Was wondering if any of you have cleaned, removed, or replaced the carpet in the fwd and aft berth? Not really sure what my options are, but the carpet looks nasty and is begging for attention as it shows numerous dark patches which I presume to be mold.
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Replaceable?
Is the carpet repalceable? If so, go to the local discount store and buy a rug remnant. It can be a cheap, but often, replacement. Just be sure that when you use the old one as a template, that you lay it ON TOP OF the old one and not back-to-back when cutting it.
Is the carpet repalceable? If so, go to the local discount store and buy a rug remnant. It can be a cheap, but often, replacement. Just be sure that when you use the old one as a template, that you lay it ON TOP OF the old one and not back-to-back when cutting it.
did you mean the fabric on the hull
If you mean the farbric glued to the side of the hull I picked up some mildew remover from dow chemical at home depot its a professional cleaning product I let it soak and scrubed with a small scrub brush meldew has not come back. later Mike
If you mean the farbric glued to the side of the hull I picked up some mildew remover from dow chemical at home depot its a professional cleaning product I let it soak and scrubed with a small scrub brush meldew has not come back. later Mike
I just did this...
I'm just finishing this project on our boat. Ours is a '79 Hunter 27 and had the original hull liner which was very ugly, moldy and stuck up the whole boat. I found that cleaning, including steam cleaning, does nothing for the mold the resides behind the liner. In fact, steam cleaning adds more fuel to the fire. This project can be messy but is well worth the effort. I short, I removed the old hull liner fabric in the v-berth, after berth and in the salon. Some of the foam backing came with it and some stayed glued to the hull. I scraped off the remaining pieces of foam, used an orbital sander to get the remaining stuff off as well as the glue. I used TSP to clean the surface then gave it two quick coats of white mold inhibiting paint. I then put up fairly inexpensive berber carpet from Home Depot using tile/carpet adhesive - only enough to get the carpet to stay put but not so much that I can't remove it fairly easily. I like the carpet as it adds a sound barrier against outside noise, relieves echo and adds warmth. Our '79 boat looks fantastic and smells like a new home! The removal process was messy and the most timing consuming part but everything after that was incredibly easy. There is no doubt that this was worth the trouble. The before and after are like night and day. Knowing what I know now, I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. I can give you details if you like, including what I learned to be the best methods as I went along. Happy sailing!
I'm just finishing this project on our boat. Ours is a '79 Hunter 27 and had the original hull liner which was very ugly, moldy and stuck up the whole boat. I found that cleaning, including steam cleaning, does nothing for the mold the resides behind the liner. In fact, steam cleaning adds more fuel to the fire. This project can be messy but is well worth the effort. I short, I removed the old hull liner fabric in the v-berth, after berth and in the salon. Some of the foam backing came with it and some stayed glued to the hull. I scraped off the remaining pieces of foam, used an orbital sander to get the remaining stuff off as well as the glue. I used TSP to clean the surface then gave it two quick coats of white mold inhibiting paint. I then put up fairly inexpensive berber carpet from Home Depot using tile/carpet adhesive - only enough to get the carpet to stay put but not so much that I can't remove it fairly easily. I like the carpet as it adds a sound barrier against outside noise, relieves echo and adds warmth. Our '79 boat looks fantastic and smells like a new home! The removal process was messy and the most timing consuming part but everything after that was incredibly easy. There is no doubt that this was worth the trouble. The before and after are like night and day. Knowing what I know now, I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. I can give you details if you like, including what I learned to be the best methods as I went along. Happy sailing!
Removing mold from fabric
I use a solution of body temperature water (2 gallons), a little dishwashing soap (1 teaspoon) and color safe bleach (quarter cup of dry or liquid color safe bleach) to clean up spots of mold on headliners and wall fabric that I can't remove for cleaning. Rinse using clean white terry cloths and fresh water to remove any cleaning residue. I buy packs of 18 new terry wash clothes at Wal-mart for a few bucks.
