Cleaning up my C14 -- how to on fiberglass repair?

G

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Guest
My C14 is finally out of the water on a Boater's World $400 trailer. I added a bow roller (the one on the trailer was not far enough forward), and the bunks are not long enough, but I can fix those items. And the trailer lights were not truly submersible -- as soon as we backed the trailer down the ramp the bulbs blew out in the tail lights. I'm thinking that next time, we unplug the trailler lights before we back it down? At any rate, it's a galvanized tilt trailer and the boat's in the garage after 3 years in the water or on the beach.

Now the fun begins. How do you remove black scuff marks from the white fiberglass? The growth on the bottom is tough to get off as well. I'm thinking pressure washer?

At one point while it was moored the boat got bounced under the dock and the fiberglass is chipped down to the wood on the deck just forward of the jib truck. It's about the size of my pinkie finger nail. I've never had a fiberglass boat before so how does one fix that sort of thing?

Lastly, with the mast down I can remove the jib furler. I'd love to wash the sails since the jib has been exposed to the elements for all this time (at least teh outside wrap around the furler. Is there any way to remove it and wash it? How? I don't think a washing machine is the answer (that's a joke!). TIA!

Bill
 
Bill,

I've used a product called MarineTex before for chips in fiberglass and had some pretty good results. If you are patient and careful enough, supposedly you can get a seamless, hard to detect repair (althouth I was never that good).
 
Cleaning and hull patching

I've also used Marine Tex and it's an excellent product. Buy it in white and it will match your hull. Just smear it on, it's easy to sand smooth after it sets up. Buy it from Sailnet.com if there's no marine hardware store nearby.

The best way to get marks off the hull is to use Soft Scrub and a kitchen sponge with the green scrubbie on one side. Both are available in any supermarket.

The best way to clean your sails is to lay them out on a lawn, sprinkle some Ivory Snow on them, and wet them down with a garden hose. Go over them with sponge, rinse, and repeat on the other side. Let them dry in the sun.

While you're at it, soak your jib and mail sheets in a bucket of fresh water to get any salt out if them. Add some soap to the water if you want to make them cleaner, but be sure to soak again in fresh water to get out all the soap.
 

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