Eliminating Diesel Fuel Odors

[wallandj]

What are everyone's favorite cleaners for eliminating residual diesel fuel oil odors in/around the engine compartment? The engine and pan probably need a good wipedown with a product that will pick up the diesel and leave a more pleasant smell.

Thanks.

Dave
Horizon

[forsailbyowner]

I usually degrease with the gunk engine degreaser, then put liberal amounts of laundry detergent over whole area before scrubbing then hosing off. I just bled out system and changed filters so memory is recent.

[George Raffa]

I apply Simple Green then spray area. If needed take diesel absorption pads and cut then into 2 inch squares and spread the pieces around after you spray. The smaller squares get into area that the large sheets can not. I leave the squares in the engine room after remove the water for a few days then remove. Good luck.

[bobfnbw]

Ocean navigator has a new piece out on this. I just ordered some of the products mentioned, and will see how it goes.
Simple green is a good degreaser. My bilge is pretty terrible right now (new boat) with diesel, oil and plenty of crud down there. Just pulled a large water tank yesterday, and found this out. One of my bilge pump strainers is so choaked with it it has no chance of pumping much.

Clean Water Solutions, Inc. - Product Line

Tiny bilge-cleaning crew | Articles & Archives | Ocean Navigator: The magazine for long-distance offshore sailing and power voyaging

[colemj]

Orange-Glo cleaner. Another is a citrus-based engine degreaser. I have cleaned up a lot of diesel with these and they work great. Smell completely removed. The Orange-Glo will also remove diesel smell from clothing in the wash.

Mark

[David M]

Dawn dish soap. I also keep a few oil sorbs down there so they pick up any oil before it becomes a huge mess.

[rjrendemd]

I have always used dawn to remove the oily base first and have found that an application of Kalgon water softener or woolite mixed in about a 1:3 ratio will remove the lingering odor of diesel. This works well on cushions and clothes that smell of diesel after being in the boat for a while as well as the bilge itself. However I went to the trouble of searching the web for other methods and there seems to be a consensus that other methods work too. After removing the oily base with a detergent you can spread ground coffee right out of the can, leave it for a few days and then vacuum it up with a wet-dry vac. Your boat may not smell like diesel any longer but don't be surprised if a passerby on the dock orders a grande latte! There are several ozone generators on the market that claim they remove bilge and holding tank odors but not one of them talks about excessive oxidation. Fabuloso is a great Passion fruit deodorizer that has some bactericidal action that also smells better than lysol. I usually keep several bottles of it and pour it into the bilge after a few days at sea when the boat seems riper than usual. It works great as a bathroom cleaner as well. There are advertized natural products with enzymes and safe-to-humans bacteria that are supposed to work by digesting the "bad bilge spirits" that I have had no experience with.

[BassAckwards]

For odors I buy white vinegar in gallon jugs and use in a pump up sprayer. The sprayer will reach all areas of the engine room, bilge, and head. You dont need anything else than vinegar for odors.

Some jerk spilled gasoline in one of the marina dock carts and everyone was trying different but unsuccessful remedies to kill the odor. I sprayed it down with vinegar and since many at the marina started using vinegar too.

When I leave the boat I flush a mix of 50/50 white vinegar and fresh water through the head.

If the engine room needs degreasing I buy a gallon container of Simple Green and use the pump up sprayer, then finish with the vinegar.

Not only is my boat odor free, but it now has a lot more storage because I dont need all the "magic odor eliminating" chemicals.

[rjrendemd]

But does it smell like a salad?

[BassAckwards]

Originally Posted by rjrendemd

But does it smell like a salad?

Surprisingly no vinegar odor after a few minutes; course, when I use it for sunburn nobody loves me. ( I know how a wet dog feels)