Dark red gelcoat is the hardest color to keep alive in Inland Northwest sun. This boat came in with heavy oxidation, that powdery, dull haze that means the surface layer of gelcoat has UV-burned out. Color depth was gone, gloss was gone, and the owner said it looked "tired" from across the yard. Multi-stage compound, polish, and a hand-applied marine wax brought it back.
First pass with a hand on the hull confirmed it. Chalky residue lifted onto a clean towel, the surface felt rough at the rubrail, and color depth was missing across the entire side. This wasn't a job for compound and polish alone, the oxidation had gone deep enough that the compound would have been chasing the haze without ever fully clearing it.
The decision: wet-sand first to take the dead gelcoat layer down to fresh material, then cutting compound to clear the sand marks, then a refining polish, then a hand-applied wax. Three full stages plus the sand step. That's the call you make on red and dark hulls that have been parked outside for more than a season.
, Heavy chalky oxidation across the entire hull
, Color depth lost, red read as flat pink in sun
, Gloss gone on every panel
, Waterline staining on the starboard side
, Owner couldn't remember the last wax
Started with 1500-grit and stepped down to 2000-grit. Cleared the dead UV-burned layer and exposed fresh red gelcoat underneath. Slow, careful, one panel at a time.
Wool pad with a heavy cut compound to clear the sand marks. Multiple passes per section. The point where chalk turns back into actual color.
Foam pad and a finer abrasive to clear the compound haze. This is the step that makes the red look red again, depth comes back, gloss starts to set.
Marine-grade carnauba-polymer blend, hand-applied across the entire hull. Worked in sections so nothing flashed off. A clean buff to lift the residue.
Most of two days on site. We don't rush the polish step on dark hulls, that's where holograms and swirl marks come from.
Deep, even red. Gloss across every panel. The waterline staining gone. A hull that looks like it did the first season the owner bought it.
Boats this far gone usually take a 3-step job, not a 2-step. The difference matters for the quote and the time on site. A clear photo of the hull in sun is enough for us to call which level it is. Mobile across Spokane, Coeur d'Alene, and the Inland Northwest.