Boat Mold and Mildew Stain Removers & Cleaners

Marine Mold and Mildew Stain Removers and Cleaners Resources and Information

Mold and mildew stains can ruin your boat’s vinyl and carpet and result in an unpleasant smell. Fortunately, PartsVu offers a wide selection of marin mold and mildew stain removers and cleaners from top boat cleaning product manufacturers, including Star-brite, Forespar, MDR, Kanberra Gel, 3M, Sudbury Boat Care and others.

Looking for more boating and marine products? Check out our complete selection of Products and Accessories or Cleaning and Care products. Or, browse our broader category of Boat Cleaners, Protectants, and Degreasers.

Boat Mold and Mildew Stain Removers and Cleaners FAQs

What are the four types of stains that you get on your boat?

The stains you can find around different surfaces of your boat include:

• Dirt and grime
• Rust and tannin
• Mold and mildew
• Scuff marks or transfer stains

Dirt and grime are your everyday stains like mud, road dirt from trailering, footprints, food, drinks, fish blood, and so forth. Rust stains and tannic stains include rust stains from metal hardware or hooks you left around. Tannins are naturally produced in plants as they break down in the water, and they leach into the pores of your fiberglass, causing those signature orange stains at the waterline.

Mold and mildew stains are those black, green, brown, pink, etc. stains caused by excessive moisture. As the name suggests, scuff marks and transfer stains are transferred from another surface to your boat. Transfer stains come from many sources, including chemically resistant shoes leaving scuff marks or marks left from dragging a rubber hose around the boat when you’re cleaning.

All four types of stains require different boat cleaning and protection technologies.

What is the type of formulation needed to tackle marine mold and mildew stains?

You can use a surfactant or a surface-active agent to tackle dirt and grime. These chemicals break the bond between the dirt and the surface it is attached to, making it easier for you to clean.

Acidic products are instrumental when cleaning rust and tannin stains. You need a bleaching agent to eliminate mold and mildew stains. The bleaching agent attacks and breaks the mold and mildew, eliminating the stain and associated discoloration. Finally, gentle abrasives can help eliminate scuff and transfer stains.

Can you use Clorox for boat cleaning?

No. It’s important not to use a regular chlorine bleach, like Clorox. Chlorine bleach causes more harm than good, destroying your gel coat, breaking down your fabric, stitching, and other surfaces on your boat.

Starbrite’s chemists have developed buffered bleach products that are safe to use and do a great job of eliminating mold and mildew stains while protecting your boat’s surfaces.

What is Starbrite’s approach to cleaning and protecting boats from future stains?

Starbrite’s mission is to walk boaters through the process of cleaning these different types of stains and protect their boat from each, so the stains don’t quickly return. Realistically, it’s impossible to stop these stains from returning completely; but our products ensure that they don’t come back quickly.

For dirt and grime stains, we recommend Non-skid Deck Wax, an excellent follow-up product to our Non-skid Deck Cleaner or Boat Wash. This product adds a nice protective layer to textured surfaces, creating a little invisible shell so that you can easily rinse off the surfaces with fresh water without the hard work of scrubbing or rubbing.

One of our marine polishes will be the best for preventing rust and tannin stains. Our marine polish seals the boat’s fiberglass pores considerably, preventing water from seeping in and the stains quickly returning. Ultimately, our marine polish deters rust and tannin stains from manifesting, but when these stains eventually do appear, you can use an instant hull cleaner to remove these stains in the future.

Our Mildew Stain Blocker is a great follow-up product for our Mildew Stain Remover and can last for several months, depending on how often you use your boat. Simply spray the Mildew Stain Blocker across the seats and other appropriate parts of the boat after cleaning and allow it to dry. Applying the product forms a protective film on the surfaces, preventing (or at least significantly delaying) the return of mold and mildew.

There’s no particular way to protect boat surfaces from scuff marks and transfer stains. Nevertheless, we recommend using a speed detailer protector. A perfect example is our Boat Guard Speed Detailer which gives your boat considerable shine and UV protection.

How does a boat cleaner or boat soap help to protect my boat?

Buildup of salt and dirt interferes with a metal’s ability to resist corrosion. Gelcoat and marine vinyl are porous surfaces, meaning they have the ability to absorb water, dirt, and grime from their surroundings. Unprotected vinyl seats are more likely to develop mold and more likely to fade and crack with frequent sun exposure. Lastly, fiberglass that is uncared for will stain and discolor more easily over time, notwithstanding simply degrade through oxidation and literally chalk away.

These are all reasons why cleaning your boat’s many surfaces is the single most important step in protecting them. It’s important to understand that there are different types of cleaning solutions for different parts of your boat. It’s a dangerous belief that household bleaches and cleaners are OK to use on your boat; they might appear to do the trick at first, but in the long run they could end up causing unwanted deterioration.

To make protecting your boat a lot easier, PartsVu has assembled a list of recommended boat cleaner products from leading brands like StarBrite, 303 Products, 3M, Meguiar’s, and more.

What are some of the best boat cleaners?

Star Brite Instant Hull Cleaner – Remove scumline, rust stains, and grassy marine growth quickly and easily with this cleaner. You don’t even have to do any rubbing, simply wipe on and rinse off the solution to reveal spotless fiberglass.

Star Brite Instant Black Streak Remover – This popular spray-on cleaner instantly removes unattractive streaks caused by water run off. It can also be used to lift dirt and grime on metal and painted surfaces in addition to fiberglass.

Marine Spray Nine – Another convenient spray bottle cleaner, this product is an excellent degreaser. It also eliminates odors, kills germs, prevents mold, removes streaks and stains caused by food or drink. It’s safe to use on almost any hard surface.

Orpine Wash & Wax – This environmentally friendly boat soap and wax comes in a highly concentrated formula so a little bit goes a long way. It’s an excellent product for removing salt and dirt from fiberglass as well as metals, wood, and plastic.

Star Brite Sea Safe Boat Wash – This boat wash is very concentrated and powerful against stains, dirt, salt, grease, and oil. In addition to fiberglass, you can use it on metal, glass, or rubber. 

Orpine Bilge Cleaner – This heavy-duty, concentrated cleaner dissolves oil, grease, and fuel from your bilge. With its fresh scent, it also effectively removes mildew odors from bilges.

Star Brite Non-Skid Deck Cleaner – This is a high quality deck cleaning product that is used by the pros. It’s safe to use on textured fiberglass, painted decks, vinyl, teak, and metal. The cleaner leaves a protective coating that repels dirt, stains, and UV damage.

Why should I regularly clean my boat vinyl? 

We always advise regular cleaning and protection of your boat’s vinyl. Your seating and other vinyl surfaces will last longer and look nice, much longer. While it is sometimes tempting to procrastinate these jobs, don’t. Always follow the steps on the vinyl cleaning product you are using, but the following is the basic procedure:

• Apply cleaner one seat or section at a time to keep cleaning products from drying on the vinyl surface.
• Spray your cleaner onto the seat and allow it to sit for about one minute.
• Gently brush the seat in a circular motion. The cleaner should be doing most of the work for you.
• Use a clean, damp cloth to wipe away the grime as it loosens from the surface.
• If you have trouble getting down into the creases, use an old toothbrush.
• Wet and wring out another cloth and wipe the surface again to remove any remaining traces of cleaner.
• Wipe the surface dry with a clean towel.