I love a product that does what it claims to do

Gofirstclass

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2010
11,698
Tri Cities, WA
Boat Info
Boatless in WA
Engines
No motor
It’s not very often that I buy something and when I get it I’m VERY pleasantly surprised by how well it does what it is supposed to do, and advertised to do. Usually when a product sounds too good to be true, it turns out to be not what one would expect.

I recently saw a product described in a boating forum and, while it sounded too good to be true, I thought I’d try it. That product is called Marine Strip, and it’s for cleaning things like fenders and dock lines and other plastic things on and around your boat.
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Nobody locally carried it so I called the company. They somewhat reluctantly agreed to send me two quarts and, while the shipping turned out to be expensive, it was worth it. Marine Strip cost just a bit under $18/quart as I recall and the cost of shipping was almost another $18 or so.

I had a chance to try it last weekend and was very pleasantly surprised at how well it worked. I first tried it on a fender that was VERY dirty. It looks like new. I wish I’d taken some “before” pictures because you really wouldn’t believe how the fender looked.

Then I cleaned my power cords. I doubt they had ever been cleaned and were really dirty, but they came out looking great. I did take a photo of the end of my 50A/240V cord so you could see the before and after.
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Here’s the “after” picture. Quite a difference.
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Then I attacked another fender. This one wasn’t nearly as dirty as the first one, but you can see the before and after photos and decide for yourself.
fender3_zps925e1004.jpg

fender1_zps36be1e88.jpg



So there you have it. I used almost one quart to clean the two fenders and about 50’ of each of the cords. I found that it MUST be used in a well ventilated area. I had the company that sells it send me an MSDS sheet on it and, while I’m not a chemist, I got enough out of the MSDS sheet to know that you don’t want to be inhaling this or letting it soak up through your skin. I used a kitchen-type rubber glove when I used it. FYI, those thin, filmy gloves don’t last more than a couple of minutes. I also found that this stuff works best when using a rough towel like a hand towel, not a smooth rag. And it works best if the rag is saturated in a small area and applied quickly to whatever you’re cleaning.

It takes very little rubbing to clean things if the rag is saturated. I spent just under 5 minutes cleaning the fender and about 5-6 minutes cleaning that last few feet of the power cable and connector.

All things considered I’m very happy with Marine Strip. If your local boating supply store doesn’t carry it you might suggest it to them. If they’re not interested you can get it by calling 205-581-0202. Ask for Sandra and tell her Mike said to call. They’re nice people to work with and will ship it out right away.
 
What does the MSDS sheet say is the 'magic' ingredient? My guess would be MEK, toluene, or xylene or a combo.
 
Any idea how it would work on vinyl seats? Sounds pretty aggressive, but the label appears to suggest using on them. We have mold(?) spots and a stain that refuse to come out despite multiple tries with Every cleaner I have, including Roll-Off and Spray Nine.
 
Have you tried Goop Orange hand cleaner? I think you might be surprised and will save a few dollars...
 
Any idea how it would work on vinyl seats? Sounds pretty aggressive, but the label appears to suggest using on them. We have mold(?) spots and a stain that refuse to come out despite multiple tries with Every cleaner I have, including Roll-Off and Spray Nine.
I tried Tilex Mold & Mildew on my bimni tops. That coating on the underside wasn't coming clean after trying a few different products. I laid the canvas on the ground washed with soap/water, rinsed, then sprayed on the Tilex. I didn't scrub, just used one of those furry wash mitts then let it set for a minute or so. Rinsed it off and it looks like new. Maybe it'll work on your seats.
 
Looks like strong stuff, would you compare it to acetone? I like where it says "product will burn with a lazy flame and is therefore flammable".
 
What does the MSDS sheet say is the 'magic' ingredient? My guess would be MEK, toluene, or xylene or a combo.
Like I said, I'm not a chemist. I can email the MSDS sheet to anyone who PM's me with his email address. Maybe you can interpret it better than I can. I know it's not MEK because I've used that for years and it has a different smell. Same with Acetone. This smells different. Just as strong smelling, but different.

ttmott, no, I haven't tried that on fenders or power cables. I have used it on my hands and it does work on that. This stuff probably takes less actual scrubbing that the Orange stuff.
 
Looks great, like you said it is nice to have a product live up to it's claims. :thumbsup:
I have just been using starbrite hull/cleaner wax on our fenders and cables for years. Easily cleaned and I assume protected.
Woody's Wax is a product I was very pleased with when it comes to cleaning and protecting non-skid deck surfaces and aluminum.
 
Probably toluene?? Same as "Goof Off" is my guess.
 
Have you tried Goop Orange hand cleaner? I think you might be surprised and will save a few dollars...

It worked great on my white shore power cord! Way better than my expectations. Have not tried fenders, however.
 
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Those look way better than before........ I have an inexpensive couple of tricks: for car shows, I used to clean my yellow plug wires with acetone (fingernail polish remover) available cheap in a big bottle at Walmart... and they would look like new... I'm betting it would work on the power cords as well.. but the super trick is a $1 cleaner called "Awesome" from the dollar tree (or other dollar stores that carry it)... it is simply amazing on the vinyl and fiberglass... any black mark you see, spray the awesome on and it wipes off. If it's hard to come off, then I pull out the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser... between those 2 items (both pretty cheap), cleaning all marks off is a breeze. Come to think of it, the Awesome probably would clean the shorepower cords very well too because I literally just cleaned my transom water hose with it and it looks like new... again, this stuff is only $1 per bottle (comes in a spray bottle)... it also cleans jewelry to look like new
 

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