I have a Hunter 41 that suffers from having an overfilled tank (once) and being shut up most of last year. We have taken every bit of material items off the boat, including all the cushions and mattresses. We have wiped all of the interior, including locker spaces and bilge, tanks and engine with vinegar/water solution and then finished with a coat of PureAyre. The interior is smelling much better but the cushions are giving us a bit of a problem. We have soaked them as best we can (I say that because it is hard to find a vessel to submerge an 8 foot cushion in fully) and there is still a smell. We are doing a second soak with Dawn dishwashing detergent and water (my husband's idea) and will do another soak with PureAyre when our next order comes in. BTW, we have used two gallons already on the cushions, laundry and the interior wipe-down. My question is: has anyone else tried to soak the smell out of cushions? And, has anyone had good luck with getting rid of the smell? Ours is about 60% better, but I want more. I am willing to just go with new foam if I have to, but would rather solve this problem with PureAyre. It's expensive but I imagine lots less than new cushions. And if anyone has a better way of doing this, I would love some advice.
Diesel smell in boat cushions
- Thread starter starledAR
- Start date
Soaking in detergent can only get rid of any diesel that spilled in the cushions...none has, so more soaking in detergent or anything else won't help. First you need to rinse the foam enough to get rid of all the detergent in it...then let the foam dry out enough to be no more than just barely damp (put it outside where plenty of air can circulate and turn it over a few times, or stand on edges and rotate to keep the water from just pooling on the bottom). Now, spray the foam from both sides with enough PureAyre to penetrate all the way to the middle (I suspect you've only been spraying the surfaces)...you don't want it dripping wet, just "full" of PureAyre. Put them out outside or where plenty of fresh air can circulate until they're completely dry. If that doesn't get rid of all the odor, nothing will.
Welcome to the site StarledAR.
A far more important question for your husband is .............. how can the tank be overfilled and get diesel into the interior of the boat ?
If it happened once, it'll happen again. Hate to see you go to all of that work for naught.
Had the same problem with the H34 we purchased over the winter. It had a significant diesel leak at the fuel filter housing that went unattended for some time and left then entire boat saturated with diesel smell. The upholstery was due for replacement so all of that went in the trash. The foam I took home which smelled up our entire basement until I could tend to it. What I ended up doing was buying a gallon jug and spray bottle of a product called odor-ban from home depot. I spread the cushions out on the deck at our house and sprayed them with the product over a period of a few days leaving them to air out. The smell is nearly gone and unperceivable unless you bury you nose in the cushion and take a deep sniff. My fear with submerging them in liquid was that it might cause the smell to further permeate the foam.
I figure you have two choices
1 Learn to like the smell or
2 Get new cushions
I have been down this path - after I tried to wash the cushions from my boat they stayed wet for 4 weeks in one of the hottest dryest places in the country. Then the smell was still there.
Did you ever get diesel (or bait) on your hands and could still smell it after washing them twice?
We have made it a priority to promptly clean up every drip from any activity like fuel filter changing or bleeding ASAP. Just a tiny amount of diesel spilled anywhere inside and left will fill the whole boat with the odor when left for any time.
Another option is Ozone. If you can rent a powerful ozone generator, put in in the boat seal it up, and let it run for 48+ hours minimum, 4-5 days may be required depending on saturation level. Just be sure to let the boat air out for 30+ minutes before going back in once the job is done.
The biggest risk with ozone is that it will break down pure rubber. Tape over your engine mounts, and anything else rubber to be certain it is safe. Otherwise, bring all the affected cushions home, put them in the smallest room, closet etc where they will all fit with all the surface exposed, (not stacked on each other), and run it in there as described above. (Safest option as you will not risk rubber items in your boat.)
Ozone generators are what insurance/remediation companies use to deal with smoke damaged homes. Hotels will use them if a person has smoked inside a room to get the smell out of the carpets, curtains, etc. They kill mould at high concentration, and remove most offensive odours. The key is to get a powerful unit, allow lots of time, and not occupy the space while the ozone is present.
Home depot sells them, if you're lucky you can find one to rent. I used to sell these machines, they can work extremely well provided you get a large enough machine, and a long enough running time. Just don't spend time down below while its running. I would try this before giving up and replacing all your cushions. Keep in mind though that unless you have 100% eliminated the source of the problem, this will happen again and again.
Here is a link to a machine that would have enough power to tackle the project. http://www.homedepot.com/p/New-Comf...nerator-Air-Purifier-he500stainless/300983098
The biggest risk with ozone is that it will break down pure rubber. Tape over your engine mounts, and anything else rubber to be certain it is safe. Otherwise, bring all the affected cushions home, put them in the smallest room, closet etc where they will all fit with all the surface exposed, (not stacked on each other), and run it in there as described above. (Safest option as you will not risk rubber items in your boat.)
Ozone generators are what insurance/remediation companies use to deal with smoke damaged homes. Hotels will use them if a person has smoked inside a room to get the smell out of the carpets, curtains, etc. They kill mould at high concentration, and remove most offensive odours. The key is to get a powerful unit, allow lots of time, and not occupy the space while the ozone is present.
Home depot sells them, if you're lucky you can find one to rent. I used to sell these machines, they can work extremely well provided you get a large enough machine, and a long enough running time. Just don't spend time down below while its running. I would try this before giving up and replacing all your cushions. Keep in mind though that unless you have 100% eliminated the source of the problem, this will happen again and again.
Here is a link to a machine that would have enough power to tackle the project. http://www.homedepot.com/p/New-Comf...nerator-Air-Purifier-he500stainless/300983098
I use one of these. I set it to run 5 minutes every hour. It has taken all the smell out of the boat. A diesel spill drove this after doing similar things you have.
https://www.amazon.com/A2Z-Ozone-Aq...sr=8-17&keywords=ozone+generator+air+purifier
https://www.amazon.com/A2Z-Ozone-Aq...sr=8-17&keywords=ozone+generator+air+purifier
I used an ozone generator to get rid of all the cigarette smoke odor in my mother's condo. They can be rented through national companies that ship immediately. Google search for "ozone generator rentals". Some big box home improvement stores sell and/or rent them now too.
and much more. Ozone is an oxidizer, like bleach. You run the risk of "bleaching" everything._____
Diesel is also called "Number 2 fuel OIL". Anything that will dissolve oil, will extract diesel. The key is you don't want to extract dyes and dissolve the foam. Also pick a solvent that doesn't leave a smell and is water soluble.
_____
It probably cheaper to change cushion foam.
Jim...
PS: I used a 60 pound washer at a laundry mat to wash mine with Lysol lemon smell detergent. Not diesel but "briny" smell.