10 Best Boat Cleaning Products Every Boater Needs

Cleaning your boat once every 2-3 weeks will help ensure it looks good and lasts long. However, different cleaning products are needed depending on the type of boat, what part of the boat you plan on cleaning, and how dirty your boat is.

So, below I’ve listed 10 boat cleaning products that you need to get the job done no matter the scenario.

If you plan on thoroughly cleaning every part of your boat, you’ll need pretty much all of these products. So, to help you out, if you click below, it will put all the products in an Amazon cart for you.

1) Best Boat Soap: Meguiar’s Boat Wash

Meguiar’s boat wash is meant for basic cleaning on fiberglass and painted aluminum boats. It removes dirt, grime, and scum while also preserving your wax.

Due to possible skin irritation, I recommend wearing gloves when using this product. I also recommend using a scrub brush with a long handle to ensure you don’t come in contact with any chemicals. This one (which we talk about later in the article) will work great.

I would not recommend using this product if you plan on cleaning your boat while it’s in the water. It does not state anywhere that it is biodegradable or eco-friendly on the labels like other boat soaps do, so it may harm aquatic life if it gets into the water.

2) Best Biodegradable Boat Soap: Star Brite Sea Safe

Star Brite Sea Safe is for basic cleaning on fiberglass and painted aluminum boats that need to be cleaned in the water. It removes dirt, grime, and scum while also preserving your wax.

The great thing about this boat soap is it’s biodegradable, meaning you can safely use it to clean your boat in the water without harming any marine life. Along with that, a little bit of this soap will go a long way. It only takes 3 cap fulls to clean a 25-foot boat.

The downside to using this product is its high price tag and subpar cleaning formula. This will still clean all dirt, grime, and scum on your boat, it may just take some more scrubbing than with other boat soaps.

3) Best Hull Cleaner: Star Brite Hull

Compared to regular boat soap, this soap has a much more toxic formula making it combat stains more aggressively. Rubber gloves are strongly recommended, but it won’t hurt you to get a little bit on your skin.

The best part of this hull cleaner is it requires little scrubbing. The formula will loosen and clean stains like magic. If you’re preparing your hull for polishing and waxing, this will work great to make sure it’s spotless.

4) Best Scrub Brush: Eversprout 5-12 Foot Brush

This brush is for scrubbing any part of your boat with soap and water. It works great when combined with boat soap and deck cleaner.

The part I like most about this pole is that it’s so long that you don’t need a ladder to get to high spots on your boat. However, it does get a little wobbly. Another thing I like is that the bristles are soft enough not to scratch your boat but stiff enough to clean most dirt and grime easily.

However, I recommend getting a stiffer brush head such as this one for cleaning non-slip decks, as sometimes the Eversprout brush will have difficulty getting all the dirt out. You can connect it to the same pole as the Eversprout brush.

5) Best Vinyl Cleaner: Star Brite Vinyl

Boat soap will clean much of what this product cleans, except that this is much better for cleaning mold and mildew. Along with that, Star Brite Vinyl moisturizes and protects your vinyl from harmful UV rays, which extends the life of your vinyl.

However, unlike hull cleaner, this product isn’t quite as aggressive when cleaning stains. As a result, it may require multiple applications and a lot of elbow grease to properly clean. Combining it with an Eversprout brush instead of a regular cloth will help get stains out easier.

6) Best Deck Cleaner: Star Brite Deck

Star Brite Deck is meant for cleaning fiberglass decks, however, it will work with aluminum and wood as well. It works best when used with a deck brush to scrub all the dirt and grime off.

If you have a wood (teak) deck, I recommend getting this product if you want to renew the look.

The best part of this soap is that it not only cleans more aggressively than regular boat soap, but it also leaves a non-slip finish on your deck.

7) Best Aluminum Cleaner: Star Brite Aluminum

This product can literally add value to your pontoon, Jon boat, or any boat that has exposed bare aluminum. It gets rid of any stains or oxidation like magic.

You can use a brush for this product, but it will be more effective to use a scrub pad such as this one.

If your aluminum is stained severely, it may take a couple of applications and some elbow grease to get the aluminum looking good.

8) Best Carpet Cleaner: Carpet Miracle

This will make your interior or exterior carpet or upholstery look brand new. It gets rid of all stains imaginable.

You can use the brush I mentioned above with this product, however, it may be much easier to get a smaller and stiffer brush such as this one. This will help you clean tough to reach areas and allow you to scrub deeper into the carpet.

9) Best Desalter: Salt-Away

Desalting your motor after every use will help ensure it lasts a long time. Salt is very corrosive to your engine and any other metal or wood part of your boat.

After every use of your baot, it’s generally recommended to desalt your engine and boat to ensure it lasts as long as possible.

10) Best Water Spot Cleaner: Lucy’s White Vinegar

If you mix this product 1:1 with water, it will clean water spots on your outboard engine, glass, and hull paint. If you are unsure what I mean or what water spots are, check out the video below. It teaches you exactly how to use the vinegar solution.

Conclusion

Cleaning your boat often helps ensure it lasts long and withholds its value over time. All of these products mentioned will help you clean your boat correctly no matter the circumstances.