Bird poop
- Thread starter cbarbato
- Start date
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Let me be a bit crude here to shed some light on the problem:
For a few years I kept my boat on a mooring a few hundred yards from the main marina. I tried adding the wind whirlygigs but the birds ignored them when it was calm. They would catch fish, clams, mussels, etc and bring them on top of my boat to eat. They would leave the fish and shellfish remains behind as well as their poop.
After a week or so in the sun this stuff would form a tough polymer like coating on the fiberglass. Fortunately I only had an aft bimini and they seemed to prefer the hard top to the sunbrella.
I tried everything including harsh solvents like acetone to get it off. The only thing that sort of worked was an electric disk sanding pad with a heavy coating of rubbing compound smeared on it. That would finally work through the coating without taking off too much gel coat.
I later found if I could stop it from happening by docking my boat at the marina, then after another few weeks in the sun it would begin to crack, crumble and turn to powder and come off much easier with just soap and water.
I realize that this won't help you with poop on the Sunbrella, but it's my story to tell, so I just told it.
David
For a few years I kept my boat on a mooring a few hundred yards from the main marina. I tried adding the wind whirlygigs but the birds ignored them when it was calm. They would catch fish, clams, mussels, etc and bring them on top of my boat to eat. They would leave the fish and shellfish remains behind as well as their poop.
After a week or so in the sun this stuff would form a tough polymer like coating on the fiberglass. Fortunately I only had an aft bimini and they seemed to prefer the hard top to the sunbrella.
I tried everything including harsh solvents like acetone to get it off. The only thing that sort of worked was an electric disk sanding pad with a heavy coating of rubbing compound smeared on it. That would finally work through the coating without taking off too much gel coat.
I later found if I could stop it from happening by docking my boat at the marina, then after another few weeks in the sun it would begin to crack, crumble and turn to powder and come off much easier with just soap and water.
I realize that this won't help you with poop on the Sunbrella, but it's my story to tell, so I just told it.
David
Last edited:
Comodave
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First try soap and water. If that doesn’t work you can use bleach. Sunbrella recommends bleach. They even had a sample in a jar of bleach at a boat show to demonstrate that the bleach would not damage the Sunbrella. Then use 303 protectant to replace the waterproofing and it will also help next time you have to clean the Sunbrella.
If you do use bleach on the sunbrella , be sure of the stitching material first. Sunbrella is acrylic, and very good with bleach, but not every canvas shop uses bleach resistant thread. I’ve had to hand stitch things back together more than once when the thread gave out.
Comodave
Moderator Emeritus
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- Au Gres, MI
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- Black Dog
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- Formula 41PC
I only use Tenara thread because it lasts as long as the fabric will. Never need to restitch.
1. Prevention
2. Hard scrubbing with a strong brush and a stronger cleaner. Shell Busy, contains TSP, so works fairly well.
2. Hard scrubbing with a strong brush and a stronger cleaner. Shell Busy, contains TSP, so works fairly well.
Hippocampus
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Take it off and put it in the largest plastic mixing trough you can find. I bought one from a cement supplier. Put the canvas in it and let it soak. Then power wash off what you can with the 20 degree nozzle and a gentle touch. Then rinse. Then soak with baking soda and Dawn for a few days stirring occasionally. I use a wooden spatula to scrape more off. Also a nylon brush. Rinse and repeat until clean.
Find cormorant poop the worst. Like iron when dried. Acidic enough to discolor things. But soaking and agitation with a bit of patience gets guano off with a minimum of damage to your canvas. I dump a full bottle of the high tech fabric restorer in with the last rinsing soak. Expensive stuff but I think it does keep the fabric waterproof.
Find cormorant poop the worst. Like iron when dried. Acidic enough to discolor things. But soaking and agitation with a bit of patience gets guano off with a minimum of damage to your canvas. I dump a full bottle of the high tech fabric restorer in with the last rinsing soak. Expensive stuff but I think it does keep the fabric waterproof.
