Of Mildew, Cleaning and Waterproofing

wayner · May 20, 2008, 02:17 PM

Well we have tried almost everything short of setting the tenting on fire to clean up the mildew from the fall/winter/spring condensation. But I was into an rv dealer today that deals with Fleetwood... and he told me that I should get this bottle of stuff, a soft bristle brush and it should come out... I said, okay, I am desperate I will give it a try.

Then I said, what about waterproofing... he said... just wet the fabric down and let it dry... Now I have heard of doing that for old wooden buckets and barrels but have any of you ever done it with the tenting on your pop-up?

He said just water it down, let it dry and "bob's-ur-uncle"...

then of course I realized I didn't have my wallet.. so I didn't get to try out his wonderfulfantistic mildew remover... I can't remember everything...

webworks · May 20, 2008, 09:31 PM

Living on the coast of Oregon I see my fair share of mold and mildew...
There are several products that remove mildew stains and/or prevent recurrences.

THESE PRODUCTS DO NOT CONTAIN BLEACH and there are no strong odors.

This is a popular new fix/preventer that is on the market: http://www.damprid.dsiwebbuilder.com/index.asp?cat=173078

This is popular as well but not as easy to find...
http://www.concrobium.com/

Hope that helps~

sewserious · May 21, 2008, 04:53 AM

If IIRC, you have sunbrella tenting on your camper. Use a 50/50 bleach and water solution. You need something that will kill the mildew and mold or it will just come back. Use a garden sprayer to spray the solution on evenly, let it sit a minute, and then rinse very, very well. I would recommend taking the tenting off to clean it so you can use copious amounts of water to rinse without worrying about getting more water in the camper.

Do you have the owner's manual? It tells you how to clean your tenting and all about how or when to waterproof. If you don't have one, you can download a copy at //www.popupportal.com

wayner · May 21, 2008, 07:03 PM

Quote from: sewseriousIf IIRC, you have sunbrella tenting on your camper. Use a 50/50 bleach and water solution. You need something that will kill the mildew and mold or it will just come back. Use a garden sprayer to spray the solution on evenly, let it sit a minute, and then rinse very, very well. I would recommend taking the tenting off to clean it so you can use copious amounts of water to rinse without worrying about getting more water in the camper.

Do you have the owner's manual? It tells you how to clean your tenting and all about how or when to waterproof. If you don't have one, you can download a copy at //www.popupportal.com

Well I don't think I will be using a garden spraying on the inside with the bleach solution... the mildew is on the inside not on the outside... The manual says to use woolite and that was about as useless as the Toronto Maple Leafs during hockey season...

webworks · May 22, 2008, 12:29 AM

Try the mildew stain remover plus blocker in my previous post... It costs around $8 and as I recall has no odor... If it does not remove the stains at least it will render the spores inactive and prevent a future outbreak

SpeakEasy · May 22, 2008, 05:30 AM

Be very, very careful if you use bleach or anything with bleach in it (most all the mildew removers have bleach in them.) Use as diluted a concentration as will work. The bleach will destroy fabric. That's why you have to be absolutely thorough in rinsing it out. Even if your SunBrella material is not harmed by the bleach, the stitching that holds it together will be.

Concerning waterproofing - after you are all finished with the cleaning job, let the fabric dry thoroughly and then spray it with a silicone waterproofing. It will take quite a bit of that stuff to coat it completely. Spray it on the outside surfaces.

-Speak

PattieAM · May 22, 2008, 08:15 AM

Your owner's manual should have a section on mold and condensation - but when storing your PUP, you might want to use some "Damp-Rid" to help with the humidity.

My owners manual for my 06 Niagara says to clean the vinyl bed end covers - interior cloth - with water and mild soap such as Dreft - lubricate zippers with paraffin wax. Clean hte mattresses with 5% solution Dawn Dish washing detergent and 95% water - (spot cleaning).

Water repellent - 303 High Tech Fabric Guard - allow to dry thoroughly before closing.

linenoise · May 22, 2008, 10:42 AM

http://good-times.webshots.com/album/560547437BInjcX?vhost=good-times

I used a product called Instagone, it worked surprisingly well.

I had another camper will crazy water stains and he said if I were to spray it on and let it soak it would do wonders. I think it's like oxyclean on steroids.

I don't think I Camp Dried it yet though, but I think I am going to use 303

wayner · May 23, 2008, 04:51 PM

my wife went at the trailer tenting last night with this stuff called "Best" mold and mildew remover.... it seems to have worked very well. It got out what everything else wasn't getting.. cleaned it up very nicely.. woo hoo... I don't think a little bit of bleach diluted used once a year is going to eat the fabric. but after she cleaned the mildew and dirt she washed it again with the woolite and water solution just to finish the job.

Thanks for the advice... glad I don't have to set fire to it now...

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Of Mildew, Cleaning and Waterproofing