I use a solution of body temperature water (2 gallons), a little dishwashing soap (1 teaspoon) and color safe bleach (quarter cup of dry or liquid color safe bleach) to clean up spots of mold on headliners and wall fabric that I can't remove for cleaning. Rinse using clean white terry cloths and fresh water to remove any cleaning residue. I buy packs of 18 new terry wash clothes at Wal-mart for a few bucks.
Color safe bleach is not a disinfectant
Using the dish soap and color safe bleach can definitely clean the fabric and can work on milder stains. But basically you're just using two soap products. Don't think that the color safe bleach works just like chlorine bleach but without ruining the color - they aren't the same thing. Color safe bleach will not kill the mold spores as chlorine bleach will. Regular bleach and bleach for colors are really quite different. Sodium hypochlorite bleaches like Clorox® regular bleach are strong oxidants and are very effective at soil and stain removal. This is also the ONLY type of bleach that disinfects (which is why a "chlorine" product is used to keep pool water clean). Regular bleach is great to use on whites and bleachable colors to remove stains, dirt and body soil better than detergent alone. Conversely, bleach for colors is an oxygen bleach. This is a much milder oxidant and is usually safe to use on most machine-washable fabrics. Color-safe oxygen bleaches work best on a broad range of colored stains such as beverages (e.g., coffee, tea, wine), fruits/vegetables (e.g. blueberry, grape, cherry) and mustard. Bleach for colors does clean and brighten colors better than just detergent though. So I guess the bottom line would be, if you have skanky fabric, color-safe bleach won't get rid of it. BTW: be careful what products you mix with any bleach, especially chlorine bleach and amonia. This is very dangerous!
Using the dish soap and color safe bleach can definitely clean the fabric and can work on milder stains. But basically you're just using two soap products. Don't think that the color safe bleach works just like chlorine bleach but without ruining the color - they aren't the same thing. Color safe bleach will not kill the mold spores as chlorine bleach will. Regular bleach and bleach for colors are really quite different. Sodium hypochlorite bleaches like Clorox® regular bleach are strong oxidants and are very effective at soil and stain removal. This is also the ONLY type of bleach that disinfects (which is why a "chlorine" product is used to keep pool water clean). Regular bleach is great to use on whites and bleachable colors to remove stains, dirt and body soil better than detergent alone. Conversely, bleach for colors is an oxygen bleach. This is a much milder oxidant and is usually safe to use on most machine-washable fabrics. Color-safe oxygen bleaches work best on a broad range of colored stains such as beverages (e.g., coffee, tea, wine), fruits/vegetables (e.g. blueberry, grape, cherry) and mustard. Bleach for colors does clean and brighten colors better than just detergent though. So I guess the bottom line would be, if you have skanky fabric, color-safe bleach won't get rid of it. BTW: be careful what products you mix with any bleach, especially chlorine bleach and amonia. This is very dangerous!
already commited to removal
Thanks for all your suggestions, but I'm going the route Chicago Lynn took. I have already removed the carpet from the aft berth and man was it nasty. Way beyond cleaning! I plan to sand and paint the fiberglass and then perhaps hang new carpet with hook and pile tape.
Thanks for all your suggestions, but I'm going the route Chicago Lynn took. I have already removed the carpet from the aft berth and man was it nasty. Way beyond cleaning! I plan to sand and paint the fiberglass and then perhaps hang new carpet with hook and pile tape.
Alternate Method
Joining in this thread late but wanted to share. We had the same problem with our carpeted areas as well. I used hydrogen peroxide. Not only does it kill mold and inhibit further growth, it has very little odor. Safe on fabrics and wood. Each Spring, I wash down the interior of the boat with it, works great!
Joining in this thread late but wanted to share. We had the same problem with our carpeted areas as well. I used hydrogen peroxide. Not only does it kill mold and inhibit further growth, it has very little odor. Safe on fabrics and wood. Each Spring, I wash down the interior of the boat with it, works great!
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