Mildew

What is best product to clean up light mildew on upholstery without damaging it?

zep from home depot. Mildew and mold remover, spray it on and rinse it off. dont do it in the sun or t will leave streaks.

Tim,I did the same thing years ago in a car,and learned the hard way. I wonder why it likes armor all?

i used Tilex Bath for mildew removal. Worked great and the mildew was bad on this boat. ( Families' MasterCraft, so who cares) What does everyone use for the interior to keep it looking good and not dry out?

I have used Scrubbing Bubbles bathroom cleaner (stuff in the green aerosol can) for cleaning the vinyl upholstery when it was really dirty. Spray it on and work it in with a stiff brush, then rinse, dry and follow up with some 303. I don't know if I would take bathroom cleaner to a brand new boat but it has worked really well for me on my old original vinyl. Makes it nice and white and seems to soften it up as well.

I agree 100% with skutsch on the "Babes" products...works great on my '87 and helps keep the vinyl not only clean but supple. You have to be very careful with cleaners since some will absolutely take the conditioning out of the vinyl and even make it more likely to mildew. Use "Babes" available in the CCF store and you will help support the site also

Exquisite for the vinyl, my boat was mint when I got it and that stuff literally turned it a color I haven't seen. You get it of eBay, follow the instructions it's amazing what it will do. I like to follow it up with the Babes seat saver, not a slick as the 303. I also spot clean with the Babes Seat Soap and a brush, if I use the Exquisite then you end up doing the whole boat so I save that for the complete detail times.

The Babes Boat Bright is good too, but it won't get all of our water spots, I mix it with vinegar and water 1 part each. It takes all the spots off, and also shines after a couple of applications. Last year I did a coat of Colinite Fleet Wax and then hit it with vinegar and water for the wipe downs to seen how it did. It lasted about a month with 3 or 4 wipe downs a week. This year I did 2 coats and so far towel drying is all it needs. I'll add the Babes to the mix when it starts to wear off and then the vinegar once the wax is gone and the Babes stops working. Hope to only have to detail 2 times this year instead of the usual 3.

the 303 did the same thing in a car I was storing

bought a 16 oz $12 bottle of that starbrite mold and mildew, got home and read contents: sodium hypochlorite and sodium hydroxide, pretty slick it dont just say BLEACH and LYE. yeah it works great on mold and mildew but it with eat your stitching right up and bleach the color out of the carpeting on contact. I would not recommend using this on your interior. if I had wanted bleach I could buy a gallon for $1.50.... taking it back

Thanks oledawg, I will try it

skinaut wrote: bathroom cleaners usually contain bleach which is great for mold and mildew, but will dry out the vinyl and also quickly eat the stitching. so you end up busting at the seams. I like the 303 but it made it mold bad when I stored the boat in a non climate controlled garage

on the back of the 303 bottle it is very specific about wiping the excess off, was this done? Curious because I just happened to look at the bottle today before almost buying some. I bought the fabric protectant instead for my cover. the 303 Cleaner was uber expensive and until I read reviews of its performance I decided to pass. Anxious to see how well the fabric protectant performs on my sunbrella. it's the only product Sunbrella actually endorses.

thanks for the tips Lee!