Best Vinyl boat seat cleaner

Is it definitely a brown color, or could have a pinkish hue to it? There's a bacteria that live underneath the vinyl and it does 'outgas' in a color. But it definitely has more of a pink color to it, than brown. Other than that, I'm not sure. I can't imagine the actual teak (the wood, itself) causing a problem. But maybe the chemicals/oils that applied to it? :huh:
 
Brownish rust orange, I wouldn't say pink. I'm just sick thinking I may have to waste $1000's reupholstering.
 
If the teak oil vaporized and soaked the vinyl, or came into direct contact, I think you'll need something with strong oil-dissolving properties. And then I found a thread on another boating forum that mentioned success with Dawn dish soap, at full strength if needed. Definitely worth a try before replacing....if it doesn't help, hopefully it won't hurt, either!

This person's issue was vinyl wall coverings adjacent to teak trim, where the PO had maintained the teak well but hadn't masked other surfaces when using it.

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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]Try Dawn grease cutting liquid detergent. It may have to be applied undiluted. Try a small test area first.
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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]The Dawn works! In fact, it worked so well I diluted it and wiped down all of the walls in the boat. Cleaned them and made them look practically new! WOW! I think I'll buy some bulk Dawn, put it in small bottles and sell it on eBay as a new miracle Tak Oil cleaner!
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Over the weekend I tried the Marine Spray 9 with a soft brush, lots of clean rags and 303 to finish it up. This process was very effective in bringing the vinyl back to like new condition. I was very impressed with the result.
 
almostenuff said:
Brownish rust orange, I wouldn't say pink. I'm just sick thinking I may have to waste $1000's reupholstering.
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I know what you mean and feel for you. IF you can't get it out, you could try dying it and see how that covers it up - or even find a local company (usually mobile) that can do it - try the automotive world, too, as you will probably find more companies that way.

How long did you let the bleach set on there? Try a 50/50 mix and saturate a WHITE rag - then let it set for a good 5 or 10 minutes. Be sure to avoid the stitching, though.

Another chemical to try... oxalic acid. You can find it in products such as Slimy Grimy. Don't know if it'll work, but it's good stuff to have around, anyways.
 
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Soft scrub does wonders on my vinyl. Thought for sure someone would mention it. I picked this up from a dock mate who literally spends every waking spare second of his life cleaning his boat, not running it, but cleaning it. It's by far the cleanest boat on Long Island. He told me to use soft scrub with bleach; perfect amount of grit in it. Do not use it on anything you want wax to be on (gel coat). It's great for non skid as well. No pink staining either.
 
Blueone said:
Over the weekend I tried the Marine Spray 9 with a soft brush, lots of clean rags and 303 to finish it up. This process was very effective in bringing the vinyl back to like new condition. I was very impressed with the result.
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I'm a big fan of Spray-9 and have found it cleans most things out nicely, either immediately, or after a few applications separated by time. Accordingly, I would also recommend restraint and instead allowing your stain some time to sit in the hot sun over the summer. I personally would avoid abrasive cleaners/pads/bleach, and would go from weakest to stronger products progressively.

I tried very hard with several products to remove blue ball point ink from a white seat, and mother nature did the trick most effectively (and to my surprise). Lastly, whatever you use or do, I would be sure to go back with some vinyl conditioner products for a while to make sure that it doesn't dry out and/or crack. Some of the harsher chemicals can remove the plasticizers and chemicals that make vinyl supple.
 
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Agreed with Jim. Stains are usually surface issues. Vinyl(pvc) has ions that move at a rapid pace that pull stains in to vinyl. The uv light, sun, draws out stains in vinyl. Not particularly good on colored vinyls. That's why they fade. White upholstery will bleach in sun. Get whiter. Etc. use cleaner, leave in sun and let sun do work. I had rust stains all over upholstery as I had a bunch of metal cans that I left on upholstery. Cleaned and the uv light did the rest.
Good luck!
 
I've used soft scrub in the past but can tell you without a doubt the best thing I found was the 50/50 combo of water and bleach, soak the rag and lay it on the vinyl in the sun. Let it sit and after removing it wipe it down. Rinse thoroughly and then spray 303 on it. No hard scrubbing needed. My seats turned out great.
 
Any bleach will disintegrate your seat threads after time. Diluted or not. It may take a few years, but it will damage the stitching eventually.
 
I agree that's why saturating the rag and laying it on the seat the bleach stays off the threads.
 
KnotEasy said:
Any bleach will disintegrate your seat threads after time. Diluted or not. It may take a few years, but it will damage the stitching eventually.
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Fortunately, I have no stitching on that area. I'll try the 50/50 rag trick today
Thanks!
 
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