Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

[SoulWinner]

Every year we apply that 303 stuff that is real expensive and says it will control mildew and every spring we uncover the boat and the seats look like something that got lost in the back of the refrigerator. I was kicking around the idea of putting a couple of UV grow lights under the boat cover and turn them on occasionally during the winter. I think I might be on to something.
This year we uncovered the boat and attacked the mildew, and this year it was unusually tenacious and we just couldn't get it all cleaned off the seats. So we decided to leave the cover off for a while and try cleaning it again in a few days. When we went to clean it again, the remaining mildew stains were almost completely gone. A week of exposure to direct sunlight and vioa la, mildew is in submission. So what I'm gonna do this year year when we build a shed for the boat is install UV lights over the boat to control mildew. Beats the heck out of all that scrubbing.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

Sun bleaching. How about some ventilation and air movement to prevent the mildew?

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

Good reading here http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/HE633

 

[SoulWinner]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

Hey Bob, thanks for the link. Interesting reading for sure. Fans are another option that we are thinking about. I think the number one thing we should try to do i get a shed to put the boat under. As it is the boat sits under a mooring cover that snaps around the boat and the only ventilation is under the two side doors and the front gate. The top is not waterproof, so when it rains it weeps in, and with Florida's high humidity it stays dark, damp and warm under the cover. Ideal circumstances for mildew. If I had a shed to park the boat under I could leave the cover off so that it could get more air circulation. I was really amazed at how much the sun could bleachthe stains in just a week.
I really love this boat, but it's a big honking thing to have to provide housing for.

 

[coolguy147]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

well ill tell u what. i clean this ugys pontoon about every 2 weeks right. the mold on there just wouldnt come off. so i took ur regular spray bottle like windex and poured it half with bleach and other half with water. spray the whole pontoon with it even the toons. let it dry so it doesnt hurt the environment. then pressure wash( what i do) or scrub it and wash off


tell me what u get

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

this is what i do, and it sits in the sun. air gets under the cover and no problems. just a center support with feet.

 

[rentprop1]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

it's a big honking thing to have to provide housing for.

I got lucky and there was one of those $ 795 carport deals when we moved to this house, I keep my pontoon under that but also with a cover to keep the forrest dust off.

I would be cautious with the grow lights, I had a buddy down south that used to fly an airplane under contract for D.E.A. they mounted a FLIR ( forward looking Infra Red ) camera on it and used to fly patterns over the neighborhoods looking for Illegal marajuana grow houses...might get an unwanted visit by some LEO types...lol

 

[SoulWinner]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

tashasdaddy, my dad does something very similar with his boat and he doesn't have nearly the mildew that I do. I think my mooring cover must just keep the air in there too confined.

I don't want to use any bleach on it because it sits on a galvanized trailer, and galvanized metal doesn't like chlorine. I know that it would be really diluted and everything, but there has to be a better way.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

soft scrub, scrubbing bubbles. you are in Florida, the land of humidity and mild dew, ventilation is the # 1 key to keeping it down. i remember as a kid, before airconditioning. that places like the hall closets, the walls would mildew, and things in there would get it also. stuffy, closed humid places.

 

[samo_ott]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

Wow... You remember the time before AC??? What was it like back then?

 

[TheDude]

Re: Mildew....AAARRRRRGGHHHHHH

Wow... You remember the time before AC??? What was it like back then?

It was a time of tight blue jeans and sweaty ballz...