Marine
Services
Boat wraps, cowling wraps, hull graphics, lettering, deck film, tint and protection — from the shop that already does this on cars all day.
We are an automotive film and wrap shop taking on marine work. Same materials, same install skill, a different substrate. Tell us the boat and we will come look at it.
Wraps & Graphics
Eight ways to change how the boat looks, from a full colour change down to a stripe.
Most owners come in expecting to need a full wrap and leave with something smaller that does the job. We will tell you which one your boat actually needs.
Boat & hull wraps
Full colour change or partial graphics on the hull and topsides, in cast vinyl.
What it covers+
The same cast films we use for vehicle wraps, specified in marine-appropriate grades. A wrap is also reversible — it comes off when you sell the boat, and the gelcoat underneath has been protected the whole time. Full boat wrap detail →
Outboard cowling wraps
The engine covers are the most looked-at branded surface on the whole boat.
What it covers+
Cowlings chalk and fade faster than the hull because they sit flat to the sun and take spray constantly. Wrapping them transforms how the boat reads from the dock for a fraction of a hull wrap, and it is the single most requested marine job at most shops that offer it. Colour-match them to the hull or run a contrast.
Lettering & registration numbers
Boat names, hailing ports and TX registration numbers, cut and applied.
What it covers+
Registration numbers are not decorative — Texas sets rules on height, style, contrast and placement, and a wrong job means a correction notice. We cut them to spec and place them properly. Lettering and numbers →
Cove stripes & accent graphics
A stripe package instead of a full wrap, when the hull is still good.
What it covers+
Cove stripes, sheer stripes, boot stripes and accent flashes. Dramatically cheaper than wrapping a whole hull and often all a tidy boat actually needs to look current again. The usual starting point for owners who are not ready to commit to a full colour change.
Console, dash & hardtop accents
Film on the helm surfaces you look at every minute you are aboard.
What it covers+
Carbon, brushed metal and timber-effect films on consoles, dash panels, hardtop uprights and leaning posts. Small areas, big change to how the cockpit feels, and far less money than replacing or refinishing the parts.
Jet ski & PWC wraps
Full wraps and graphics kits on personal watercraft.
What it covers+
Small, curvy and heavily contoured, which is exactly the kind of surface wrap installers are trained on. PWC are also the easiest marine job logistically because they arrive on a trailer. Jet ski wraps →
Boat trailer wraps
The trailer is a flat billboard that spends its life on the highway.
What it covers+
Ties straight into our existing trailer wrap work →. While it is with us we can also refinish corroded trailer wheels — see wheel repair →.
Tournament & sponsor decals
Sponsor packages, tournament graphics and team identity, cut and fitted.
What it covers+
Gulf Coast tournament fishing runs on sponsor decals, and they need to go on straight, in the right hierarchy, and come off again without wrecking the gelcoat. We cut the whole package at once and fit it as a set rather than one sticker at a time.
Protection & Restoration
Six services aimed at the surface itself rather than how it is decorated.
Several of these are worth doing before any graphics go on — film and vinyl both want a sound, clean surface underneath.
Protective film
Clear film on the high-contact zones — rub rail areas, transom, waterline band, step pads.
What it covers+
Same family of material as automotive paint protection film. It takes the dock rash and the waterline staining so the gelcoat does not, and it is replaceable.
Non-skid deck film
Textured anti-slip film on decks, swim platforms, steps and gunwales.
What it covers+
A wet deck is the most dangerous surface on any boat, and factory non-skid wears smooth exactly where people stand most. Film restores grip without recoating the whole deck, it goes down in defined zones, and it can be replaced when it wears rather than being a refinishing job.
Cabin & windshield tint
Solar film on cabin glass, hardtops and windshields.
What it covers+
Cuts the heat and glare in an enclosed helm and slows the fade on upholstery and electronics. Marine glass shapes are irregular, so this is measured per vessel rather than off a pattern.
Old graphics removal
Stripping failed factory graphics and cleaning up decades of adhesive.
What it covers+
Almost every boat past about eight years old is wearing chalked, cracked, half-lifted factory stripes that make the whole vessel look tired. Removal is slow, fiddly work that owners rarely want to do themselves, and it is often all a boat needs — plenty of hulls look current again the moment the old graphics are gone.
Gelcoat correction & polish
Cutting back oxidised gelcoat and sealing it.
What it covers+
Related to paint correction but not the same process — gelcoat is thicker, more porous and behaves differently under a machine. We assess this one in person before quoting it.
Ceramic coating
A sealed, hydrophobic layer over corrected gelcoat or over a wrap.
What it covers+
Makes washdowns faster and slows the return of oxidation. Worth doing right after correction, when the surface is at its best, rather than as a rescue for a hull that has already gone.
Dealers, Marinas & Fleets
If you have more than one boat, or other people's boats, this is a different conversation.
