Best Cleaner for Seats

[dmoss8928]

Hey guys,

Quick question I bought my first tahoe Q4 last weekend and I'm wanting to give it a real good cleaning. Any suggestions on something I can use on the seats? Just everyday clearner? and what do you use to wash / wax your boat?

Thanks for the advice!!!

 

[glastron09]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

simple green and magic eraser works for the seats

 

[dmoss8928]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

magic eraser ummmm I didn't even think about that.... Thanks.... Its okay to use reg car wash and wax on the boat right?

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

Do not use magic eraser on your seats! It is an abrasive, you might as well get some mild sand paper out. It will remove stains, but it can harm the vinyl.

 

[superbenk]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

Do not use magic eraser on your seats! It is an abrasive, you might as well get some mild sand paper out. It will remove stains, but it can harm the vinyl.

That's a bit extreme. I restored the seats in the boat in my sig which were covered in mildew & mold using Simple Green & Magic Erasers (tons of them ) and it worked great! I wouldn't recommend Magic Eraser all the time, but for caked on grime it works really well. The rest of the time just use a damp towel or maybe some mild soap.

Before & after side-by-side

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

3m vinyl cleaner or 303 vinyl cleaner and protectant are both very good. Different vinyls will take more abuse than some others. You want to use the mildest thing you can on it and protect it from the suns rays as much as possible. Vented seat covers aren't a bad idea either.

As far as wax goes, collinite, starbright, woody's Triple X wax, mcguires polymer wax are all good. Good luck

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

I have never heard that about the magic eraser either....... I have used it on vinyl with great results too

 

[rallyart]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

Magic Eraser is a melamine foam so it is an abrasive. It is a very mild abrasive. Make sure you use a protectant afterward. Regardless of the cleaner you choose, if you use a nylon scrub brush it will help immensely. Totally Awesome is a very effective surfactant and is great for vinyl on boats. (sadly not available in Canada) You can usually find it in dollar stores.
I have had good luck with Starbrite vinyl cleaner which comes in a concentrate and winds up being very inexpensive. I use it with a brush, then wipe with a wet cloth. After I spray 303 protectant on. (I don't like the 303 cleaner)

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

I start off using car wash concentrate, water in a bucket and a little bit of elbow grease behind a natural bristle brush. If that doesn't do it, I'll try Awesome or one of the degreaser/cleaners. They'll get about anything clean.

I use 303 protectant after the seats are cleaned and dry.

One of the best tricks is trying to not get the seats dirty in the first place--keeping the boat covered and dry.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

As mentioned, I wouldn't use the Magic Erasers for general cleaning. For stubborn spot removals, sure...and they apparently work great for that.

 

[kewpie79]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

Use a jar of goop. 99 cents at wally world, cleans and conditions vinyl and leather.

 

[Philster]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

Not saying this is the issue, but... If mildew keeps showing up, it is because the seat materials are wet, rotting, moldy, etc. So, if you clean it once and it doesn't last very long, you'll know why.

 

[dmoss8928]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

I found a bottle of Awesome at the house, so I'll try that out and see what happens... Thanks for all the advice guys!!

 

[jkust]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

I echo the potential downsides to magic eraser. Even a light use can damage some vinyl/plastic surfaces in your boat. Just a light spot treatment of the embedded dirt but avoid certain areas all together. I tried a little spot on the glove box cover but that material can't handle any magic eraser. I learned quickly that the magic eraser will lighten your white vinyl to a lighter color than it should be and remove the slight uv protectant that comes on the seats if you are overly agressive. I have no idea how it would be on colored vinyl. My seats have never been 'dirty' from neglect so my Meguiars vinyl and rubber protectant does an ok job of general cleaning plus it has a uv protectant. The most I've really 'needed' to use the magic eraser is to remove toe nail polish on the sun pad which can be stubborn. By the way Walmart sells a big pack of them much cheaper than the name brand.

 

[cr2k]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

When I call a boat seat mfg. I was told to use Dawn dish soap and as hot of water as you can stand. It will clean the seats and draw out some of the built in moisturizer and soften the seats. Haven't tried it yet, just sayin'.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Best Cleaner for Seats

I'll start washing anything with the car wash concentrates purchased at auto parts stores. If it doesn't work, I'll go on to harsher cleaners.

Zep orange cleaner in a spray bottle can be bought @ Home Depot. If it'll get paint out of clothes, it'll get the dirt off your boat seats. It's very gentle to the hands--and works better than dedicated hand cleaners, including the petroleum based cleaners. I use it on just about everything.

I'm also a fan of Awesome, purchased @ Dollar General for $1.00 per spray bottle. My RV repair shop buys the stuff by the case, and has found it to be the only thing to get black streaks off aluminum sided travel trailers. But, it'll take the paint off after a few years. I need to paint my travel trailer now.

The other orange cleaners won't hold a candle to Zep. It's in a class of it's own.