Peggy, After a complete sanitation refit with Trident 101 and Raritan and a clean up my boat still smells bad. It is hard to describe odors, but this one has nuances of wet oak, mold, and bad cheap red wine, and a finish of bitter. Musky-acrid-sweet yech is what to call it, maybe. I can find no point source, so maybe I have eliminated the source, but the scent remains. It is everywhere. It sticks to my son's laptop for a two weeks. It sticks to me, according to my perceptive (or is it frank) doctor. You will know what I mean if you forget a fish in the car trunk for a week, and then take it out and clean out the trunk conscientiously. Is there any good way to get permeated smell out of wood? My boat is glass but has much interior wood, mostly teak, which I figure will not absorb odors. But there is also some oak and some plywood. Would Raritan CP sprayed on the oak deck beams, and laced into the bilge water, be a good way to go? I seem to have multiple problems, due to seller neglect and buyer (me) inexperience. How do I clean mold on a porous surface? On a water logged porous surface? On a fiberglass surface I figure use bleach. Is there a New York expert on these matters who can come take a sniff? Thanks for knowing so much about this stuff. Tom
pervasive boat odor
- Thread starter thomas.dargan
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Peggie has recommended PureAyre over and over again. She also suggests that in addition to your head, the bilge can create odors, too. A recent post just a few days ago had a link to PureAyre, but either search here or Google it.
I can personally recommend pureayre. I have had diesel and sewage smell in my H30 for a couple years. Not enough to keep me from using it but odor that would stick with clothing left on the boat during the week. This year I followed the pureayre formula of cleaning every surface with lysol wipes and then spraying with pureayre...poof! Odors gone. Of course then my waste hose cracked at the holding tank and I had to do what you just completed. Now there are really no odors. Pureayre is the answer.
When was the last time you cleaned your bilges and sumps?
I don't mean just a cursory "throw in some bilge cleaner and or bleach and let the billge pumps send it overboard after it sloshes around awhile"...I mean really CLEAN 'em--plenty of detergent and elbow grease (or a power washer) followed by flushing ALL the dirty water out.
'Cuz a wet dirty bilge or sump is a primordial soup that can make a whole boat smell like a swamp or even a sewer. I dunno why so many people think that they can have a clean bilge by just tossing something into it...if you had a kitchen sink full of dirty greasy dish water, you wouldn't just toss in some more Dawn, swish it around and then pull the plug and expect the sink to be clean...would you?
So I suspect the solution to your problem is a VERY thorough bilge and sump cleaning...followed by an application of PureAyre to every surface--porous and non--nook and cranny in the whole boat...then leave all hatches lockers and drawers open so that plenty of air can circulate for 24 hours. Take all the soft goods off the boat and wash or send to cleaners.
I don't mean just a cursory "throw in some bilge cleaner and or bleach and let the billge pumps send it overboard after it sloshes around awhile"...I mean really CLEAN 'em--plenty of detergent and elbow grease (or a power washer) followed by flushing ALL the dirty water out.
'Cuz a wet dirty bilge or sump is a primordial soup that can make a whole boat smell like a swamp or even a sewer. I dunno why so many people think that they can have a clean bilge by just tossing something into it...if you had a kitchen sink full of dirty greasy dish water, you wouldn't just toss in some more Dawn, swish it around and then pull the plug and expect the sink to be clean...would you?
So I suspect the solution to your problem is a VERY thorough bilge and sump cleaning...followed by an application of PureAyre to every surface--porous and non--nook and cranny in the whole boat...then leave all hatches lockers and drawers open so that plenty of air can circulate for 24 hours. Take all the soft goods off the boat and wash or send to cleaners.
PureAyre can be bought at Petco, which I suspect is as cheaply as it can be found.. I am readying to do the same job, so when the plumbing is redone, I will do as Peggy says with the rest of the cabin.
Thomas: I would suggest that you also wipe down "ALL" of the interior wood with a citrus oil (lemon or orange). This stuff will clean the wood and help eliminate the spores in the wood.
