Making old slide slicker

[mwemaxxowner]

Hey guys and gals,

Do any of you have an old slide? This one is probably 30 years old. The gel coat is oxidized and completely worn through in places. We use a little squirt of dish soap here and there of we really want to get some speed on it . These days, though, I wonder about what that might do to pool chemistry.

I do have some experience working with fiberglass. I had a 19' open bow boat that was plum rotten. I stripped it down to bare hull and glassed in new stringers and deck, and gel coated the deck. However, the goal there was not to make it slick. The last layer of mat was left textured and so was the gel coat on the deck.

Anyway, I could gel coat this thing again if I was really determined to, but I'm not sure it's worth the effort. I was planning to replace it...until I priced them!

So, I could and maybe I will polish it with a DA polisher to help remove some of the oxidation and perhaps slick the surface up a bit, but I'm wondering if a simple wax job might help slicken it up a bit. I was thinking maybe even hit it with some surfboard wax?

Have any of you been in this situation before? We have a lot of fun on this thing, and I'd like to be able to just climb up and get a nice quick ride down with no anti friction additives to fiddle with .

 

[Newdude]

Either marine wax or surfboard wax would probably do the trick. If you had to reapply it every weekend it would only take a few minutes and last all day.

 

[Richard320]

I'd try some high grade auto wax.

 

[sktn77a]

Re-gelcoat it good and thick and then treat it like car bodywork paint. Sand it down smooth and then buff it gradually down to a glass-like shine. Be careful with surfboard wax - there are two kinds, one is slick like the classic old ski wax and the other is sticky to keep your feet in place while standing up on the board ("sex-wax")!

 

[mwemaxxowner]

I would love to gelcoat it again and wet sand it down and get it nice and perfect, but holy cow you're talking about a lot of work there and a bit of money also.

I imagine I'll eventually do it, but we just moved in in March and I've had a ton of projects on my list. I've put in fencing, changed flooring, laid sod, put in irrigation, helped pour the concrete drive (my dad does concrete so I got the family discount, but I also had to do part of the labor. Lol). I'm working on building a kitchen table and benches for it and I'm just about tuckered out on projects for now.

Cleaning it up and putting some wax on it sounds REAL good right about now for this season.

 

[Household6]

I would love to gelcoat it again and wet sand it down and get it nice and perfect, but holy cow you're talking about a lot of work there and a bit of money also.

I imagine I'll eventually do it, but we just moved in in March and I've had a ton of projects on my list. I've put in fencing, changed flooring, laid sod, put in irrigation, helped pour the concrete drive (my dad does concrete so I got the family discount, but I also had to do part of the labor. Lol). I'm working on building a kitchen table and benches for it and I'm just about tuckered out on projects for now.

Cleaning it up and putting some wax on it sounds REAL good right about now for this season.

What did you decide to do and how did it work out?

 

[mwemaxxowner]

Nothing yet.