Vinyl Cleaner

brianbo

Cadet
Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
22
I just re-furbed my pontoon boat with all new (white) seats and a new boat cover. Took it in to the dealer to do some work on the engine and when it came back the new cover (blue) had left marks all over the top of the white seats. Tried to get it to come off with some Armor All type cleaner but didn't work very well. Any suggestions on how to get this off my seats...vinyl cleaner?

Really frustrated that I spent a fair amount on new seats and they already look bad.
 

Fireman431

Rear Admiral
Joined
Sep 17, 2007
Messages
4,292
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Some people recommend Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. I have had great luck with them on gelcoat, but not so much on vinyl. I am an upholsterer and I use and recommend Clorox Clean-Up. Some people will argue about the bleach in it and the damage it can do to stitching.

The bleach content is very low (~1%) and if your upholsterer used UV treated thread, you should never have a problem. Just to make sure, wipe down afterward with clean water.
 

ziggy

Admiral
Joined
Jun 30, 2004
Messages
7,473
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

i don't know what to use. i know i've seen the magic eraser talked up big. myself. i used it on a dark purple mulberry eating bird, the other end stuff, that hit my white gel goat was a bummer for sure, let alone upholstery. i didn't get right on to it. it sat there for a bit. magic eraser phased it but the purple stain was still there. i've found nothing to remove it yet... good luck.
 

Bob's Garage

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Apr 10, 2008
Messages
590
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

I just re-furbed my pontoon boat with all new (white) seats and a new boat cover. Took it in to the dealer to do some work on the engine and when it came back the new cover (blue) had left marks all over the top of the white seats. Tried to get it to come off with some Armor All type cleaner but didn't work very well. Any suggestions on how to get this off my seats...vinyl cleaner?

Really frustrated that I spent a fair amount on new seats and they already look bad.

Sounds like you may have 2 problems:
  • Blue stains left on your white vinyl seats from your boat cover
  • A new boat cover that is bleeding onto your white vinyl seats

The 1st may be nearly impossible to correct, trying bleach only on the spots may help.

The 2nd may be a continuing problem as it should not have bled in the 1st place. A quality material, as is "Sunbrella", would not have bled. I don't know what you paid for but you didn't get the "Sunbrella".

You might try some "Soft scrub w/bleach" and let it sit on the stains. DO NOT rub it in. Just let it sit, it is thick enough to not run off immediately and may lift the stains.

If you find a magic cleaner let us know, we are all always looking for the one that actually works as promised.

Ziggy; you might try some oxalic acid (wood bleach, hull cleaner etc0 on the stain. It does a good job on rust and some other stains that other cleaners don't reach.
 

brianbo

Cadet
Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
22
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

It was a cover I purchased from boatcovers.com. The material is called "Sunburst." It is their smallest-sized cover (16 foot toon) and cost $400. The cover is warrantied for 5 years so I am going to contact them and see what they say. My fear is they will offer me a new cover but will not take responsibility for the cleaning (or replacement of the seats). I'll let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the help (any other help/suggestions also appreciated).
 

Fireman431

Rear Admiral
Joined
Sep 17, 2007
Messages
4,292
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Sounds like you may have 2 problems:

  • A quality material, as is "Sunbrella", would not have bled. I don't know what you paid for but you didn't get the "Sunbrella".


  • Don't let them fool you. Sunbrella will, in fact, bleed. The darker, solid colors are the worst.
 

Bob's Garage

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Apr 10, 2008
Messages
590
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Don't let them fool you. Sunbrella will, in fact, bleed. The darker, solid colors are the worst.

I have NEVER had "Sumbrella" bleed and I have, blue, dark blue and black that sits around on my white vinyl for months on end.

If you had it happen to you then I feel safe if saying you were mis-informeed about the product you purchased.

If you are talking about fading,then yes they may fade, but they do carry a 10 year warranty against it. And yes, the darker the colors the worse the fading, by comparison, than the light colors. But they still fade less than other, cheaper products.

A disclaimer: I do not work for, deal with, or sell anything to do with "Sumbrella". I do believe that when there is a product in the marine industry that actually does what it says, we should support it and be careful to only report supportable information, either positive or especially negative.
 

mike343

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
May 4, 2009
Messages
284
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Don't know about the rest of your problem, but my Glastron owner's manual says not to use Armor All on the upholstery. They don't say why, but my guess is that it can damage the stitches.l FWIW
 

rallyart

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Jun 7, 2008
Messages
1,175
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Malco makes a very effective cleaner. Don't use it on the water as the active ingredient breaks down into some components that are damaging to fish if it goes into the water directly. It will clean as well as anything out there. Use a nylon brush to work the surface. Don't use it to spot clean because the rest of the area will look dirty.
I've had good luck with GM's upholstery cleaner. It's a foam and sold through dealers.
 

Fireman431

Rear Admiral
Joined
Sep 17, 2007
Messages
4,292
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Don't know about the rest of your problem, but my Glastron owner's manual says not to use Armor All on the upholstery. They don't say why, but my guess is that it can damage the stitches.l FWIW

Not so much a problem with the stitches but Armor All is a petroleum based product and will dry out the vinyl after baking in the sun. Leads to cracked, brittle vinyl.
 

Fireman431

Rear Admiral
Joined
Sep 17, 2007
Messages
4,292
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

If you had it happen to you then I feel safe if saying you were mis-informeed about the product you purchased.

I run an upholstery shop and it was definately Sunbrella, since it came from the distributership. It was a dark green cover made to cover bow cushions on a 40 SeaRay. After the bleed (post a heavy rain with the new material), I sent pics to the Sunbrella rep along with my invoice and they reimbursed me materials for the cover, the vinyl cushions, and the labor to redo them. I agree, Sunbrella is a good company and they stood behind their product. I have no complaints with them.
 

Sixmark

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 11, 2010
Messages
890
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Concentrated simple green has worked for me in the past, and best of all it's eco friendly.
 

rick3452

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Oct 26, 2010
Messages
282
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

On the Vinyl, try using the Mr. Clean sponge and Bonami, Its in a gold round container and will be with the Ajax & Comet, It has no bleach, and will not scratch the vinyl. If you cant find Bonami, Bar Keepers friend is close...
 

brianbo

Cadet
Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
22
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Thanks for all the help. I'll you know what the cover mfgr. says.
 

642mx

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Apr 19, 2008
Messages
1,588
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

Im my old boat, I had a pair of red swim trunks that bled the color out the first time I wore them. The only thing that took the stain out was the sun. After a few trips out in the hot sun, the stain disappeared.

The same thing happened to some bird droppings on my sundeck. I tried everything to get the purple out of the white vinyl and nothing worked. After a few trips in the hot summer sun, it went away.

For every other stain, I use the Magic Erasers followed up with some 303. It works for pretty much everything except for the stains mentioned above.
 

SangerTom

Seaman
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
Messages
51
Re: Vinyl Cleaner

I put a sheet down on the fabric before I put the cover on to avoid the bleed. Kinda silly when I typed it out but it works.

Also, being obsessive, I put a plastic tarp over the cover to avoid the "dew" from getting the cover wet, which makes it bleed.
 
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