Launder My Canopies

[CaptainNemo]

Does anybody know if it's O.K. to launder the summer canopies of my boat. Although the boat is only a year old the canopies were white and are now looking distictly grubby. Can they be laundered? Does anybody know any companies that can provide this service? Will there be any detremental effect on the built in windows if they are washed in a machine. As the canopies are quite large and cost over £2000 I don't want to think or replacing them yet. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[tr7v8]

I've always taken them off and used the hose and a brush, with neat detergent and a nail brush on the bird muck etc. They always come up well. Decasol car upholstry cleaner works very well.
Can't see how you could launder them as the coating is platicised and I wouldn't have thought would be happy.

Jim
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[Chris771]

Agree with Jim, better to use nailbrush and neat detergent then hose off. when I had the Skibsplast 700 I managed to carefully squeeze the aft tilt canopy into the washing maching feeling very proud of myself.

It came out beautifully clean, but one slight problem, on a fold it had been touching the glass of the door and (presumably on the dry spin cycles) had rubbed the plasticised coating off the canvasfor a couple of inches along the crease.

It never leaked, but the mark irritated me. Thereafter used to lay it out on a tarpaulin in the drive and hose and scrub it which worked just as well and did no further damage.


Chris

 

[tcm]

Is it sunbrella? the man told me sunbrella top gear, so no problem at all. So, whacked em in a decent wash cycle and shrank them by 40% and had to get some more for 2 grand or so, dang. Drycleaning them was ok tho.

 

[BarryH]

If they're the acrylic canvas type, dont use detergent, use soap flakes.The detergent will kill the waterproof coating on the fabric. No its not the same stuff you reproof tents with. It works by not letting the surface tension of the water droplets breakdown. The stuff you use on tents soaks into the fabric and stiffens the fabric slightly.

So in short keep detergents away from your canopies!