigment to give the wax a solid base |
| oxidation by diffusing the UV and infrared | | | | to adhere to. |