Getting mildew stains off of vinyl upholstery

Originally from the very dry climate of Lake Havasu, Arizona, we've just learned a hard lesson about Florida's climate. We just went to get our boat out of storage yesterday, which was a rack style indoor storage facility at our local marina. It seems the boat cover must have gotten wet sometime during the winter season. Needless to say our white upholstery now looks like leopard skin seat covers and the boat smells like mildew. Short of buying a new interior, does anyone have any suggestions for cleaning this mess?





** New photo added of stain AFTER using Star Brite MIldew Stain Remover

Ouch! Been there.... Welcome to the South(east)!

For mold, try Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser......... does a pretty decent job. If you do need to try bleach solutions, begin on the underside (at seat base piping). That is where mold is usually the worst and you can make sure the material won't discolor. The granular bleach-enhanced laundry products are a little easier to scrub with.....

Welcome to the site........... you'll get it cleaned up!   

The "regular" Magic Erasers are NOT abrasive. The new "Super Scrubber" style do have an abrasive side..... don't use those.

The regular Magic Erasers are a tip I got from White Lake (Graham) and they work great.......

Tried the Magic Eraser and it does seem to get the big chunks of surface mildew, but does not remove the deep stains. I will keep these in mind for clean-up once I get these stains out or get new upholstery.

I am on my way to West Marine to pick up the Starbrite stain remover... let's hope that works. I'll report back later today.

Thanks for the many responses in such a short time... you all are amazing!

Fellas the carpet doctor is in the house. Mix up some oxy blaster with real hot water water spray it on and give it a good scrub. Rinse it. If the stain is still there get a spray bottle add 50% non sudsing ammonia buy it at the cleaning section at Wal-Mart. In the same bottle fill the rest of the bottle up with 30 Volume peroxide buy it from Sallys Beauty Supply. Have the boat in direct sunlight spray the spots with this mixture. Let it sit for awhile. Then rinse.   After 24 hours the mixture is no good. For other stain removals go to my site www.dirtycarpets.com   Only a Pro should use that last mixture so if you smoke the cushions dont blame me. If you have to go to Wal-mart follow our family rule and take a shower when you get home.

Waldo

+1 on the Star Brite Mold & Milder remover. You'll need to apply multiple times but it works great.

Have you tried Malco or Exquisite? I dont know if they work on mildew but they clean everything else?

OK, spent the day with the boat and using star brite. I managed to get the side rails fairly clean... still not 100%, but now the stains can barely be seen. I didn't want to wade into the worst of the mess until I talk with my insurance company. Several other boaters at the marina suggest the soft scrub with bleach. I am just holding right now until i experiment in some out-of-the-way places under and behind the cushions. I have already decided to buy some skins for the worst of the damage, insurance or not. Fortunately there is a vendor in Orlando, which is just a couple of hours drive for me. Certainly I will do that for the bow pad cover and rear seats. I'm not sure how hard it will be to get the pads off that surround the open bow area. Does anyone have experience with that?

Soft scrub will work wonders, but I have heard it is really bad for the vinyl. I would be very surprised if an insurance company would pay out for replacement vinyl. I would say that is part of owning a boat myself, but that is just my opinion. What I found when I used Soft Scrub is that it works great but the mold comes back easily. This must be due to removing the clear coat someone above mentioned. After using the Star Bright product, what is the best product for protection? I have heard good things about the 303 product line.

Same as above

Here is the reply I got from 303.

Mark, here's 303's standard reply to this question. Give this a try, it's safe for the vinyl. And if this doesn't get it completely clean give me a call regarding the next step. TX, RKD
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Overview on vinyl/mildew



The key to minimizing mildew/mold is keeping the material as dry and as clean as you can. One of our products helps do this...while keeping the vinyl looking good and protecting from UV. More on that later. First, cleaning off mildew/mildew stains.



Cleaning vinyl isn't difficult, but cleaning it withOUT damaging the vinyl “topcoat” is the real concern. The largest supplier of marine vinyl to US boat builders over the last couple of decades is G&T Industries. We have reproduced their cleaning info on 303's website. Here’s that text (Notice it advises how to mix certain household cleaning agents to clean and also kill the mildew spores).



"Protecting the topcoat, then, is the most crucial aspect of properly maintaining vinyl and the subject with which vinyl manufacturers are most concerned. Vinyl manufacturers agree on and recommend the following.



General Cleaning: Never use household cleaners, powdered or other abrasives, steelwool or industrial cleaners, dry cleaning fluids, solvents (petroleum distillates), bleach or detergents. Use a medium-soft brush, warm soapy water, (such as Ivory soap), rinse with cool water and then dry.



Mildew Stains: To kill the bacteria creating the mildew, use a medium-soft brush and vigorously brush the stained area with a 4 to 1 mixture of water and ammonia; rinse with cool water. Tough Mildew Stains: Apply a mixture of one (1) teaspoon ammonia, one-fourth (1/4) cup of hydrogen peroxide and three-fourths (3/4) cup of distilled water; rinse with cool water. Note: All cleaning methods must be followed by a thorough rinse with water.



Obviously abrasives should never be used on vinyl. Petroleum distillates are a universal "no no" for both vinyl and rubber. Waxes should never be used on vinyl because (a) Most waxes contain petroleum distillates; (b) Wax is a build-up product, holding in the heat absorbed from the sun and accelerating heat damage. Virtually all vinyl manufacturers agree that no type of oil should be used on vinyl. Silicone oil vinyl treatments should not be used for several reasons: 1) Silicone oil formulations typically attack the vinyl topcoat. 2) Silicone oil formulations usually contain no effective UV screening ingredients. 3) Silicone oil formulations are build-up products which accelerate heat damage. 4) Silicone oil formulations are greasy and oily, attract dust, and soil more quickly. READ THE LABEL! Product directions suggesting more than one coat for better cosmetic enhancement are build-up products and are recommended against by vinyl manufacturers."





After cleaning the vinyl, you'll want to use 303 A. Protectant...and reapply it routinely a) to keep up the "like new" look it imparts to the vinyl, b) to protect against UV, and c) to keep up the repellency. Here's more information about that:

http://www.303products.com/shop303/index.cfm/category/206/what-you-need-to-know-about-vinyl.cfm

Waldo wrote: Crackheads. Reread Waldos thread. I finally have some useful info and you guys throw me under the bus. Waldo

I read and absorbed your tips the first time because I know it came from a pro. Thanks

Thanks for the tip! I'm currently having the same problem also but I haven't tried this yet. Nothing else seems

to work for the stains.

WhiteLakeSkier wrote: "Spray nine"!!! Takes out most everything

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Free insurance quotes

I too lost the battle... the Starbrite worked the best, but there are still light stains. I am buying new skins and having the interior redone. Thanks again for all of the help from everyone!

Waldo, some tend to stray. i noted your info..