|
|
21-05-2018, 14:33
|
#1
|
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Port Townsend, WA
Boat: Tashiba-31
Posts: 480
|
Grey Gunk on hull
Over the winter my fenders developed a grey gunk on the top of the fender. This stuff is hard and a little rubbery. I've tried cleaning solutions like 409, but nothing touches it. If I soak it in hot water the it gets a little easier to scrap off but I'm not getting all of it off. Green pads don't even touch it.
The biggest problem is that it has rubbed a big patch of the stuff onto the hull.
I need suggestions for getting if off the hull without completely destroying the gelcoat. Thanks!
|
|
|
21-05-2018, 14:57
|
#2
|
Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 67
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmksails
Over the winter my fenders developed a grey gunk on the top of the fender. This stuff is hard and a little rubbery. I've tried cleaning solutions like 409, but nothing touches it. If I soak it in hot water the it gets a little easier to scrap off but I'm not getting all of it off. Green pads don't even touch it.
The biggest problem is that it has rubbed a big patch of the stuff onto the hull.
I need suggestions for getting if off the hull without completely destroying the gelcoat. Thanks!
|
It’s a bit overkill but a small amount of acetone goes a long way. Really good for rub marks from the dock. Use a very small amount.
|
|
|
21-05-2018, 15:04
|
#3
|
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: New York
Boat: LeComte NorthEast 38
Posts: 499
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
I second that. I forgot to take a fender off for a summer a few years ago, and only got around to cleaning it this spring. doesn't take a whole lot of rubbing, but you have to do small patch at a time since acetone evaporates quickly.
|
|
|
21-05-2018, 16:18
|
#4
|
Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 2,007
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Quote:
Originally Posted by antoha
I second that. I forgot to take a fender off for a summer a few years ago, and only got around to cleaning it this spring. doesn't take a whole lot of rubbing, but you have to do small patch at a time since acetone evaporates quickly.
|
Before you go to acetone, which will work, but it is so very flammable...
You might go to the local paint store and get some "Goof-Off" a mixture of various solvents that are really good at getting stuff like this off. Handy to keep around...
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 08:52
|
#5
|
Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Clear Lake, TX
Boat: Kadey Krogen 38
Posts: 236
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
I use MEK. Really bad for ones health but it removes this stuff quickly. Use chemical gloves and avoid breathing fumes.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 09:03
|
#6
|
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: N Palm Beach
Boat: Catalac 12 M
Posts: 40
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Scrape carefully with a single edge razor blade then use acetone
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 10:12
|
#7
|
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Gone sailing! Please don't tell our adult kids where we are!
Boat: Downeaster 38
Posts: 297
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Quote:
Originally Posted by billknny
You might go to the local paint store and get some "Goof-Off" a mixture of various solvents that are really good at getting stuff like this off. Handy to keep around...
|
As suggested above... this stuff has all kinds of names. Goo Gone, Goop Off, etc. It works! It will get rid off any sticky stuff. (like left over old duct tape goo, rub marks on hull, etc.)
Also, there is a product called "Awesome". Learned about it from fellow cruisers. I buy it at the $1 store. It is a boater's best friend. It will turn yellowing lifelines white used with a scrubber sponge. Great on any yellowing or discolored white plastic/rubber. Like dorade vents, cowls, winch holders etc.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 10:18
|
#8
|
Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Panschwitz, Germany
Boat: Woods Mira 35 Catamaran
Posts: 4,205
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
One more option is ice spray to freeze it hard and then scrape it off.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 10:55
|
#9
|
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Skagit City, WA
Posts: 25,453
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
MEK, Acetone, Lacquer thinner will usually remove that stuff. Some work better than others on certain things. Even less extreme paint thinner may work.
MEK has a bad rep, but mostly based on extreme testing and California saying most everything causes cancer.. As a former Health, Enviro industrial guy I read and researched a lot about it. The testing they do is gross, they inject it directly into rats at increasingly higher levels until they eventually and occasionally get cancer. I really doubt getting it on your hands now and then will do anything. JMHO.
__________________
"I spent most of my money on Booze, Broads and Boats. The rest I wasted" - Elmore Leonard
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 12:04
|
#10
|
Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Kingston Ont Canada
Boat: Looking for my next boat!
Posts: 3,101
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
I have had great success cleaning with WD40. Works great on duct tape goo and other super sticky stuff. Since you already have it aboard, worth a try. Its good for your arthritis too.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 12:22
|
#11
|
Writing Full-Time Since 2014
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Deale, MD
Boat: PDQ Altair, 32/34
Posts: 9,559
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Xylene is a closer match for the chemistry and will take it right off the hull. Zero risk to the gelcoat.
It looks like plasticizer bleed from the fender. Realistically, this means the fender is trash.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 15:20
|
#12
|
Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 687
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
This does seem to be an ongoing problem. Irrespective of brand, the soft material used always seems to exude or decay (UV?) resulting in this dark material. It may well be plasticisers and I am sure the chemists will have investigated. My own experience has shown that sometimes the plastic develops small holes which may ultimately leak.
The solution adopted by the wife was to commandeer my old T shirts and adapt them to fit over the fenders. Just avoid the highly coloured ones and keep the cotton out of the water (everything grows on it). Works reasonably well and keeps me in new T shirts.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 17:09
|
#13
|
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Gone sailing! Please don't tell our adult kids where we are!
Boat: Downeaster 38
Posts: 297
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Quote:
Originally Posted by hamburking
I have had great success cleaning with WD40. Works great on duct tape goo and other super sticky stuff. Since you already have it aboard, worth a try. Its good for your arthritis too.
|
And it will remove that foggy glaze from your car's plastic headlight lenses too. (use an old terry cloth sock or towel)
Or... I guess you could try Windex. The Dad in the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding used Windex for everything. Cuts, pimples, warts, boat fenders, etc.
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 19:32
|
#14
|
Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2017
Posts: 18
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
Mcquiwer’s h d cleaner works and no fire danger
|
|
|
22-05-2018, 19:46
|
#15
|
Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Olympia, Washington
Boat: 1979 Mariner Ketch 32-Hull 202
Posts: 2,124
|
Re: Grey Gunk on hull
3m Adhesive Remover, no damage.
Not too expensive.
Cheers
SV Cloud Duster
|
|
|
|
|
Thread Tools |
Search this Thread |
|
|
Display Modes |
Rate This Thread |
Linear Mode
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
|
Advertise Here
Recent Discussions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vendor Spotlight |
|
|
|