bilge detergant

[jaybeegee]

My bilge is overdue a clean! I have a bit of leak in the stern gland and end up with around 4 inches of water in a week and to complicate matters the marina water is filty and smells! Will domestic type cleaning detergents do the job?
cheers
Jay

[Rozz]

powder tide, but i wouldnt dump it overboard. simple green is safe if u have to dump over.

[tomperanteau]

I recently had to clean and paint my bilge (blogged about it on my site). It was the second most fun thing that I have done just below replacing the head, hoses, and holding tank.

I used a mild detergent (anything from the kitchen) and Clorox to clean. I then used a hair dryer to completely dry the area before chipping and using a wire brush to get all the crap out so that I could paint.

No regrets and it has helped with that "boat smell" that a lot of us have come to love.

[Silvio]

Another suggestion or two. After it is well cleaned consider a couple tablespoons of non scented liquid Tide detergent when you are out sailing. Letting it slosh around in there while you sail does a pretty good job of cleaning the hard to reach areas and keeping the smell away.

Once clean and at the marina I drop a bromine tablet into the bilge. I buy them at the Publix grocery store. One tablet every two weeks or so and I don't get the funky marina water smell. These are the tablets made for use in a home spa.

Good luck and let us know what you end up doing.

[Rozz]

ooo i like the bromine idea!

[jaybeegee]

many thanks for your tips! will let you know how it goes.
j.

[pdqaltair]

Originally Posted by Rozz

powder tide, but i wouldnt dump it overboard. simple green is safe if u have to dump over.

a. You don't "have to" dump it" over. It is illegal to use soap to disperse oil and eliminate sheen. We all know this. You are only hiding the polutant.

b. Simple Green is no more bio-degradeable than most laundry detergents. This is simply marketing hype. The MSDS listing is no less agresive than other retail degreasers. Don't let the name make you feel better.

Section 3: COMPOSITION/INFORMATION ON INGREDIENTS
Ingredient CAS Number Percent Range
Water 7732‐18‐5 ≥ 78%
2‐butoxyethanol 111‐76‐2 ≤ 5%
Ethoxylated Alcohol Mixture Proprietary ≤ 5%
Tetrapotassium Pyrophosphate 7320‐34‐5 ≤ 5%
Sodium Citrate 68‐04‐2 ≤ 5%
Fragrance Proprietary ≤ 1%
Colorant Proprietary ≤ 1%


And this statement is just plain funny:
"I used a mild detergent (anything from the kitchen) and Clorox to clean."
Formula 409, amonia, EZ-off, and Cholorox are about as reactive as anything gets in the house. Fortunatly, we never read the ingredients, becausee we don't know chemistry and they would scare us or confuse us. I have no idea why anyone would assume that kitchen cleaners are more mild than laundry products.


Sorry. No free lunch.

Laundry soap is the best deal. I'm always surprised when people pay tripple for carpet cleaners, when they are simply re-packed laundry soap (same textiles, no?). I used to formulate cleaning products.

Go for it.

[tommays]

I cleaned up this fiasco with paper towels and about 1 quart of water with a bit of dawn as i am use to paying the real cost of liquid disposal and therefore don't make any

[Silvio]

tommays- excellent illistrative pics! Nice job too.

[Rozz]

my statement was directed at the original question. there was no mention of anything other then dirty smelly marina water.

tommays- wonderful pics! im very jelous of that sexyness