Just bought a solid '86 O'day 222. I suspect the main sail being attached to the boat with it's cover for long periods of time is the reason I see mud-dauber nests attached in the various folds of the sails. My first thought is to pack them (the sails ) up and take them to the laundry mat and find a big washing machine. Right? So before I do,,,Just thought I'd ask.. What would you new sailors do.?/ My last sailboat was a woodie of the 50's that had cotton sails. Boy how sails have changed. Thanks in advance for any advice..
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Sailcare
About 100 miles south of you, in Ford City, PA is a company called Sailcare. They clean and re-condition sails for people all over the country. They're very reputable, and I have first hand knowledge of their good work, which by the way is very reasonable. They also sell hardware, at very good prices. I would just wipe off your sails for now with a very mild detergent, and rinse well. Use them for this season, and ship them to Sailcare in the fall. http://www.sailcare.com/
About 100 miles south of you, in Ford City, PA is a company called Sailcare. They clean and re-condition sails for people all over the country. They're very reputable, and I have first hand knowledge of their good work, which by the way is very reasonable. They also sell hardware, at very good prices. I would just wipe off your sails for now with a very mild detergent, and rinse well. Use them for this season, and ship them to Sailcare in the fall. http://www.sailcare.com/
Hose them off and use them this season
then do a good cleaning in the bathtub (or use Mike's sailcare guys). I give my sails a good soaking with the hose while they are still on the mast about half way through the season just to keep the salt down.
then do a good cleaning in the bathtub (or use Mike's sailcare guys). I give my sails a good soaking with the hose while they are still on the mast about half way through the season just to keep the salt down.
My method
I soaked my sails in a mixture of All Oxi-Active in a plastic tub, making sure to agitate about every ten minutes or so. After an hour of soaking I hang them over the deck railing and hose of the grime and they look like new. I do remove the battens.
I soaked my sails in a mixture of All Oxi-Active in a plastic tub, making sure to agitate about every ten minutes or so. After an hour of soaking I hang them over the deck railing and hose of the grime and they look like new. I do remove the battens.
Don't use a wash machine
We have washed a few sails by spreading them out on the lawn and using some soap and water. Dacron fabric is very tough. But putting them in a washing machine isn't a good idea. Professional cleaning is probably better but you have the trouble and expense of shipping them off and paying for the cleaning.
We have washed a few sails by spreading them out on the lawn and using some soap and water. Dacron fabric is very tough. But putting them in a washing machine isn't a good idea. Professional cleaning is probably better but you have the trouble and expense of shipping them off and paying for the cleaning.
Clean them ON the boat .......
Here is a repeat of a posting of about 2 months ago Clean them ON the boat ....... For woven white DACRON sailcloth ONLY: On a cloudy windless day using spray bottles of a sodium silicate detergent and a garden type water hose, slowly raise the sail a few feet at a time as you spray on the sodium silicate applying until the sail is fully raised. Use a long handled soft scrub brush to help spread the detergent. Drop the sail and cover with a plastic tarp to prevent the detergent from drying (mist with water if necessary). After about 20 minutes to allow the detergent to 'work', slowly raise and scrub and mist the sail then drop to the deck and recover/soak. Raise, etc. again then *thoroughly rinse* several times until ALL the detergent is removed. This should remove most of the "black crap": artillery fungus, air pollution specks, etc. The sodium silicate will dissolve most of such 'dirt'. You can get strong sodium silicates at a janatorial supply. Wear goggles, etc. when using. For tannin and rust stains, mix up a solution of oxalic acid (hardware/paint store stuff) and spread over the areas to get rid of the 'brown'. Rinse thoroughly. Caution: Oxalic will rapidly cross your skin and accumulate in your kidneys doing great potential harm .... wear gloves, goggles, etc. DO NOT mix sodium silicate and oxalic. Then *thoroughly* rinse the sail. Let the sail thoroughly dry (go sailing). The sodium silicate will strip all the old dead wax in the gelcoat where it splashes down from the sail, so you'll need to rewax the boat. The old dead wax accelerates gelcoat oxidation so it should be stripped every 2-3 years anyway. Use the oxalic on the gelcoat to remove tannin and rust stains ("moustache", etc. at the waterline, etc.) Dont use this method on laminated or colored sails. Hope this helps.
Here is a repeat of a posting of about 2 months ago Clean them ON the boat ....... For woven white DACRON sailcloth ONLY: On a cloudy windless day using spray bottles of a sodium silicate detergent and a garden type water hose, slowly raise the sail a few feet at a time as you spray on the sodium silicate applying until the sail is fully raised. Use a long handled soft scrub brush to help spread the detergent. Drop the sail and cover with a plastic tarp to prevent the detergent from drying (mist with water if necessary). After about 20 minutes to allow the detergent to 'work', slowly raise and scrub and mist the sail then drop to the deck and recover/soak. Raise, etc. again then *thoroughly rinse* several times until ALL the detergent is removed. This should remove most of the "black crap": artillery fungus, air pollution specks, etc. The sodium silicate will dissolve most of such 'dirt'. You can get strong sodium silicates at a janatorial supply. Wear goggles, etc. when using. For tannin and rust stains, mix up a solution of oxalic acid (hardware/paint store stuff) and spread over the areas to get rid of the 'brown'. Rinse thoroughly. Caution: Oxalic will rapidly cross your skin and accumulate in your kidneys doing great potential harm .... wear gloves, goggles, etc. DO NOT mix sodium silicate and oxalic. Then *thoroughly* rinse the sail. Let the sail thoroughly dry (go sailing). The sodium silicate will strip all the old dead wax in the gelcoat where it splashes down from the sail, so you'll need to rewax the boat. The old dead wax accelerates gelcoat oxidation so it should be stripped every 2-3 years anyway. Use the oxalic on the gelcoat to remove tannin and rust stains ("moustache", etc. at the waterline, etc.) Dont use this method on laminated or colored sails. Hope this helps.
Sailcare
I has a similar situation. I bought a 23' that was in storage for 10 years and the mainsail was on the boom under cover for the whole time. It was so dirty and covered with mildew even after the backyard swimming pool routine I was going to trash it. I saw a Sailcare ad and sent it to them. The sail came back looking new and feeling new after their treatment. CVP
I has a similar situation. I bought a 23' that was in storage for 10 years and the mainsail was on the boom under cover for the whole time. It was so dirty and covered with mildew even after the backyard swimming pool routine I was going to trash it. I saw a Sailcare ad and sent it to them. The sail came back looking new and feeling new after their treatment. CVP
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