a little bleach on dock lines

[LenBuchanan]

Hi all,
I have been soaking my dock lines and spring line in a very gentle laundry detergent, Dreft, which is for babies and people with skin issues. I have noticed that a few of my lines have a little 'green' in some of the twists. My dock lines are 3 strand nylon.
Can I add a very little bleach to the water to eliminate some of the 'growth' or will it damage the lines? I am talking very little bleach.
TIA

 

[LenBuchanan]

Just read the article from Practical Sailor in another post. Basically says NO to bleach on any line. Sorry, should have searched first.

 

[kthoennes]

I used a little bleach -- very dilute, maybe a capful in a bucket of water, on the vinyl upper helm seats on our boat to clean off mildew and it seemed to weaken the vinyl fabric considerably. Different material composition I know, but it made me very cautious with bleach in general. Makes me wonder if "shocking" my house water tanks with a little bleach every spring does any long term damage to the water lines.

 

[koliver]

Just read the article from Practical Sailor in another post. Basically says NO to bleach on any line. Sorry, should have searched first.

Drat
That means those lines I have rehabilitated using a strong bleach solution are ruined. Oh well, they have served me well for years and years and years.
I especially like bleaching the mooring buoy pennant that hangs in the water for weeks or months, then is covered with sea growth that won't go away without using a strong bleach solution.
They come up like new.
I buy the kind of bleach that comes in a plastic jug. My mooring lines are nylon.

 

[J.T kearney]

Hi
Have you tried Oxiclean ? Its worked well for me.
Cheers J.T.

 

[SteveK]

Drat
That means those lines I have rehabilitated using a strong bleach solution are ruined. Oh well, they have served me well for years and years and years.
I especially like bleaching the mooring buoy pennant that hangs in the water for weeks or months, then is covered with sea growth that won't go away without using a strong bleach solution.
They come up like new.
I buy the kind of bleach that comes in a plastic jug. My mooring lines are nylon.

sorry Keith, you are going to hell.

 

[TJM]

Just reinforcing what has been said. Bleach deteriorates certain plastics, reduces the strength. The characteristic that kills mildew is the oxidation side of it, that also breaks down certain plastics. Chemistry is a unique field. For example, look at the differences in Acrylic vs Polycarbonate? One is very strong, one scratches easy, one yellows and cracks in the sun light.

 

[kthoennes]

You're definitely right on chemistry and the variable characteristics of materials. I'm still amazed at U/V damage to a polypropylene web strap for the fuel can tie-down on a cheapie Bestway dinghy we bought recently. I'm in South Dakota, not the tropics so the sunlight isn't nearly as direct as say Key West, but in one season of exposure, the webbing completely disintegrated to bits. One summer of sunlight almost turned the straps to powder. Meanwhile the nylon web straps on the Zodiac dinghy lasted 7 years and still look fine. (Even though poly and nylon are both susceptible to UV damage.)

 

[Comodave]

You're definitely right on chemistry and the variable characteristics of materials. I'm still amazed at U/V damage to a polypropylene web strap for the fuel can tie-down on a cheapie Bestway dinghy we bought recently. I'm in South Dakota, not the tropics so the sunlight isn't nearly as direct as say Key West, but in one season of exposure, the webbing completely disintegrated to bits. One summer of sunlight almost turned the straps to powder. Meanwhile the nylon web straps on the Zodiac dinghy lasted 7 years and still look fine. (Even though poly and nylon are both susceptible to UV damage.)

Sunbrella makes webbing. It lasts very well.

 

[kthoennes]

Sunbrella makes webbing. It lasts very well.

Oh, that whole Bestway/Hydroforce dinghy was a big mistake, the webbing was only par for the course... Lesson learned.

 

[Bmarler]

I put my lines in a mesh bag and run them through a washing machine. No need for bleach, oxy booster is good, as well as fabric softener.

 

[Dougcole]

Drat
That means those lines I have rehabilitated using a strong bleach solution are ruined. Oh well, they have served me well for years and years and years.
I especially like bleaching the mooring buoy pennant that hangs in the water for weeks or months, then is covered with sea growth that won't go away without using a strong bleach solution.
They come up like new.
I buy the kind of bleach that comes in a plastic jug. My mooring lines are nylon.

Same here. Ive soaked my lines in a 5 gallon bucket with about 4 ounces of bleach, a squirt of dawn and 3 or 4 gallons of water plenty of times. I’ve seen zero damage to the lines. Some of my lines are 10 years old, have been bleached two or three times and held up for hurricane Ian.

 

[Dougcole]

I used a little bleach -- very dilute, maybe a capful in a bucket of water, on the vinyl upper helm seats on our boat to clean off mildew and it seemed to weaken the vinyl fabric considerably. Different material composition I know, but it made me very cautious with bleach in general. Makes me wonder if "shocking" my house water tanks with a little bleach every spring does any long term damage to the water lines.

Sorry, but there is no way a capful (maybe an ounce?) of household bleach h in a bucket (3 gallons?) of water weakened your vinyl. Bleach just isn’t that strong. Unfortunately, it sounds like you have some other issue with your vinyl.

 

[psneeld]

Sorry, but there is no way a capful (maybe an ounce?) of household bleach h in a bucket (3 gallons?) of water weakened your vinyl. Bleach just isn’t that strong. Unfortunately, it sounds like you have some other issue with your vinyl.

Sounds about right...either times have changed vinyl, bleach or it was that vinyl.

When I worked for a Sea Ray dealership, on pre-delivery to new boat owners, sometimes someone would accidently mark white vinyl with an ink pen. Stood out like crazy.

We would take a rag with straight bleach and place it over the mark for hours.

It would work pretty well on the mark and I don't think any boat ever came back to us with a distinctive bad spot in the vinyl. We did wash and reapply a vinyl care product afterwards.

That was an extreme measure. Most cleaning care instructions always suggest using the mildest cleaner first and working your way up in harshness.