Cleaning Stains

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boltune

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Dad bought a new 2009 21' SE at the end of last year. Just started using the boat recently and after only a couple of family trips, there are faded orange (ish) stains all over the top side (floor, front cooler seat, around the bow lights, gunwale walls, etc.). A friend told me he thought they were from sunscreen? I owned a 23' Parker DVCC before, and never noticed these stains before. I do wash this boat with well water which I know is also high in iron but haven't noticed these stains on the other boats we also wash with the well water. Any idea what these stains are and how to get them off? I tried using bleach over the weekend and it didn't work at all. I've used BKF on my other boat and it works well on normal dirt and grim but I haven't tried it on the Parker yet. Any ideas what to try?
Thanks.
 
I have a number of items that I use depending on what caused the stain.
An orange stain sounds like iron, but in reality it could be anything.

Barkeepers Friend is a good product. Make up a paste, scrub it on, then let it sit for awhile while it works. Chlorox Clean-Up is another good product for stains. Use it the same way as BKF.

'Iron-Out' is used specifically for iron stains, and Starbright makes a product for black streaks and shoe marks that I've used successfully on random stains.

Starbright also makes a product that they call 'Deck Cleaner' which works very well, though it is a bit milder than the typical 'hull cleaner'. Still, it might just be what you need, depending on what caused the stains.

Finally, Marykates On/Off (as mentioned) is an excellent cleaner usually used to remove stains from the outside hull area. It contains an acid, so use caution (and rubber gloves) when applying it. That stuff really works well for removing tough stains. Wipe it on, let it sit, then hose it off.

Hope this helps.
 
Eureka! I've got those same stains on my boat! My wife is nuts about sunscreen so we are all covered in the stuff and some of it has titanium dioxide and zinc oxide - I've been wondering if those are the culprits. I haven't found anything that will get rid of them. I'm going to do a test and then there's going to be a list of chemicals not allowed onboard.
 
That's interesting. I have the same stains on my new 2010. I noticed the stains after the first week of owning the boat and they seem to be getting worse. I have not used anything abrasive to get out the stain but it sure would be nice to see a white deck on my new boat. They seem to only be located where the non slip part of the deck. I don't think it is sun screen. Way to much area is stained. I will take a picture next weekend when I am on the boat.
 
What I don't understand is why I never saw them on my last Parker or on another boat that we use? It's just odd that they've shown up on the brand new Parker?

Any one seeing these orange stains on their older model Parkers?
 
I just can not believe it is sun screen. On my trips sun screen has been applied once and my hands were wiped off with a towel. By the end of the day the orange stains appearded and have increased with each trip.
 
My boat is a 2006 and the stains seem to be where arms and legs have made contact with the deck surfaces - not the cockpit floor.
 
ryanc2,

That's what I don't get. Why am I seeing it now? I never saw this on my 2001 Pakrer 23'. Just odd.
 
What works well after all the stains are cleaned up. To prevent from stains happening use woody wax. Wash the decks with soap and water, rinse it, keep it wet, spray the woody wax around the deck and rub into the non skid. Or any fiberglass parts, even the vinyl, Rinse again. Rinse well, it will feel slippery at first but keep rinsing it. Let it dry. It will prevent stains from biting into the nonskid and make clean up much easier. It will not be slippery when wet. Do this in the beginning of every season. Its worked for many years for me.
 
Yeah, I'm a big fan of Woody Wax. However, this boat is brand new and I just didn't expect to see all of these orange stains after only three or four uses. Every time we use it, it gets worse. The worst part about it is we aren't applying the sunscreen on or even near the boat.
 
I would call parker boats directly. They are easy to talk to and may have suggestions. It may be in the gel coat that is creating spots {stains} as the sun hits it.
 
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