Stain on sails - How to remove ?

B

Boulard83

.
Aug 21, 2014
10
Grampian Classic 31 Trois-Rivières
Hi,

I just bought a sailboat that had it's sails stored for a long time and there are some brown stain on the sails. Probably from dirty water on the bottom of the boat and the sails got in contact with it sometimes in the last years.

They overall are in a very good shape but they looks dirty because of these brown stain.

What's the best product/procedure to clean them ?
 
jssailem

jssailem

SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
Oct 22, 2014
23,333
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
My idea,
Lay the sails out on the grass. Get a mild soap like Dawn. Mix in water. Slosh the soapy water out onto the sails. Let soak for a few minutes. Get a soft brush (you do not want to rip the threads) and gently brush the sial cloth. Then rinse. This is not the time to pull the Super High Pressure washer out. It is a gentle stream of water to rinse the soap off the sail cloth.

Some will let the sail dry in the sun. I prefer to hoist the sail on a non wind morning and let the sail drip dry in the sun. If the stain is a surface stain some if not most of the stain will disapate. It may still be there but more faint. The sun has a way of bleaching everything. If the stain is in the sail cloth threads, then the possibility of a full recovery, I find, is not likely. Then the only solution may be new sails. This at some point is the best result.
 
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rgranger

rgranger

.
Jan 19, 2010
12,609
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
On two occasions, I have taken an old sail and put it in a clean 30 gal trash can... filled it with water and a bottle of
1660151981358.png


Let the sail soak for a few days and then lay it out on a patio slab and spray it off with the hose. That will get most of it. For the stuborn stains, I then spot-sprayed this ...

1660152117262.png


... with gentle brushing.

For rust stains, I would squirt a little of this on the sail and work it in with my thumb... but don't let it sit too long. It will start to degrade the sail cloth

1660152237175.png


BTW... I have also had very good results using BKF to get rust stains out of fiberglass. Let it sit on the spot for about an hour and work it in with a brush.
 
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