Vinyl sports boat seat cleaning

[ARE]

After long term storage with no cover, my Four Winns vinyl seats are looking a bit grubby.

Does anyone have any ideas about the best cleaner or best way of cleaning and protecting vinyl seats?

Regards Anthony.

 

[kcrane]

Baby wipes were suggested a while ago and having tried them they do indeed clean off quite a bit of that ingrained dirt. Not a miracle cure, but for a quick clean up they work well, not sure what is in them.

 

[Spi D]

Any designed for car interiors - or WD40, which among others is great at dissolving dirt. Although it's lubing properties are very low (and commonly exaggerated) it will leave a nice blank(ish) surface

 

[Griffin Marine]

Rib shine
Rib revive
Available at most chandleries
Both very good
Tim

 

[CharlieAlpha]

Rib shine
Rib revive
Available at most chandleries
Both very good
Tim

+ use magic sponge on tough bits and then finish with vinyl sealer to reduce the dirt build up

 

[Trundlebug]

Mer Bumper & External Vinyl Cleaning gel is good. Like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mer-MB5-Bumper-Cleaner-Cleaning/dp/B0006TLBXU (other suppliers are available)
Auto Glym also make a similar product.

The best stuff ever was an orange gel, (the name just escapes me atow) but the factory burnt down and they decided not to continue the product. About 10 years ago. It was great for cleaning vinyl hoods, and really cheap.

Neat shampoo is quite good too though, with a small scrubbing brush.

 

[gjgm]

I used to use the paste, Astonish. Robert Dyas type of shops.

 

[Denis O]

Megs APC (All purpose cleaner) at 4 : 1 solution will pretty much clean everything off. I use it on my Chaparral at season end and it takes pretty much everything off.

 

[volvopaul]

Rib shine is very good for cleaning vynyl seating , use with the magic sponge from shops like Boyes, don't pay swindlery prices, also jiff cream does the trick.

 

[mad_boater]

Black streak remover by Starbright.

It will clean anything easily.

 

[Whopper]

Magic white sponges work well on bad stains. I also use 303 aerospace protectant. 303 also do a vinyl cleaner.

 

[Ian h]

The best stuff ever was an orange gel, (the name just escapes me atow) but the factory burnt down and they decided not to continue the product. About 10 years ago. It was great for cleaning vinyl hoods, and really cheap.
.

That was Decasol from memory a great product

 

[Trundlebug]

That was Decasol from memory a great product

Yes that's the stuff, thank you. I just couldn't recall it.
It seemed to be like orange coloured unperfumed shampoo, (which led me to try shampoo as a comparison but that wasn't as good).

 

[dpb]

By accident we found that a road traffic film remover, sprayed on and left a few minutes before wiping off cleaned our white seats completely without any effort, including from the grain in the fabric. You buy a five liter container and dilute for use. We mix and use from an old spray bottle.

 

[KevB]

As said above... Ribshine and magic eraser sponges

 

[rafiki_]

Best stuff I have found is ArmourAll vinyl cockpit shine from Halfords. Spray on and clean off with a microfibres cloth. Magic sponge for heavy stains. Great stuff and so easy to use.

 

[Nick_H]

I'd advise against magic sponges unless the vinyl is at the point of no return. Sure, they get it clean, but remember they're not really magic, they just abrade the surface to remove the dirt, and that prepares it to accept more dirt. Would you use emery cloth to clean your seats?

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

I'd advise against magic sponges unless the vinyl is at the point of no return. Sure, they get it clean, but remember they're not really magic, they just abrade the surface to remove the dirt, and that prepares it to accept more dirt. Would you use emery cloth to clean your seats?

That's been exactly our experience: magic sponges made the seats clean, briefly, and then the dirt really got hold of them. I'm now in the process of organising the reupholstering of the seats.

 

[Whopper]

I'd agree that magic sponges are abrasive. But I still use them on bad stains. 303 protectant seals vinyl well after cleaning!

 

[Marine Reflections]

This has come up before, I think Nick_H and Jimmy have been sold a dodgy batch , there are lots of fake melamine sponges out there.


Yes, melamine sponges (aka magic sponges) are abrasive, but so are the palms of your hands.


If you Google melamine foam and take the write-up from Wikipedia, it tells you that it acts like a fine sandpaper, this is misleading.
Possibly better described, melamine gets 'closer' to the surface than a normal sponge would, but it acts like a sponge, not sandpaper.

Melamine works so well due to the density and molecular structure of the foam. However, the brittle nature of the structure does make the molecules much sharper than those of a normal sponge.


Sadly, I have researched this to some extent, taking various grades of Melamine from different suppliers, and working with just de-ion water on various surfaces, then measuring results under a microscope for damage. I know it's as sad as it gets!

Melamine will scratch the clear flexible PVC windows for example, so they do scratch. With vinyl seating it was harder to gauge if any damage had been done due to the make up of textured vinyl.

The reality is (IMO) you would have to put some serious effort and several decades into abrading down vinyl seating with a magic sponge, certainly to the point where it was accepting more dirt than the original finish did.

Should you use them for regular weekly cleaning?
No, for the reasons Nick_H and Jimmy suggest. A damp microfibre is perfect.


However, it is certainly safer using a melamine sponge and water compared to harsh cleaners (truck wash etc) that root out the dirt from the grain by chemical reaction alone. This is how to make the vinyl go brittle and ruin the stitching.

I'm also a 303 aerospace fan, haven't found anything close to the abilities of this protectant.