Mary,

I'm sorry, I thought I'd previously mentioned where to buy this stuff. 303 Protectant is sold all across the country in hardware stores and Home Depot type retail centers. Online you can buy it from any number of boating sites. For cat sailors, Murrays.com stocks it in several sizes; 8 oz./$7.95, 16 oz./$14.95, plus $7.95 shipping (pretty steep shipping). We buy ours locally, by the gallon. As I've mentioned this stuff is great for protecting neoprene wet suits and booties, life jackets of any material, hiking harnesses, boat covers, mast, boom, shroud lines, blocks, stainless steel, cat trax wheels, fiberglass cat boxes, and just about anything else that takes constant abuse from the sun. Suffice it to say, this is really good stuff and pretty cheap.

Vertglas does not have anywhere near as large a distribution network. I don't know where it can be purchased retail. I buy it through a chemical distributor who only sells to manufacturers willing to maintain large volume accounts. For individuals, I think buying it online at Marine Store dot com is probably the best bet. They carry a couple of sizes; 16 oz./$26.95 and 32 oz./49.95 plus $5.95 shipping. We only use Vertglas in limited applications. I prefer 303 on my F17 for several reasons and would just summarize by saying I like its' higher performance qualities.

Vertglas is less known than 303, which doesn't mean it's useless. Hundreds of manufacturers, worldwide recommend 303 to their customers. The manufacturer of Vertglas doesn't know much about how their product holds up under various conditions, let alone which surfaces will absorb them. They make understandably cautious claims. We do a lot of testing before we make a claim and as I've said I don't know how long either product will cling to the polyethlene surface your own boat is made from. I'd like to suggest you purchase 8 oz. of 303 and apply it to one hull and 16 oz. of Vertglas and apply it to the other. I realize I'd be spending your money but I'm really interested in the outcome. Also your boat is exposed to higher UV in Florida than more northerly parts of the country so it would make for a great comparison.

I've got a call into the engineer who developed 303 to see if I can find out the answer to your specific question. My hunch is it will work just fine.

I should probably make a clarifying statement so sailors will know where I stand regarding the relative merits of Vertglas vs 303. "303 protectant is head and shoulders above ANY product we've used since 1980." That doesn't mean Vertglas is worthless, it means 303 is better and a lot cheaper. But unless both of these products are applied correctly, neither will perform very well nor will they last very long. When I observe the condition of cats in various fleets, it becomes obvious that cat sailors in general, aren't very interested in maintaining their boats.

Correctly applied, Mary, your boat will sail faster and last for the rest of your life with no appreciable damage to it. If your interested in pursuing coating your boat with 303, I'd be happy to tell you how best to apply it.

Good luck
Daniel