Mold prevention

[cmetzenberg]

It’s that time of the year again; the two months a year that there is actually enough moisture in the air and temperature flux to cause condensation inside my beloved boat. So as battery hatches blacken, as a fine musty aroma fills the cockpit air, how do you guys prevent mold on your dory’s? Heaters, dehumidifiers, desiccants, rare tropical snails from the amazon that eat mildew?

[AstoriaDave]

Eliminating moisture is one component. The other is eliminating food sources for mold. One prime source is fats and oils from cooking, which condense on cooler portions of the area where cooking occurs. A wipe with a good cleaner of all hard surfaces before storage will help a lot. I think mold also lives on the styrene monomer which outmigrates from the fiberglass. Nothing you can do about that.

[PaulNBriannaLynn]

Your lucky in California. In coastal PNW where our boat lives mold is almost a way of life. I wish I had an enclosed shop for our boat to reside in, but that isn't possible at this point.

Last year, I thought our solution was to use the boat throughout the winter, blackmouth fishing and crabbing and running the heater alot. I learned my lesson.

This year, when our salmon season was over I removed every single piece of upholstery and nearly everything else that I couldn't wipe down. I placed two of those damp rid buckets, one in the berth, and one on the dinette table. Its prevented a lot of the mold, but Ill have still have some scrubbing to do on all the interior surfaces in March.

I bought this boat to use throughout the year, but we just have too much humidity in the air to leave the boat out all winter with the upholstery inside through the winter where I live.

[Will-C]

We keep a small Honeywell heater going all winter while the boat is under winter cover. You can Google to get into the homebrew mildew or mold potions. Take a spray bottle and mix two tablespoons of Borax with one half cup of white vinegar. Spray on after mixing then let it sit for a half hour. The vinegar will work on the mildew and the Borax will scour the surface. Then raise off and dry the surface. I would work on making sure all compartments and storage are open and dry. The heater should dry things out. They have lots of mildew and mold solutions for sale like Lysol mold and mildew blaster etc. Take the boat down to the Florida Keys for a the rest of the winter that will probably get rid of it.
D.D.

[Aurelia]

This is a recent thread on the topic.

http://www.c-brats.com/viewtopic.php?t=22444&highlight=

[rogerar]

Here's what I use, and it really pumps the water out of the air, works on a Danfoss compressor, and is plenty heavy, but NO mold or mildew.

http://www.mmair.com/marine_division/dehumidifiers

I have seen the new Peltier effect dehumidifiers, but they generally seem to get poor reviews, but will certainly save some electricity.

Roger

[Robert H. Wilkinson]

I buy a case of the small damp traps(1.25ea.) and place them all around the boat. I also have a fan that comes on for 2 hours a day with the battery maintainers.

I agree with AstoriaDave, I used to think "I'll have to clean it again in the spring anyway". Someone explained to me that a boat should be vacuumed and cleaned extensively in the fall, including disinfecting all surfaces.

Vacuuming - any small crumbs of food left on the floor or in drawers may seem unimportant to us but to a mouse it is a smorgasbord dinner beckoning to him. Even a clean smelling boat is less attractive to rodents. Don't know about you but my insurance does not cover rodent damage.

Cleaning/disinfecting - like Dave said, less of a breeding ground for mold. You can leave 2 containers of margarine out on the counter for a month. 1 unused and the other half used. The unused one will not be moldy. The half used one will have mold in it. This mold is from the bacteria left in the container from unclean knives being used - not the margarine itself.

Regards, Rob

[Aurelia]

A related article about dehumidifying. Once you start using a powered unit, you never go back.

Eva-dry is our favorite for C-dory sized boats. We have used the petite and the 2200

http://www.practical-sailor.com/issues/37_30/features/Thermo-Electric-Dehumidifiers_11049-1.html

[cmetzenberg]

so heaters and dehumidifiers for the cabin, but what about the bilges?

[Foggy]

Mold and mildew (a fungus; Deuteromycotina or Ascomycotina) can be
eradicated from your boat.

Learn the 5 things it needs to thrive and grow.
Break one of the needs and you've got it licked (not literally).
The best source I've found about this problem and the remedy is here:

http://www.carvercovers.com/wp-content/themes/carvercovers/pdfs/MildewPreventionAndTreatment.pdf

It has the proper mixes of Na hypochlorite (Clorox) and water
and ammonia and water.
DO NOT COMBINE CLOROX AND AMMONIA. Nay sayers will suffer.

and

http://moldblogger.com/types-of-mold-cleaners

This potential problem doesn't occur on my boat probably because I'm a
sloppy drinker, especially with the "sundowners" and female company.
ETOH also repels these uninvited guests.

