Cover Cleaning

[jreveson]

I have some road grime on my 2018 cover and wondering the best product to use to get that grime off.

 

[timmypop]

Spray&Wash and take it to an industrial washer at a local laundry mat. I do that and put it on the boat damp. 

[MalibuNation]

A lot of us wash it a 2nd time without any soap to get all soap out.  Then once dry treat with water proofing and/or UV protection.

[wdr]

When I had to on my '10, I just put it on the boat and washed it with my car wash wand and brush combo with dish soap and let it dry. If you use any cleaner other than maybe dish soap I would dilute it. I have seen streak marks on vinyl from undiluted products. I did use the 303 Fabric Guard treatment (303's claim is that it is the only product recommended for Sunbrella fabric) on my old cover and think it might of helped a little, but it was rarely left it outside. I did use the 303 FG on the Bimini and on my snap in carpet for the repellency and UV protection and thought it did pretty well in those applications.

[jjackkrash]

On all my covers I use a pressure washer with the white nozzle for general grime and high-pressure steam for smaller spots, seagull crap, etc., and don't use any cleaning products.  If you want to use a cleaning product I'd look at products designed for convertible car tops. 

[electricjohn]

Only once so far, I used the large load machine at the laundromat with 1/2 detergent on the gentle cycle.  Worked out fine.  Cover is getting old now ('03), so not letting it get dirty is my preferred scheme.

[JeffC]

Ive been looking for this thread for a while now... 

So far, I regularly hose down the cover when I pull the boat out of my storage spot (covered, but not enclosed).   The lot is dirt/gravel, and I am right by the entrance, so inside of a week I get a pretty good coating of brown dust.   When I hose it off, I get streams of brown water that if not sprayed off immediately will leave nasty streaks on the gel.    Over time, some of that dust has worked its way into the interior, so the white feltish material is dirty now too, which I believe will contribute to chaffing the gel when I tow cover on (only on bad weather days). 

Ive been thinking about putting the cover through an industrial washer, sounds like that is the right approach.  I assume NO DRYER.   I have had good luck with 303 Fabric Guard with my old boat, but worry that if I spray it on while the cover is on the boat I will get streaks on the gel too, but spraying it on while the cover is lying on the ground may mean I dont get good coverage.   Thinking I may try draping the cover over a half high fence and spray on the 303 that way. 

Has anyone seen loss of the waterproofing after washing the cover?