Volume work is quoted per programme rather than per vessel, and for marinas and dealers we come to the boats rather than the other way round.
Boat dealer programmes
Volume work on inventory — graphics, protection and tidy-ups before a boat goes on the water.
How it works+
The same idea as our car dealership programme →, pointed at boats. Trade-ins that need old graphics stripped, new units that want protective film before a customer ever touches them, and lot appearance work on anything that has been sitting. Quoted at volume rather than per job.
Marina & yacht club accounts
A standing arrangement so your slip holders have somebody to call.
How it works+
Marinas get asked for this constantly and rarely have a good answer. A standing account means your members get a known shop and a known rate, and the work happens on site where the boats already are.
Charter & tour fleet branding
One identity applied consistently across several vessels.
How it works+
A charter operation is a working fleet and the boats are the advertising. Same design, same spec, same finish on every hull, and replacement panels held so a scuff does not put a boat out of service looking mismatched.
Boat show prep
Correction, graphics and protection on a deadline before a show.
How it works+
Show season is unforgiving and entirely predictable. Booking prep in advance means the boat arrives looking like the best one in the row instead of whatever could be done in the last week. This one fills up early, so talk to us well before the date.
What the Water Does to a Boat
Everything that makes a car age slowly is missing on the water.
No garage, no shade, constant UV, salt in the air and physical contact every time you dock. It is a harsher environment than anything we deal with on the road, and it drives every material choice.
Relentless UV
A boat gets more direct sun than any car, from every angle, with water reflecting it back up.
Why it works+
There is no garage, no shade and no tree line on open water. Gelcoat chalks, dark hulls fade and graphics that would last years on a car have a harder life on a transom. It is the single biggest factor in every material decision we make for a vessel.
Salt
Salt water and salt air attack every surface and every fastener continuously.
Why it works+
It is not just corrosion. Salt crystallises in the pores of oxidised gelcoat and makes cleaning progressively harder, which is why an untreated hull gets grubbier faster every season.
Oxidation
Gelcoat is porous and it chalks. Once it goes flat, washing does nothing.
Why it works+
That white bloom on an older hull is the surface breaking down, not dirt. It is correctable, but it is a different job from polishing automotive clearcoat and it needs to be assessed in person.
Dock rash
Pilings, fenders, cleats and other boats. The rub rail takes it, and so does everything near it.
Why it works+
Docking contact is constant and unavoidable. Protective film on the high-contact zones is the marine equivalent of PPF on a front bumper — it is there to be sacrificed.
Waterline staining
The band that sits at the water gets a stain no wash removes.
Why it works+
Tannins, fuel film and biological growth all concentrate in a narrow band. Film in that zone gives you something you can replace instead of a hull you have to refinish.
By Vessel Type
Different boats want different things first.
Bay Area boats live outside year-round, so protection and UV tend to matter more here than they would somewhere with a real off-season.
| Vessel | Usually starts with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Center console & bay boats | Cowling wraps or hull graphics | Big flat topsides, heavy sun, cowlings fade first |
| Offshore & sportfish | Protective film and coating | High value, hard use, worth protecting properly |
| Pontoons | Full wrap | Enormous flat side panels and usually tired factory graphics |
| Personal watercraft | Full wrap | Cheap to transform, arrives on a trailer, fastest turnaround |
| Charter & commercial | Lettering and fleet branding | It is a working vehicle — it should be advertising |
| Sailboats | Cove stripes, lettering, film | Name, hailing port and protection at the contact points |
| Older boats of any type | Old graphics removal | Often the single biggest visual improvement available |
| Boat trailers | Wrap and wheel refinishing | Flat, highway-visible, and the cheapest advertising you own |
Straight Talk
The most important thing on this page is the first card.
We would rather lose a job by being honest about what we have and have not done than win it and disappoint you.
We are an automotive shop moving into marine
Say it plainly: we have built our reputation on cars, not boats.
What to know+
The films, the tools and the install skill transfer directly — a compound curve is a compound curve. What we do not have is years of marine-specific history, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. If you want a shop with a decade of hulls behind it, that is a fair thing to want. If you want a very good film shop applying the same standard to your boat, that is what this is.
Gelcoat is not clearcoat
It is thicker, more porous and it behaves differently under a machine polisher.
What to know+
Automotive correction technique does not map one-to-one. Oxidised gelcoat needs a different cut and a different sealing step, and how far it can be brought back depends on how much material is left. This is why we look at a hull in person before quoting correction — a photograph cannot tell us that.
We do not go below the waterline
No antifouling, no bottom paint, no running gear.
What to know+
That is a separate trade with its own products and its own haul-out requirements. Everything we do is above the waterline. If your boat needs bottom work, do that with a yard and bring it to us after.
Vinyl has a harder life on the water
Expect a shorter service life than the same film on a garaged car.
