Article by William L. Gills aka Bos'n Bill
When Spring arrives and boating season begins in earnest for those who aren't fortunate to experience year round boating, it's time to open up the boats. If precautions haven't been taken with moisture absorbers, odor control bags and other types of dehumidification you might be greeted by a boat whose interior has turned into a veritable mold spore. This can happen too if your boat is in the water closed up, but partially exposed to the elements where moisture can get in and mold take hold.
This year, in vast sections of the country, we experienced enough rain to build a fleet of arcs. For me, the unfortunate consequence of all this rain was more mold and mildew than any I've ever seen before on any boat, let alone my own; it made the perfect Petri dish for an unsightly, unpleasant dose of those little living, thriving organisms and all the attendant cleanup that goes along with getting rid of them. When I invited other boat owners to board my boat to view the spectacular display of fungal might, they opted out, preferring not to have to experience the full effect on the nose. It was that bad.
After taking a survey of the secrets of several others who appeared to be free from this common boating affliction, I explained that our usual way of getting rid of the little buggers was to wait with a stiff brush for a stiff breeze, wearing face masks and eye gear. They laughed, preferring their own well thought out cloak-and-dagger remedies.
Wanting to take more extreme measures anyway, my wife helped me unzip and unsnap all the covers to lay them out on the dock so we could wash them down with an all-purpose cleanser, water and a scrub brush on a boat hook. That worked well I thought, but she believed we might do better, deciding to experiment with something else, a product we had been using to clean our hull.
The verdict? It cleans off mold and mildew easily, like butter off a hot knife. Just spray on, rinse off, no residue, not a trace of mold, low odor and it's water based, biodegradable and doesn't bleach like some other touted mold killers do. I have no vested interest in this product, but I want you to know, one boat owner to another, in my experience, this is the best mold eradicator I've found and I want to share it with you. It's made by Supreme Chemicals of Georgia, Inc under the brand name, Krud Kutter. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.
One more thing. It cleans everything under the sun and you won't have to pay the steeper price for other marine grade products. All my wife and I know at this point is that it works extremely well on boat covers and hulls. I wonder if it can make my Mercruisers sparkle?
William L. Gills aka Bos'n Bill is the author of the book, Lubber's Log published by Llumina Press; a boating primer and adventure story about a couples experiences in moving up to a bigger boat.
You can visit his website here.
You can visit his website here.
I have tried scrubbing with various cleaners as well. We found the best solution to the problem is a product called Clean Ayre. It is available online. The manufacturer states it is safe for the environment. We purchased a fogger and fogged the entire boat (bilge areas, closets, anchor locker, carpet etc.). We even sprayed the inside of the ductwork. The fogger has the capability of getting into places we could not reach. The product itself has minty type smell and has proven effective thus far. The manufacturer states that it will even eliminate diesel smells. We pour a small amount into the bilge areas, it has helped with any oors from standing water during the week when we are not around. I am not a slaesman for the comapnay, just a satisfied customer.
ReplyDeleteOccasionally we have that rank smell in the bilge which I think is probably a combination of oil, gasoline and salt water. We have used a pine smelling bilge cleaner and it does a fairly good job while we're at the boat lessening the odor, but it doesn't totally eliminate it. Several days later it tells me "I'm back" like Jack Nicholson in the Shining. How good is Clean Ayre in the bilge?
ReplyDeleteOkay, bought it. Will give you a read after trying it1
ReplyDeleteTried Pure Ayre on my stinking sandals (got them wet in salt water). Wow, this stuff really works. Breaks up the molecular structure of odor...how good is that! Sprayed some in the bilge last weekend. Gonna check it out tomorrow. Let you know if it busts up oil and saltwater smells.
ReplyDeleteClean or Pure Ayre, not bad, really good product! We use it in the head now, but I discovered the real problem I've been having is the holding tank filter. Change that a we should be odor free. Thanks for the endorsement of Pure Ayre. It's been added to our assortment of cleansers, lubricants and polish under our stern seat. One aerosol in the head, thank you.
ReplyDelete