MOLD!

[Scarabski]

It 's not a very nice day here at camp, so I decided to poke around the boat a little since I really haven't had a chance since we got it. All we have been doing is using it. Well, my question is there a way to prevent mold? I pulled the cover off today to find mold in many places, we wipe out the boat after each use, but this time it was all over. Does anyone use anything to to prevent it?

 

[njmr2fan]

Available at home stores and Costco. Dilute it down, spray on, wipe off, or scrub in and rinse off, or lightly mist and leave on to fight mold and mildew.

 

[Eurocat]

is your cover well ventilated?
The new ones have breathing spouts on top exactly for that reason.

 

[Noko]

I agree with the ventilation being the best way to stop mold. I think some people have a fan under the cover. You could put a timer on the power cord if you can run electricity to the boat. For cleaning, Lysol bathroom cleaner or anything with bleach in it works really well. Just dilute the bleach if you use it. I'd go with a premixed bath cleaner.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

To prevent it, you must remove the moisture from the boat. That means no water in the bilge, no wet carpet etc. Make sure everything is dry before you cover it -- that can be hard due to how much it rains in some areas.

Before covering, open every compartment and every seat to allow air flow. Place a small 12" fan in the boat at one end and let it run continuously. Adding vents to your cover will help dramatically. You could also use some moisture collectors like Damp-ex.

 

[Scarabski]

The cover does have vents, fans are not a possibility as there is no electricity.

 

[njmr2fan]

How about a solar powered fan? Throw the panel in the sun, run the line into the boat? Have the access to sun? Just an idea

http://www.kotulas.com/deals/outdoo...rce-solar-fan-with-light-a-cool-thing-to-have

 

[billyb]

I put one of these in my boat whenever I leave it for more than a week (I never trailer my boat).

http://www.westmarine.com/buy/dampr...zP5OpzxSPGzuAwc5BPVkZWXRphqVoEVfPjBoC8ijw_wcB

Works really well and have never had a problem with mold.

 

[Big Shasta]

Available at home stores and Costco. Dilute it down, spray on, wipe off, or scrub in and rinse off, or lightly mist and leave on to fight mold and mildew.

I use this stuff around my house, never thought about it for the boat. I would definitely leave a coating on there to dry, I use it on my roof for the mildew stains where the sun doesn't hit. It worked awesome just spraying it on and leaving it alone but it took a couple months even though I only applied it once. Probably means the residual would work great for prevention in the boat.

 

[Glassman]

Bathroom cleaners are for bathrooms. They have lots of porcelain, tile and other hard surfaces designed to withstand harsh chemicals.

Bleach is even worse for you and the boat. Sure, bleach is great for killing mold, but it's a lot more harmful than most people think. Here at work, OSHA requires gloves, glasses and a respirator mask and use in a well ventilated area. I have to have bleach disposed of by my Haz Mat handler...maybe because Chlorine was the first agent of chemical warfare in WWI?

Do you really want your kids around that stuff?

Use the products that don't contain bleach and you'll be much better off.

 

[Scarabski]

Solar won't work either, lots of trees overhead. Which is probably the problem to begin with.

 

[cane.mba]

http://www.concrobium.com

Kills mold, and coats the surface preventing future mold growth. On a boat it might have to be an annual treatment....

 

[Gym]

To grow mold needs a food source (cloth), moisture (water or humidity), stagnant air and a dark area. If you remove just one of the necessary components mold will not grow. The easiest thing to do, in a camping situation, would be to leave your cover off. That way you are removing a food source and getting air flow.