What to know+
Constant UV, salt and no shade all shorten it. We spec cast films rated for it and we will give you an honest expectation up front rather than a warranty number that assumes a covered driveway.
Removal can be slow and it is priced that way
Stripping old graphics is labour, and badly weathered vinyl fights back.
What to know+
Vinyl that has been baking for fifteen years comes off in flakes rather than sheets, and the adhesive underneath needs chemical work. We quote removal on what we actually find, and we will tell you at the inspection if it is going to be a long job.
Registration numbers have rules
Texas regulates the size, style, contrast and placement of your numbers.
What to know+
They have to be plain block characters of a set minimum height, in a colour that contrasts with the hull, on both sides of the forward half. A wrap that buries or shrinks them will get you a correction notice, so we design around them from the start.
How a Marine Job Runs
Nothing gets quoted off a photo.
Boats vary enormously in condition and access, and both of those change the number.
Tell us the boat
Make, length, where it lives, and what you want done. A few photos help us tell you whether it is worth a visit.
Inspection
We look at the hull in person — gelcoat condition, existing graphics, previous repairs, access. This is where we tell you if something is not worth doing.
Design or spec
For wraps and lettering, artwork and a proof, laid out around your registration numbers. For film and coating, a written spec per zone.
Written quote
Per vessel, including whether we are working at our shop or at your slip, because those are different numbers.
Install
Trailerable boats come to EaDo where we control the environment. Larger vessels we do at the marina, weather permitting.
Care sheet
How to wash it, what not to use on it, and what to expect over a season. Marine finishes need different care from automotive.
We are in EaDo, about an hour from Kemah, Seabrook and Clear Lake and a straight run down to Galveston. Tell us where the boat sits and we will tell you honestly whether a slip visit makes sense or whether trailering it in gives you a better result.
Marine FAQ
Have you done boats before?+
We are an automotive wrap, film and coating shop expanding into marine work, and we would rather tell you that up front than imply a history we do not have.
The materials and the install skill transfer directly — cast vinyl over a compound curve is the same problem on a hull as on a fender. What is genuinely different is gelcoat correction and the marine environment, and we assess both in person before quoting.
What is the cheapest thing that will make my boat look better?+
Usually one of two things: stripping the old failed factory graphics, or wrapping the outboard cowlings. Both cost a fraction of a hull wrap and both change how the whole boat reads from the dock.
A lot of tired-looking boats are actually sound boats wearing fifteen-year-old stripes. Take those off and the hull underneath is often fine.
Can you wrap a boat instead of repainting it?+
In most cases yes, and for a colour change it is usually the better option. A wrap costs less than a quality respray, takes less time, and it is reversible — when you sell the boat you can take it back to the original gelcoat.
It also protects the surface underneath for the whole time it is on, which paint does not.
How long does a boat wrap last on the water?+
Less than the same film on a garaged car, and any shop that tells you otherwise is guessing. Constant UV with no shade, plus salt, is the harshest thing you can do to vinyl.
We spec cast films rated for marine exposure and give you a realistic expectation for your specific boat and how it is stored, rather than quoting a best-case number from a brochure.
Do you do bottom paint or antifouling?+
No. Everything we do is above the waterline. Bottom paint, antifouling and running gear are a separate trade with their own haul-out requirements.
If your boat needs bottom work, have a yard do that first and bring it to us afterwards.
Do you bring the boat to you or do you come to us?+
Both work. Trailerable boats and personal watercraft come to our EaDo shop, which gives the best result because we control temperature, wind and dust.
Larger vessels we handle at your slip. That is a legitimate way to do it, but weather and dust affect what finish we will commit to, so it is priced differently.
Will a wrap cover my registration numbers?+
No — we design around them. Texas regulates the height, style, contrast and placement of registration numbers, and burying them in a graphic will get you a correction notice.
We lay out the design so the numbers stay legal and legible, and we can cut them fresh as part of the job.
Can you fix a chalky, faded hull?+
Often, yes. Oxidised gelcoat can usually be cut back and sealed, and the improvement can be dramatic. How far it comes back depends on how much gelcoat is left to work with.
This is the one service we will not quote without seeing the boat, because the answer genuinely depends on the hull in front of us.
Do you work with boat dealers or marinas?+
Yes, and it is quoted differently. Dealers with inventory and marinas with slip holders get volume pricing per programme rather than per boat, and for that kind of account we come to where the boats already are.
Charter and tour operators running several vessels get the same treatment — one design, one spec, consistent across the fleet.
Can you get my boat ready for a show?+
Yes, and book it early. Show prep is correction, graphics and protection against a hard deadline, and the calendar fills well before the season.
Tell us the show date first and we will tell you honestly what is achievable in the time available.
Tell Us About the Boat
Make, length, where it sits and what you are after. Send a few photos and we will tell you honestly whether it is worth us coming to look.