malco upholstery cleaner

[spoon03]

i hear great things about this malco cleaner. does anyone know if it is approved for marine upholstery. what i mean, is does it strip the sun protection factor that is bulit in to marine up holstery.

[sandm]

if you use it, follow up with a protectant like 303 afterwards.
I heard this from the malco rep in our area.

[Buttafewcoe]

the problem with using something you are not sure about is it takes a while before the bad decision shows

[brain_rinse]

The manufacturer of SC vinyl doesn't recommend silicone based products. You should have a flier regargding approved/non-approved products in with your manuals. It's not going to create any short term issues, but over time will degrade the topcoat and stitching. If you use it, I'd wipe the cushions clean with a wet cloth, and follow with a water-based protectant like 303.

[spoon03]

thanks for the responses...i guess i will have to pass on the malco. i prefer my seats to be a little dingy ( but they are still clean) than dried out, ripped or torn at the seams. yes, from what i understand is that silicone is a petroleum product. petroleum breaks down petroleum. that is the way it was explained to me several years ago by a guy that owned a chemical company. his example was: when you put armor all on tires, your applicator becomes black, this is the petroleum in armor all breaking down the petroleum in the tires. i am no chemist by sounds logical to me. maybe the same principles apply here.

[brain_rinse]

This is a great summarization for those that want to read up: http://www.303products.com/techinfo/vinyl1.htm

[Razzman]

Malco Leather and Plastic (vinyl) cleaner is not silicone based. It contains Alkyphenol Ethoxylate and Sodium Hydroxide in a water base. According to the MSDS and Malco it is also environmentally safe, silicone based products are not. I know this as i have the Malco and called them to verify before i bought it. Using silicone or a petroleum based product starts a non reversible degradation process in vinyl.

It has been used for years in the auto detail industry without issues. It does specify to clean with water right after use and not allow it to sit or run without wiping it up. You don't want to randomly spray it around on ceratin surfaces like aluminum. It does do a fantastic job of cleaning the vinyl but must be followed up immediately with a vinyl dressing of some sort like 303, etc.

I only use it when the vinyl gets that down deep dirt that nothing else gets out.

[brain_rinse]

Thanks for the clarification, Razz. The cleaner is water based, it's many of the dressings they sell that are not.

Spoon, I just noticed you said "upholstry cleaner"... Are you looking to clean the carpets or the seats?

[Razzman]

Hey no problem. Yeah a lot of their stuff is silicone based and probably works well, just not for this application.

[spoon03]

i work out of the country a lot, and sometimes can't get a good internet connection (we use satellites). i was looking into a good cleaner for my seats. but, i don't want to damage them.