I hope you have removed all of your cushions and soft fabric items. They will/do absorb the odors. Sunlight does wonders for cleaning them too. Many times your cushions have absorbed these odors and it may come down to having the soft fabrics cleaned and even sometimes replacing the foam.
I hope you have removed all of your cushions and soft fabric items. They will/do absorb the odors. Sunlight does wonders for cleaning them too. Many times your cushions have absorbed these odors and it may come down to having the soft fabrics cleaned and even sometimes replacing the foam.
Peggy, I don't know about the other guys on this thread, but till I got to the "would you", I was pretty thrilled about that solution. I will wash the alternator case with degreaser, buff it on the grinder, and use a toothbrush in the crannies, but I thought the head could be cleaned with a Saniwipe and a small dangling pine tree salvaged from the Ford Ranger. No?
Additional Info on PureAyre
Tom - you got some good advice from readers about cleaning out your bilge and using PureAyre. One thing to add to all that advice is that if you add one to two cups of PureAyre to your cleaning solution (not to bleach solution) you will get added odor elimination while you are cleaning. We use this method for de-smoking hotel rooms and washing skunked dogs! Then spray with PureAyre after you are done is icing on the cake. Also, I have a standing offer to all Peggy Hall fans. Just write "I'm a fan of Peggy Hall" in the comment line when ordering PureAyre at www.ThePureAyreStore.com and you get a 20% discount on a gallon kit.
Great. I will get some. Can you advise where to buy a gallon locally (New York 10805)? Or is Nature's Miracle much the same fomula, with the enzymes and all? Petco has just the itty bitty bottle of Pure Ayre, for young, untrained canaries.
PureAyre Marine Formula is stronger
Thanks for your question Tom. I am enjoying reading the messages about boat odors and I have been getting calls from others like you who have specific questions about getting rid of boat odors. My best advice is to listen to Peggy. She is the expert about your boats. But, I can answer some questions about PureAyre. Marine Formula is much stronger than standard PureAyre Pet or Home products. This is needed for the density and type of odors found in Marine environments. Also, PureAyre enzymes are proprietary and NOT the same as you can find in other products. We own the technology and only use in our own products! Also, remember that PureAyre products are food-grade safe so they can't harm you, your guests, your pets, or our marine environment. - Rico at ThePureAyreStore.com
Odors
Our boat had a lingering odor that the admiral attributed to diesel. No leak there, but I always had a bilge containing about two inches of sea water that came through the stuffing box. Well, I had a duh moment last year resulting from shower water left in the sump for a couple of weeks. Came to the boat and whew what a stink. Same with raw water left in the toilet intake line for several months and then flushing for the first time. That lovely rotten egg aroma.
Now I dry the bilge and shower sumps after each cruise. It does involve a little extra work but huge smell improvement dividends. Now when I open the boat I'm greeted by a pleasant odor and ditto our clothes.
Terry Cox
Our boat had a lingering odor that the admiral attributed to diesel. No leak there, but I always had a bilge containing about two inches of sea water that came through the stuffing box. Well, I had a duh moment last year resulting from shower water left in the sump for a couple of weeks. Came to the boat and whew what a stink. Same with raw water left in the toilet intake line for several months and then flushing for the first time. That lovely rotten egg aroma.
Now I dry the bilge and shower sumps after each cruise. It does involve a little extra work but huge smell improvement dividends. Now when I open the boat I'm greeted by a pleasant odor and ditto our clothes.
Terry Cox
Your discription of the odor reminds me of a problem I had on one of my older boats when the battery charger overcharged the batteries. Might want to check around the battery boxes.
Michael Elliott
Beneteau 373
Michael Elliott
Beneteau 373
if it smells like "granny's attic" then it would be dry rot......
regarding petco--did you check the cat section?? last time i bought mine there it was in that part...sometimes on display in front!... goood luck-is awesome stuff. petsmart also has it--i am not sure of wally world.......they MIGHT......
regarding petco--did you check the cat section?? last time i bought mine there it was in that part...sometimes on display in front!... goood luck-is awesome stuff. petsmart also has it--i am not sure of wally world.......they MIGHT......
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