Tricks for removing early winter green growth from topsides

[pvb]

Personally I wouldn't use any of the above on teak decks. One use of BoatLife teak bride powder at the beginning of the year then just fairy liquid and a soft brush. At over £2k per square meter I'll treat my teak gently. I also like the grey look so don't need to clean to get that "new" teak colour. But that is an individual thing.

If you want to treat it gently, you shouldn't ever use a brush! Using Boracol or Patio Magic is a completely non-abrasive treatment which stops the appearance of green algae and, more importantly, the little black mould spots which many people think are dirt. A treatment with Boracol or Patio Magic a couple of times a year, then just leave it. The deck will go a nice silvery-grey.

 

[fergie_mac66]

Proper liquid Dettol

A few table spoons in 3/4 gal water loosens the green in mins of fiberglass in minutes and on the small bits of iroko we tried it on .Smells a bit for a couple of hours but it works like magic and easy to get from any chemist

 

[Mistroma]

A few table spoons in 3/4 gal water loosens the green in mins of fiberglass in minutes and on the small bits of iroko we tried it on .Smells a bit for a couple of hours but it works like magic and easy to get from any chemist

I think that the active ingredient may well be chloroxylenol and that's highly toxic to fish. So probably similar to benzalkonium chloride in that respect. It's probably pretty cheap, just a matter of putting up with the smell. Not certain how long the effect would last. Benzalkonium chloride does attach itself to teak (probably via hydroxyl groups but that's just a random guess). I suspect that it might break down more rapidly, but is cheap to try.

 

[Puggy]

I used Patio Magic last year, worked a treat and one spray lasted the whole season

+1. Brilliant stuff

 

[Poecheng]

Boracol is recommended by Halberg Rassy for their teak decks.

Soak your warps etc in it as well to get rid of the dirt

 

[perignon]

Never never never ever use a pressure washer, just once will ruin the teak and will remove all the soft grain. It immeasurably shortens the life of teak.

 

[Robin B]

+1 Patio Magic. Superb stuff. Spray on and walk away...

 

[bigwow]

I use wet and forget,

 

[jac]

Also patio magic.

Slosh plenty around and rub in with soft cloth or mop. Take care round the scuppers as you don't want to pot loads of it into the water.

Don't rub hard. Just leave the Patio Magic for a week or two to do it's magic.

 

[wiggy]

First time with Patio Magic this year, truly spectacular.