Factory installed stains :)

T

tparrent

New member
I was getting to know my new to me TomCat today and I have to say I'm even happier now than when I decided to buy it. Going into every nook and cranny helped me see the systems and the much larger than expected storage space (now I have to fight the urge to stuff those spaces with "essential" junk I'll never use)

I also started a very deep cleaning even though the boat was delivered to me in very good shape. I'm fairly fastidious about my boats.

One thing I noticed that was also present on my CD 22 is a lot of spots where it looks like wood stain or varnish drip or sprayed onto unintended surfaces. There's not big globs of but annoying little tendrils in many different locations - sometimes on the headliner and other times on the cabin walls.

I scrubbed fairly vigorously with water and then SoftScrub but neither had any effect at all. Has anyone been successful with solvents or something without damaging the surfaces? Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures but I'm guessing you've seen what I'm talking about.

I also brought all of the cushions home with the intent of deep cleaning them. Has anyone used a carpet or upholstery cleaning service on cushions? I could rent a steam cleaner but I figure the pros could do it a lot more thoroughly and more quickly. My only hesitation is that nearly every carpet cleaning service I've ever encountered has been disreputable. I thought about taking the fabris to a dry cleaner but after trying to remove the cover from one suchion, I realized that was going to be far more work than I wanted.

Thanks for any suggestions
 
Do you have a vinyl headliner? The surface of the interior of all of the C Dorys "bleed" a product of the ongoing curing of the fiber glass. The boats are not gel coated on the inside (for the most part), and I take a cloth and good cleaner and go over all of the interior surfaces once a year.

When we got our current 25, of the same vintage as your TC 255. We used a hand held upholstery cleaner on all of the Sunbrella fabric. We went over a number of times with warm water and the vacuum to get as much of the cleaning material and any dirt out of the fabric. I have taken the covers off, but do not recommend that. We did unzipped the bunk cushions and wash them. After we sprayed the interior cushions with either Scotchguard or the 303 protectorate for fabric.
 
thataway":182ki91f said:
Do you have a vinyl headliner? The surface of the interior of all of the C Dorys "bleed" a product of the ongoing curing of the fiber glass. The boats are not gel coated on the inside (for the most part), and I take a cloth and good cleaner and go over all of the interior surfaces once a year.
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My boat was like this. The interior of the v berth compartments never really cured. Putting stuff in there ended up with the object sticking to the interior surface and leaving marks on whatever had gotten stuck. I found that a simple coat of paint solved this problem.
 
That's interesting. I never thought it might be coming from the fiberglass.

There are some of the discolored spots on the vinyl as well. Not sure how they got there unless perhaps they were transferred while cleaning?

What type of paint did you use? Have you had any bleed through since you painted it?

Thanks
 
tparrent":pb8m0q3m said:
That's interesting. I never thought it might be coming from the fiberglass.

There are some of the discolored spots on the vinyl as well. Not sure how they got there unless perhaps they were transferred while cleaning?

What type of paint did you use? Have you had any bleed through since you painted it?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I just used the same latex house paint I painted the rest of the interior with.

In my case the vberth compartments had a noticeable chemical smell and were slightly sticky to the touch. The paint cured both problems.
 
Turns out the stains are not due to the fiberglass curing and leaching out funny stuff - unless the leaching is so powerful that it's going straight through the vinyl headliner! :smileo

I'm obviously still getting to know the boat. When I was away from it, I assumed it had raw walls like my old 22. Spent time aboard today and saw that everything is covered with the liner. Really nice finish.

The berth is covered wall to ceiling with carpet. First time I ever vacuumed a ceiling!

The more I poke around, the more I'm impressed with this boat. The original owner equipped it spectacularly well and it's in new condition.

The stains are still a mystery. I'd post a photo but I've forgotten how.
 
Wonder if the Stains are glue seeping through the material. Or, as you say maybe splashed on.

If you have a photo in your album, I can post it for you. I just didn't see any photos of a TomCat.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

7_SleepyC_at_Port_Harvey_001.thumb.jpg
 
The photos help some. This could be something splashed on the headliner, could be mold which was "treated" and left a stain. This type and color are not unusual. I would first try some "vinyl upholstery cleaner". Also Oxalic acid (Crystals are available at most hardware and paint stores. Make a saturated solution. Then apply sparingly wearing gloves. TSP (Tri Sodium Phospate) also may remove the stains.

Do not use any organic solvents, such as acetone, lacquer thinner etc. There are some abrasives which could be material of last resort.

After cleaning, apply 303 aerospace protectorate (not armor all). The 303 helps to restore plasticizers which become lost with cleaning. They tend to improve UV resistance.

There are vinyl upholstery spray points in rattle cans. I have used them in a few instances--but from what you have photographed on your boat, I would avoid that currently.

It could be blood, beverage stains etc...no telling. Even sometimes the glue used to stick the upholstery in place can be "splattered"...

I tend to avoid the soft vinyl headliners. I have used very thin laminate (such as used on the interior of air planes), when we lived near Douglas Aircraft's "surplus" store. There are also liner materials, which you can glue on thin sheets of plywood (door skins) and then put those in place of the vinyl material....or replace the vinyl.
 
Looks to me like overspray of the adhesive used to stick down the ‘mouse fur’ (a SailRite product) vs old mold stains partially bleached. On a 3 year old boat, B seems less likely. The ‘teak stain’ used on the wood bases of the Sea Dog cabin lights in my boat look very similar, but it’s hard to imagine the factory techs being quite that sloppy applying it, and inside the boat no less. On the other hand, if you ran the factory and could get a 19 year old out on a drug work release program who worked for free, would you ‘hire’ her, or not?

First try this product Bob has rec’d in the past, benign, no acid etc

https://www.amazon.com/Incredible-Clean ... 455&sr=8-1

If none of the above works, and the PO denies a ‘Psycho’ type multiple shower type murder in the cabin (channelling Bob here), I simply would not worry about it. Boats get stains. Trucks get stains. Trucks get scratches from sources you will never figure out. You die and go to Heaven and the Angels will admit they have no idea what caused those scratches, and God Herself concurs. So what will you do then?

Pay to replace whatever interior trim you want, that’s what.

Best of luck!

PS if there is crud in your toilet holding tank, and if at some point in the future you plan on replacing that crud….

Cheers!
John
 
I was so relieved when my new truck got it's first scratch. It is now full of dings, pings, bumps, scratches and indentations. I honestly don't know where a single one of them came from. All I knew was that I could not prevent what had already occurred.

The mysterious boat stains don't decrease my enjoyment one whit and I'd rather be swinging at anchor than rubbing a sponge so I think you've hit upon the right solution: use the boat until it gets a little more dirt, salt and maybe even a little non-structural corrosion on it. Then use it more and worry less.
 
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