Mary Kates On and Off

[Max Simmons]

I think that what the stuff's called anyways.* I used it to remove the yellowing stains on the fiberglass from the bow wave last year.* At the time, I thought the stuff was amazing.* Now, the yellow is back, worse than before.* I threw some wax on the hull to protect it, but this didn't seem to work.* Any suggestions?* I'm not sure if I should use it again, or go with something else.

 

[wingspar]

On a previous boat i had there were plenty of deap stains from the power cord being left on the deck to birds, etc. Not a pritty site. I tried all the marine cleaners and stain removers from the marine store. Some worked, some didn't but none got it anywhere from being completely out. The I tried household cleaners from Comet, 409 and all the others. As a last resort I bought some "ZUD" cleanser from Ace hardware. Made a heavy slurry of it and to my total suprise the stains were not reduced, they were gone!!! Very heavily stained area required letting it sit on the stain for five to ten minutes after which the stain was completely removed. You need to buff and rewax afterword.

Last year my Caribe dingy was looking kind of dingy so I bought the expensive tube cleaners from West marine. They worked okay but still left a lot to be desired in my opinion. So one again got a big sponge and some Zud and voila!, the tubes on my dingy look like brand new.

If you can find it give it a try. It sure worked for me.

Dave

 

[Marin]

We use Magic Eraser from Mr. Clean. The abrasive quality is very low but it gets everything off the hull we've ever gotten on it. It does remove wax, of course, so if you use it you have to re-wax the area.

 

[Keith]

The MaryKate stuff is great, but expensive and very strong. The Zud someone mentioned is the same as Barkeeper's friend... a scrubbing powder with oxalic acid in it. You can find deck cleaners at home depot etc. that have oxalic acid in them as well... they work but can be hard to use on a vertical surface.

A good alternative for not too many $$ are the various toilet bowl cleaners. Sno-Bowl is the most often mentioned, but I imagine Clorox, etc. would work as well. Being viscous, they can stick on the vertical surfaces long enough to work.

 

[FF]

"a scrubbing powder with oxalic acid in it.

they work but can be hard to use on a vertical surface. "

When outfitting the old TT a big hassle is the non electro polished SS.

Our solution was to mix OSPHO with Joy and use a mild scotch brite pad to scrub.
Leaving the surface wet , the Joy would dry out anf hold the OSPHO in place where it could go after the loose iron.


A scrub or two would have the SS free of rust specs for months instead of days.

FF

 

[Max Simmons]

I ran across some Barkeepers and it took the hull stain right off. Using a sponge and keeping it like a paste was able to keep it under control.

FF, I'll give that a try on the stainless which has started to head south.

 

[Keith]

If you have "ghost rust" on your SS, the best and easiest thing I've found is Nevr-Dull. It's an impregnated wadding that comes in a blue can. You can find it at most auto parts places for half of what the marine stores charge. If it's worse, 3M's metal polish and restorer works great, as do metal polishes like Wenol, Pol, Simichrome, etc.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Hope y'all can help w/ this. I have two hatches that are made of wood and covered w/ Lexan or Plexiglas, not sure which. Both have turned yellow from sun exposure. Any way to clean this up other than replacing the Lexan? Thanks.
Mike

-- Edited by Gulf Comanche at 10:29, 2008-08-01

 

[Marin]

Based on my aviation experience (most general aviation planes use Plexiglas for the windshields and windows) once UV starts altering the color, or non-color, or clarity of the Plex, that's pretty much it. It's not a surface "coating" that can be removed like a stain. I believe the Plex itself is altered chemically. There are UV resistant coatings that can be applied to Plexiglas during manufacture or (I think) as an aftermarket product, and these can help keep the Plex clear for a lot longer than they would be without the coating.

But the best thing on a boat (or plane) that lives outside is to keep the Plex covered when the boat isn't being used.

 

[Keith]

Marin's right... the yellowing is the breakdown of the polymer molecules. Pretty much nothing you can do but replace. That being said, I have HEARD that applying ATF fluid can help them, but can't vouch for that. However, it sure would be easy to try, and nothing lost if it doesn't work. Let us know the results if you try it out.

 

[sunchaser]

Try Imar's Strata Glas cleaner. It works on my slightly crummy windscreeen. I love smoked plexiglass

 

[Benchmark]

I've had pretty good success wet sanding my venturi windshield panels with 600-800-1200 and 2000 grits on a rubber block. Was amazed at how much "dead" and yellowed material came off. I then finished with a rubbing compound (around 3000 grit) and finally a coat of wax. Not new, but definitely a big improvement.

If the panels are just starting to yellow, try Meguiar's PlastX

 

[Rossland]

On and Off is a mild acid. Very effective in nearly instantly removing yellow stains. Just spray it on with a bottle sprayer. The same chemical, much cheaper is to buy one of several brands advertised as removing rust stains from sidewalks and driveways. We buy ours at Home Depot.

But because this is an acid you must thoroughly rinse it off with water as soon as the stain is gone. And it removes wax, so wax your boat afterward, not before.

I recall some time ago on TF that someone claimed that lemon juice works too.

 

[hmason]

Sno Bowl toilet bowl cleaner also works well for hull stains.

 

[Gbinterim]

Cleaner

Star brute Hull Cleaner is the cat’s meow. Put some on a rag and just wipe the yellow off. After a rinse, wax the area and you are good to go. Been using this product the past 20 years.

 

[Panacea123]

I think that what the stuff's called anyways.* I used it to remove the yellowing stains on the fiberglass from the bow wave last year.* At the time, I thought the stuff was amazing.* Now, the yellow is back, worse than before.* I threw some wax on the hull to protect it, but this didn't seem to work.* Any suggestions?* I'm not sure if I should use it again, or go with something else.

All the off the shelf stuff works well, but for inexpensive buy oxilic acid in powder form (west marine or cheaper on line) mix with hot water to dissolve in a tank sprayer.
Spray on rinse off done!
Wax with a good quality wax will help with stains coming back.
Beware of toilet bowl cleaner it will etch any stainless steel it comes in contact with!
Living on the ICW stains are a constant problem. I can always tell how good of a wax job my detailer did because I see the blotches where he did not do a good wax job. No permanent solution. Just part of the life!

 

[Insequent]

For all you keen posters today, bear in mind the thread up to post #11 dates back to 2008. Not sure that the OP, or anyone else from back then is still working on this problem......