I purchased a 9 foot inflatable the other day. The registration numbers are coming off and I need to redo them. What is the best thing to use to clean the boat so that the new numbers will stick?
Cleaning would be based on what material the inflatable is made of. The most common cleaning solvents are:
PVC - MEK
Hypalon - Toluene
Note: Both are very effective at surface preparation for applying adhesives but must be used with caution, especially proper ventilation.
Thanks Ken,
Methyl Ethyl Ketone I'll have to check it out
There is an interesting article in "DIY BOAT OWNER," Issue 3, 2010. This article, "Tender Care," written by live aboard Capt. Frank Mummery, covers prep work, cleaning, and painting a tender.
I've not used it myself, but a fellow here in the marina last fall swore by this stuff:
(http://shop.inflatableboatparts.com/images/P/cleaning%20kit%20with%20box%20photo%201lowres.JPG)
Bixler's Elixer Three Part Inflatable Boat Cleaner (http://shop.inflatableboatparts.com/product.php?productid=302)
I've also read of people using diluted Tidy bowl toilet cleaner (but I cannot say yea or nay on this being either effective or safe for the material).
on my inflatable I am using plexiglas plate to stick the numbers to and fasten to a line on the vessel my reasoning for this is numbers are going to fail premature with deflating and inflating.