Experimenting With Ceramic Coatings

[Newtown Mark]

I've been seeing a lot of info about the value of ceramic coatings on cars, boats, planes, etc. My 4 Runner came with a factory applied ceramic coating (so they claim) and the paint does seem to shed water better than a wax. I talked to a body shop owner and he swears by them. Typically I use 303 Protectant on all my flat-water composite boats, but yesterday, I treated the 2 solo boats with a water activated ceramic coating. The process was very easy - wash the boat, leave it wet, wipe on the coating, rinse the boat, then wipe dry with a towel. The finish looked good, very smooth, no hazing, no lines or swirls. In addition to UV protection, ceramic coatings claim to be hydrophobic. Will the boat paddle faster? Not likely I will be able to tell. But who knows. Maybe now I'll be able to get it up on plane and give those bass boats a run for their money.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

The finish looked good, very smooth, no hazing, no lines or swirls.

I know nothing about ceramic coatings for canoes, cars or anything else, but experimentation is always informative. Whatever appearance benefits it might have for a canoe hull, I'd be interested in knowing how long the treatment lasts.

 

[Gamma1214]

Interesting... Sure seems alot easier to apply than spar varnish... I wonder if it would provide enough UV protection to use it in place of the spar varnish on a stripper? Is there any added benefit from the application of multiple coats?

 

[Ripple]

Very interesting. I've used a rub on version on cars and it works, IMHO better than wax. Now iam just using a product that clames to be a gel coat sealer. The canoe is no faster, but it doesn't leave a sheen behind it when I get to the water. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Jim Dodd]

I built a few strippers with Graphite, added to the last coat of epoxy, on the bottom .
I sanded, or at least tried to sand.
I do believe they were faster, because of it. I had no way to prove it, just me paddling.
Get it up on plane, and let us know !

 

[Newtown Mark]

The directions don't recommend multiple coats.

Interesting... Sure seems alot easier to apply than spar varnish... I wonder if it would provide enough UV protection to use it in place of the spar varnish on a stripper? Is there any added benefit from the application of multiple coats?

The directions don't say anything about multiple coats. I've only used spar varnish on wooden snowshoes, so limited experience. But the spar varnish appears to be thicker and give some protection to the wood.

 

[Idiot Savant]

Funny you should bring this up.
Last year I happened upon an article about graphene wax and what a miracle it was.
I suggested it to another canoer and he pointed out that Northstar says that waxing your boat makes it slower.
I looked into it the best I could but came to no definitive answer.
Olympic sprint canoeists and kayakers apparently don't wax their boats, they just sand them super smooth.
If waxing slows your boat down, it isn't by much and may be outweighed by the protection it gives.
I recently bought some Mequiar's hybrid Ceramic Wax, marked down to $4.00 at Walmart. I may give that a try this spring.

 

[Alan Gage]

The only people who will see any speed benefit/penalty due to coatings or finishes are elite level racers. The rest of us can use whatever makes us feel good.

Alan

 

[ppine]

Ceramics are good. Even better if they have UV inhibitors. I use them on motor vehicles and power boats. I just found a ceramic coating product for tires. 303 Protectant is better for some applications.

 

[Newtown Mark]

I used 303 for years, really like it.

 

[Newtown Mark]

Went for a paddle yesterday. No noticeable difference on the water. But the hull cleaned up really easily when I got home.

 

[Idiot Savant]

Graphene is better than ceramic, but tends to be more expensive.
I've been using Black Magic intense graphene quick detailer.
It's one of the cheaper graphene products out there and is very easy to use. Don't know how much better more expensive products are.
Only problem is, it's so slippery I've had my boat slide into the water when I wasn't ready.