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E4NASH
06-19-2012, 01:35 PM
Guys, gotta question. On Sunday I got the boat ready to take back to storage when I noticed two yellow crusty spots. One on my Starboard side locker and one on the rear bench. I also noticed the same thing on the top of the port side (gunnell) on the gel coat. The spot on the gel coat came right off with a quick flick of my finger but the the other two...not so much. The crusty top came off but underneath that was a nice yellow stain about the size of the top of a pencil eraser. I looks like mustard but no mustard was brought on the boat. I wiped down the interior and exterior after we pulled it out of the water as I do EVERY time and didn't notice anything. I left it uncovered in my driveway overnight to let the carpet dry so I could cover it up when I got to the storage. The next afternoon is when I made the grissly discovery.

I have tried Babes Seat soap and it didn't do a thing. I have also tried a magic eraser and all that did was make the area I was rubbing much brighter than the surrounding area so apparently my upholstery was dirty...would've never noticed.

The people at my local pro shop suggested dipping a Q-Tip in bleach and just using that on the spot to see if it comes out. It is not near any threads or any color other than white. What do you all think about that? The bright yellow really stands out (to me) and I'm already an anal neat freak about my stuff so this is driving me NUTS!

HELP!

tnbrooks01
06-19-2012, 01:44 PM
I have found that for cleaning vinyl and other with a grainy type surface you can take DOVE bath soap, cut it into small chunks and melt it in a small amount of boiling water to make it creamy or pasty. Rub that into the stained area and wipe off. When melted, the particals of this particular soap are small enough to get into the grain of the material rather than skimming over the top of the grain.

brain_rinse
06-19-2012, 01:46 PM
Sounds like tree sap. I've had a couple of stains that no amount of cleaning would remove, but after a day in the sun were gone. Hopefully that works for you. Also skip the magic eraser - it's an abrasive that will remove the vinyl's UV top coat. You'll hate brittle/cracking vinyl much worse than the yellow spot! Maybe try Malco or Totally Awesome. Just be sure to rinse thouroughly.

E4NASH
06-19-2012, 01:59 PM
Sounds like tree sap. I've had a couple of stains that no amount of cleaning would remove, but after a day in the sun were gone. Hopefully that works for you. Also skip the magic eraser - it's an abrasive that will remove the vinyl's UV top coat. You'll hate brittle/cracking vinyl much worse than the yellow spot! Maybe try Malco or Totally Awesome. Just be sure to rinse thouroughly.

Yikes! Good to know! Not sure about the tree sap though, we don't have any trees nearby. They are all in the backyard along the property line. I, too, am hoping the sun bakes it out!

Stazi
06-19-2012, 02:13 PM
Totally Awesome works great at cleaning almost anything and you can buy it at the Dollar store!

patrick232
06-19-2012, 02:16 PM
Bug droppings it what I would bet. I had them in the past and the sun will bake it out or fade it out.

wolfeman131
06-19-2012, 02:30 PM
I've had a couple of stains that no amount of cleaning would remove, but after a day in the sun were gone.

Same for me. Sometimes, doing nothing works best.


Oh, I still try and make these a 3 beers job!

brain_rinse
06-19-2012, 02:34 PM
Same for me. Sometimes, doing nothing works best.


Oh, I still try and make these a 3 beers job!

Oh you know it! I took full credit for "fixing it" and used it as an opportunity to justify my cabinets full of cleaning supplies.