I know about this because I'm a fun gi ...

Aye.

Grandma used to say, "Don't like the tropics? Move North."

[chimoii]

I keep the boat in the water in a boathouse. A have a heater on a thermostat and on a timer. When it's freezing outside I have the timer set for about 6 hours/day, 4 hours when it's not. The marina charge for electricity is metered and in December and January I can expect a bill for about $30. I don't think that's bad so that the boat is always ready to go and I can leave all the gear on board. (I do put antifreeze in the water tank in case of a long power failure).

Normally I rely on the hanging bags for dehumidifying but this last fall I bought one of the Pelletier units. It did great when the weather was still warm but of course it iced up when the temp drops below 13 - 15 deg. C. To solve that problem both the heater and the dehumidifier are on the same timer. They are placed on the cabin sole well separated and facing each other. the heater keeps the dehumidifier warm when powered and they seem happy working together. The electric consumption for the dehumidifier is negligible and it keeps the humidity in the cabin between 50 and 55%.

No mold issues since I bought the boat in 2008.

[smittypaddler]

I've only used this a couple of times when I had the boat in storage in Florida; mothballs (Naphthalene and Paradichlorobenzene). You can buy disks of the stuff at Wallgreens, or used to anyway. It seems to work.

[djboat1975]

Calcium sulfate desiccants like Drierite are good for those places where you can't get a heat/airflow to.

I just put them in a ventilated container and place them wherever it's needed.

Nice thing about Calcium sulfate is that it's A: inexpensive B: reusable and C: better than anything else at absorbing water

[gulfcoast john]

Hi Conrad!
Take everything off the boat for the off season including cushions, lifejackets, and cabinet doors. Spores permeate anything not waterproof. Besides, it's a good exercise in 'I didn't even know that was here' moments. Take off the cabin floor level access panels so you can see into the bilges and how that air can mix with cabin air. This also gives a great opportunity to trace out the wiring and plumbing runs so you get to know the inner workings of your rather complex boat with its multiple systems. Compared to our houses, there are lots of areas where outside bilge air can mix with cabin air. I remove the Garelick captain's chair and bungee down a big dehumidifier, bypass the bucket and run the condensation hose down into the sink, which drains onto the storage shed floor. Set it at 55% humidity, and it puts out enough heat to keep it over 55 inside when 20 degrees outside. If power goes off, it does an orderly re-start to prior setting. .
If needed, a small cube ceramic heater can keep it over 32 inside if under 15 outside to supplement that unit.
You need good air circulation, my favorite is of course overkill for most:
http://www.janfan.com/fan_sales.asp?category_id=16
YOU WILL NOT HAVE MOLD OR MILDEW IN AN EMPTY BOAT AT 55% HUMIDITY WITH GOOD AIR CIRCULATION.
http://www.amazon.com/EdgeStar-Energy-Star-Portable-Dehumidifier/dp/B00KHSIL92
Dessicants are worthless in cool weather. We never bother to winterize, but do empty the freshwater and blackwater (marina pumpout or 3 miles out) tanks at end of season.
I was surprised to find that 3M Marine Mildew Block works quite well on all interior fiberglass surfaces, and even for a full year in extra tough areas like the inner hull and hull side coaming box surfaces ( remove the 8 screws to access). Expensive, but worth it. So I'm OC, you want that in your docs and your pilots. But that bilge overgrowth gets in the cabin through all those openings you still need to discover.
We were also surprised to find we think the Kanberra Gel Teak Tree Oil products give a nice fresh tangy smell and have significant anti-mildew, anti-stale smell activity all year long (stock up when Fisheries Supply has a 20% off sale, esp on the 24 oz refill pouch for $70). Expensive, but worth it.

http://www.fisheriessupply.com/kanberra-gel

Speaking of smell, we've tried every holding tank treatment known to man, and some known only to gurus, and West Exterminator is amazing, and comes on sales at 50% off.
Cheers!
John

[ghone]

Remove what you can especially cushions, fabrics etc. we store outside, covered with no heat in BC. Lots of moisture in the air so the boat is closed tight. All lockers are opened, any moisture swabbed out. A few Dri Z Air tubs placed around the interior. Our bilges are always dry. Outside hatches propped open to air. I wipe the interior down at storage with a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water. No mold ever found except in vee from sleeping warmth. Always dry and fresh inside. Mold needs moisture and warmth to get going.
Ventilate with a fan if you can, I don't heat anymore. Just ventilate.
George