Inked !

[POH]

Coming out to my boat the other day, my heart sunk - it looked like I had been hit side-on mid-ship and the entire hull was cracked.

With some relief, I realized that it wasn't that one of the tinnies that fish (& drink) all night amongst the moored boats had hit me ... it was that someone had kindly pulled/thrown a squid against the side hull ... I'VE BEEN INKED!

I spent about 30 minutes scrubbing with general 'green' cleaning detergent, but the ink seems to be somewhat absorbed into the gelcoat.

Has anyone dealt with this & found a trick ... or is it more elbow grease?

[LeaseOnLife]

where are you? Tropical sun will bleach almost anything over time, even red wine stains.

[daddle]

Wash it off with soap. The sun and weather should fade the remainder away in a week. I've made big messes while jigging squid and it seems to just go away by itself after a good scrubbing.

[Hud3]

We were inked by a squid while anchored in Coral Bay, St John. I couldn't get it cleaned up, but after a month or so the stain disappeared.

[POH]

Thanks guys.

I'm actually in process of trying to sell the boat - was taking a prospective buyer out to look at it (yep - started off on a great foot there!), so I was hoping there was a trick to speed up the removal. The ink lines are gone, but there are 'smudges' that I couldn't seem to get out.

Maybe I can point any prospective buyers to your advice on this forum!

[Hud3]

You could try Davis FSR. West Marine sells it.

[cburger]

Try some polishing compound on a damp rag, by hand with a circular motion.

[Cheechako]

dry laundry detergent or TSP.

[Orion Jim]

Marykate On and Off hull cleaner is the trick. Greate for removing rust stains near your exhaust and "moustache" stains on the bow. Wear gloves and eye protection!

[jewel114]

Lysol gel toilet bowel cleaner. Paint on with a brush, wait then wash off. Then wax.

[LeaseOnLife]

FSR, Marykote, toilet bowl cleaners contain some harsh acids. You might not care since you want to sell the boat, but these acids might be doing more damage than good. If you want to go acidic, try vinegar, lemon juice and Coca Cola first.

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by LeaseOnLife

FSR, Marykote, toilet bowl cleaners contain some harsh acids. You might not care since you want to sell the boat, but these acids might be doing more damage than good. If you want to go acidic, try vinegar, lemon juice and Coca Cola first.

chemical resistance chart of polyester resins:
http://www.elink.co.in/sp-chemical-resistance-chart.pdf

gelcoat:
http://www.evercoat.com/imgs/pis/gelcoat.pdf

Mary Kate Hull cleaner MSD:
http://www.crcindustries.com/faxdocs/msds/62032.pdf

The chart shows iso resin resistant to the acids in the hull cleaner. I'd always been told gelcoat was iso resin. Above link says some low quality companies use ortho resin.

John

[wolfenzee]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

dry laundry detergent or TSP.

the active ingredient in Sip n' Span is TSP.
Gel coat by it's nature is porous...back in the days when I worked in marinas I would tak hull stains out with muriatic acid... and the customers I could talk into a second coat of wax saved money in the long run over those that opted for only one coat. Two coats of wax lasted all summer, one...not so long.