Detailing and Polising Boats in the water.... Is anyone doing it?!?

[EWtheDETAILER]

I'm looking for some insight.... is anyone detailing and polishing boats in the water? Yes, in the water! I take care of a lot of boats in my area, but never in the water. I have been requested by one of my top clients to come detail his biggest boat at his lake house. The one thing keeping me from booking this boat, is the fact it's too big to come out of the water without crane assistance. Crane assistance on this lake runs about $500 to get it out and $500 to get it back in. Let me know if anyone has any information or pictures of setups for in water detailing!

[jdbillin]

Never done one in the water, always thought it would be cool to do though.

Does he want the boat buffed or just waxed?

I'm curious to see what other guys have to say about this.

[EWtheDETAILER]

He wants it buffed down to the water line and heavily scrubbed on the waterline edge


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[Salmonbum]

We use a inflatable dingjy

[Mike Phillips]

I Eric,

The few guys I've talked to that have detailed boats in the water don't have anything good to say about the experience.


First - You're likely going to be in a small, rocky dinghy. Not stable at all.

Second - Anytime you push against the boat you're detailing, by hand or with some type of buffer, you will in essence PUSH yourself (in the small boat) away from the boat you're trying to detail.

Third - Unless you're working by hand or with air buffers, the idea of working with an electric tool while you're "in" the water is in my opinion, incredibly risky to you, anyone around you and of coruse the tool.




The above is just off the top of my head. Beside that, buffing out boats on dry land is hard work. It doesn't get easier trying to do it in the water. I commend you for entertaining the idea and commend you even more for starting this thread and seeking out more information.

My friend Jeff Bell aka GSKR took on a client that wanted their boat detailed "in the water" and had a HORRIBLE experience.


Beside all of the above, most boat owners don't understand the work required to do the job right and don't appreciate ($ pay $ ) a fair price to a qualified detailer.


Unless they are willing to pay big bucks, I'd click the link below, read the article an put the advice in it into practice.


The learned skill of turning detailing work down by Mike Phillips (http://tinyurl.com/zpu7pw6)



:)

[Setec Astronomy]

working with an electric tool while you're "in" the water is in my opinion, incredibly risky to you, anyone around you and of course the tool.

I'm pretty sure I remember a member of some forum (here, Autopia, MOL) talking about buffing a boat in the water and dropping the polisher...went to the bottom with no way to get it back.

[Mike Phillips]

I'm pretty sure I remember a member of some forum (here, Autopia, MOL) talking about buffing a boat in the water and dropping the polisher...went to the bottom with no way to get it back.




I've sent Jeff a message to chime in on this thread. Jeff dropped his FLEX PE14 in the water, I think it ruined it but don't remember. Jeff will share his story...


The guy he worked for is a friend of mine. I've worked for him too. I was surprised and shocked out the negative experience Jeff had with this person and quite frankly it left me with a negative impression.


:dunno:

[Whitewater25]

If he's really wants the boat taken care of,he should be willing to set up the crane & pay for it. That's the price of owning a larger boat and maintaining it properly. Boat owners down here haul their boats for bottom jobs annually or thereabouts. That is when the hull gets polished. But if he won't agree to haul the boat,They make inflatable work floats that are pretty stable. I wrap the polisher plug to extension cord with several layers of electrical tape in case it falls in the water. If the polisher falls in,it is most likely toast,or at least it is in salt water. They make suction cleats you can use on the hull and tie the work float tight against it so you won't push away as you work. And pray some dumb ass doesn't come by and wake you & dump your stuff off the float into the water. Hope this helps. Good luck!

[EWtheDETAILER]

I appreciate the feed back guys! I'm thinking this is business I'm best to turn down, or at least pass on for this year. I don't like the idea of my Flex polishers in the water, and feel like there's not nearly as much profit left by the time I purchase items needed to polish in the water.

However if anyone is doing some boat detailing/polishing in the water, I'd love to see some pictures or videos of the setups!

[Brandon Wetch]

A guy I follow on Instagram, Big Robs marine detailing, polishes boats in or out of the water. Looks like a huge pain though


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