In summer and autumn, the boat deck is often wet in the morning. The reason for this is morning dew. This forms when the air cools down, especially early in the morning, and the moisture in the air condenses. Exactly when dew forms depends on the dew point. The dew point is the temperature at which the air is saturated and water vapour turns into water. In simple terms: the warmer the air, the more moisture it can absorb. When it cools down, it releases it again.
Caution with morning dew
A wet deck harbours a considerable risk of slipping. Walking barefoot over surfaces wet with morning dew, often practised at anchor before a morning dip in the sea, can quickly turn into a slippery mess. Walking up and down the bow or stern to the jetty can also be dangerous if wet surfaces are walked on without an anti-slip surface. Slip-resistant shoes should therefore be worn and special care should be taken.
If you leave the boat briefly in the harbour, for example to go to the toilet or the bakery, you often leave unsightly footprints on deck when you return in your shore shoes. The moisture loosens dirt particles from the soles, which does not happen so easily on a dry deck.
The morning dew should therefore be removed for safety reasons alone.
Morning dew for the deck wash
Morning dew is an ideal basis for a deck wash. As the deck is already wet, no additional water from the hose is required. In addition, morning dew is limescale-free and leaves no unsightly marks on windows. Morning dew contains no salt and the water is normally very clean, depending on the amount of dust in the atmosphere.
Another side effect is the removal of salt. If salt water was taken on deck the day before in rough seas, it does not necessarily have to be rinsed off with fresh water from the hose in the evening. Apart from the fact that this is usually not possible at anchor, the fresh water supply in the tank should not run out prematurely. The morning dew dissolves the salt and it can be removed with the dew.
Remove morning dew
A microfibre cloth is sufficient to remove the morning dew. Simply wipe up the moisture and wring out the saturated cloth regularly. The structure of the microfibre cloth has a cleaning effect, even without additional cleaning agents, so that the deck shines again afterwards.
To avoid having to constantly wring out the cloth, you can also use a squeegee like the one used in the shower at home. The squeegee lip should be made of silicone and be very long so that it can adapt to curves. The microfibre cloth then only needs to be used to remove any remaining moisture.
Seal with detailer
From time to time, the deck can also be resealed during the season using morning dew. Special detailers are available for this purpose. They are suitable for paints, gelcoats and fibreglass-reinforced plastics - water then rolls off treated surfaces and new dirt has a harder time breaking through. The detailer is simply sprayed onto surfaces that are damp from morning dew and then wiped away with water and a microfibre cloth. However, detailers are not to be confused with or equated with wax. However, the durability of a wax can be extended by using a detailer. Detailers contain a higher proportion of cleaning surfactants than waxes and are intended for quick cleaning between uses.
Handling tarpaulins
If wetness is to be avoided from the outset, which can be particularly desirable in the cockpit, the only solution is to cover the cockpit with a sprayhood and cake stand. These are then also wet in the morning, but the cockpit underneath is dry. Depending on the ventilation, however, the windows may mist up on the inside. Use a squeegee to peel off the outside and, if necessary, the inside of the windows and remove any standing moisture from the outside of the tarpaulins using a cloth and/or squeegee. The tarpaulin then dries more quickly in the wind or sun and can be stowed away dry, which reduces the formation of mould. It is also advisable to impregnate the tarpaulins regularly, as this only allows moisture to stand on the fabric and not be absorbed, which speeds up the drying process.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
