What’s the best way of cleaning my boat and oares to prevent invasive species like NZ mud snail and zebra mussel being carried over on them when I go to a different body of water?
Welcome. I would say a good wash with diluted bleach should do the trick.
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I heard virkon aquatic was good on a fishing forum, anyone tried this?
Here in the Great Lakes region there are a couple of places which will steam clean boats, but for kayaks I think soap, water and a good rinse works well. Hand dry or allow to air dry overnight.
If your boat has a skeg, be sure to aim a jet of water into the skeg box to clean out any gunk. If a rudder, check carefully to make sure there are no stowaways hiding in the mechanism.
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For a kayak that you take out of the water after every paddle, the best bang for your buck is to make sure it gets dry before putting in the next body of water. https://www.michigan.gov/invasives/0,5664,7-324-68071_91899—,00.html Cleaning with detergent or diluted bleach would be a step up from that.
If OTOH your boat sits in water, then we are talking things like snails, mussels and their eggs along with all the algae scum attached to your hull: scrape, clean and dry.
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Keep everything dry. Oars are used on rowboats, rafts and drift boats.
You are probably referring to a paddle.
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Thanks for the advice