Fabric walls stained....

[maggierosaine]

I have a 44 Convertible, 1988. The foam behind the fabric interior walls has broken down and the result is brown stains on the grey fabric over large areas. The fabric itself looks in good repair other than the stains. Has anyone else dealt with this?
I dont really want to replace it (a huge job, all those panels). I have even thought about painting or dying it!
All ideas welcome....:smt001

 

[Lazy Daze]

Are you positive the foam is broken down and/or it is the cause of the stain? Usually, brown stains on headliner material is due to water leaks.

However, to address the brown issue - yes, paint for fabric can work. You might try using a diluted solution of bleach/water first to try and lighten the stain. Then, it's going to be a fun game of getting the closest color you can and then feathering it out as you get further from the stain to blend.

But, if it's due to water leaking, it's going to come back. So, you need to be sure you've addressed that issue, first.

 

[PlayDate]

There is a wide assortment of fabric paints...that is your best bet if the original material is in good shape. The alternative of recovering the panels is A LOT of work. Most of the fabric paints have a high adhesive, high elastic polymer base which means that they are engineered for soft, flexible surfaces. Simplyspray.com has a product which has low VOCs which makes it great for boat interiors.

-John

 

[sbw1]

I used to own a 1993 SR that had fabric that would become stained from the many water leaks that were impossible to fix. At the time, SR had a page on its website that talked about how to clean things as specific as these water stains. The site recommended spraying them with a Westley's clear soap and then blotting the stains with a clean white turkish towel. Surprisingly, this worked quite well and the stains totally disappeared until we would run the boat on Lake Michigan and the headliner would get wet again. I looked for the specific soap on the Westley web site and could not find the product. Any good quality spray soap would probably do the same thing.

 

[maggierosaine]

Thanks all of you. To clarify further...
I have some water stains on the headliner due to a leak, but the wall ones are different. A Surveyor suggested that the backing foam breaks down after many years due to age or moist environment and because foam is a petroleum product an oily resideue stain seeps through to the fabric. Its very wide spread throughtout both sleeping quarters walls, top to floor and some in the galley area. So I dont think its a leak.

 

[douglee25]

I have had good luck with carpet cleaning solution and a home carpet cleaner. Spray on the solution with the machine, soak for a couple of minutes, and vacuum out.

Doug

 

[maggierosaine]

That sounds worth a try, thanks

 

[siriussr]

This video shows how to remove the stains from the headliner
50/50 mix of bleach and water. It doesn't hurt the underlying adhesive

 

[Lazy Daze]

Siriussr, question for you... I noticed you "joined" CSR 2-1/2 years ago, but didn't post until today - and then it was with a youtube video into 3 old posts. It's as if you purposefully searched those threads out to post the video. Is this your video? Do you make money on these? I'm often hesitant to click on videos in posts like this as I wonder if they aren't some type of spam. It's normally a good idea, when first posting, to introduce yourself. Just a friendly tip!

 

[siriussr]

Hi Lazy Daze, yes, this is my video. I don't make any money on these. I joined a few years ago while looking for our first boat, and then used these threads to help figure out how to remove the stains on our headliner after we got it. From all the threads I read there was really no answer, or the answer required a lot of work and special cleaners. When I figured out this method was so easy in comparison, I thought it might be good to contribute to those threads I used to try and find my answers.

I apologize for not going through the normal routine of introducing myself. With that:

Hi, I'm Kevin, and I am addicted to boating

 

[Lazy Daze]

Well, then, let's turn this into... "Welcome aboard, Kevin!" Ain't nothing wrong with being addicted to boating - most of us are! It sounds like you found a boat? Go ahead and update your signature with the info.