Biodegradable environmentally friendly boat products you recommend

[slv]

Hi guys,

I'm really keen to focus on becoming more environmentally friendly but I'm not sure where to look. Is there somewhere I can look at a list of products I should be using on the boat? I'm sure I could be doing things better but not sure where to start.

Are you able to point me in the right direction?

Thanks,

SLV

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, SLV.

[beatlebug]

I can't wait to hear responses on this! It's a bit scary reading what's in some cleaners these days.
Right now, I am using biodegradable soaps found in most grocery stores for dishes and hands. A good way to go is making your own stuff (super cheap too!). I like to use a water vinegar mixture for mold and kitchen counters, it really works great so long as you don't mind a vinegar smell. I hear adding baking soda is really good too.



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[Sea Dreaming]

Baking soda and vinegar is gold on a dirty oven. Yes even greasy black stuff. I never believed it until I trued it myself. We had a grease fire in the oven. The whole thing was foul with grease. After the grease fire I mixed baking soda (about 4 cups) with about a cup of vinegar, brush it on and let it sit over night. All the gunk came off when I rined the soada and vinegar off. Every last bit.

The oven was dirty because I hate cleaning with that awful chemical cleaner. It burns your skin and eyes and chokes your breath.

Who knew the toxic stuff was sll hype and marketing?

[boatpoker]

elbow grease

[leftbrainstuff]

Orange oils for degreasimg and cleaning. I've been using them for decades.

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[knockabout]

olive oil is good cleaner on stainless as well as mild steel. works similar to crc and good for cooking as well
for cleaning sinks , pots etc add a small amount of white vinegar to your olive oil

[Sea Dreaming]

Coconut oil removes ablative paint and most adhesives as well.

[bravenewworld]

Or, go to GEMTEK.com (Ph: 1-800-331-7022) and select from a broad range of certified biobased (made from soy, corn, palm oil and other seed oils), non-toxic, readily biodegradable, non-reactive products for cleaning, degreasing, solvating and lubricating anything and everything in the marine environment since 1987. They also offer a broad range of specialty products for deodorizing, deicing, gel coat protection, anti-corrosion etc.. I've been using them in industry and transportation for over 25 years.

[a64pilot]

Back when we were young, I made all our own cleaners.
Price was my reason, for literally a couple of pennies you can mix your own window cleaner etc. A few drops of sudsy ammonia and distilled water, I think but am not sure ammonia in small quantities bio degrades, vinegar is a very good anti-septic if I use the term correctly, it's PH is so far to one side of the scale things simply won't grow in that acid an environment, it doesn't take military grade chemical warfare chemicals, sometimes vinegar is just as effective.
Sodium hypachlorite (plain ole bleach) is of course very effective and a very little goes a long way, and even chlorine is broken down, I think?

But some vinegar, a bottle of bleach and sudsy ammonia, a little liquid soap, and that is all you need for years. Add baking soda for an abrasive, yet somewhat more gentle than Comet abrasive.
do NOT mix bleach and ammonia of course, unless you really want to kill something, possibly yourself. I think it gives off deadly amounts of chlorine gas, but I'm not sure.

[Tugwit]

For commercial products, check out those that comply with the EPA "SaferChoice" standard: https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice

[grantmc]

Lemon juice, with a little salt for turning patina coated copper into bright and shiny.

[sailorjed3]

Dr. Bronners. We use it for dishes, showering, washing hands, etc. Inexpensive and widely available. And no, I do not work for them but have been using their product on a regular basis for over 20 years.

[Valyn]

Friend of mine has a company called BioKleen. I have used some of his stuff, it works pretty well on a variety of surfaces. All of their products are biodegradable. BIOKLEEN - Bio-Kleen - Boat Cleaning Products | Biokleen.com or you can find them at a lot of marinas and RV stores.