maharg 2 Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 Time to give the sails a bit of a clean, anyone have some recommendations? What works, what doesn't? From some reading around it sounds like bleach (30 Seconds) is a no no, as it will rot the stitching. The one recommendation I have seen a few times is Napisan. The process is to spread the sail on the lawn and wet it, sprinkle Napisan and rub in with a soft brush. Then roll the sail up and leave it for 12 to 24 Hrs and then thoroughly wash down and dry. I thought of adding some laundry detergent just before the final wash down. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Island Time 1,220 Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Oxalic acid if it's rust stains... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kestrahl 6 Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 A wet sail on the grass lawn may become dirtier than when you started. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wheels 543 Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Correct with DO NOT USE A CHLORINE BASED BLEACH. Easy to know if a product has a form of Chlorine in it, it smells like chlorine. The active ingredient of Spray and Walk away and all those similar names is, Alkyl Dimethyl Benzyl Ammonium Chloride or similar themes of that chemical. It is the active ingredient of Dettol. This product is the best if you are wanting to rid the cloth of Algae and Mold. It will not "whiten" the fabric. Percil (spell?), Napisan, Oxyclean. These detergents all have one thing in common, they make Hydrogen Peroxide, which is an oxygenation bleach. Safe to use and will not cause the thread to rot. It will help to remove dirt and grim and dislodge some algae, but does not kill Mold and Algae. It has a "Whitening" affect on the cloth.Sail Makers have a non foaming version of this stuff.What I do is open the sail out on the ground. Wet the sail with the garden hose and then spray the Wet and Forget over it. Then roll the sail up to stop it drying out. Leave for a few hrs. Open sail out again and rinse. If the sail is clean enough, then dry and fold it up. If you want it cleaner, we down again and liberally sprinkle Percil or similar over, spray on water and use a broom to lightly scrub over the sail. Roll it up wet and leave it a few hrs. Open out and rinse it all down and leave to dry again. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wal 27 Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 If you have a large wheelie bin soak the sail in it as an alternative. Use plenty of Napisan or similiar. Use the hose on full to agitate the mix and foam the product. Granules in the bottom of the bin do nothing. Soak for a coupla daze. Rinse off and dry. Dacron sails tend to continue to whiten. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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