Dealing with mold on oiled interiors

So I have been fighting mold issues with my boat since last year when I restored it. It was starting to get mold spots before I even finished the boat. This winter I left my kayaks flipped between the seats on throwable Pfds . Those got moisture in them and now the tops of my seats which I just built are completely ruined from mold. I plan to bleach the heck out of it, sand, and reoil. I also have some mold creeping up my panels. From the bottom. Planning on trying to fix the same way. Starting to lament not doing a full painted interior. How can I deal with this in the future and stop it from happening. Feels like a constant fight against the stuff and I am already starting to feel like the oil interior is not quite as maintanance free as I was hoping. I try really hard to keep water out of the boat when it's not in use, but it always seems to find it's way in anyhow. Anybody have suggestions?
Chris

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Permalink Reply by chris towles on May 4, 2011 at 12:57am
Just wanted to give this a bump. Been scrubbing and scrubbing with bleach. I can get alot of the blackness to go away, but there is still a stain there. I tried sanding to no avail, then more bleach. The mold creeping up the cabinets I was able to mostly get rid of there is a stain but it'll hide behind the new oil hopefully. I'm going to attack the gunnels next, they look all speckled from mold. Then more on those. Seems even sanding and bleaching wont completely remove the stains, any advice or other ideas?. Any advice on how to avoid this in the future?
Permalink Reply by Dave Z on May 4, 2011 at 8:20am

what kind of oil?

 

I know if you make your own, and go heavy on the linseed oil, you may get some mold.  Put some japan drier in the mix. 

 

Here in Pa, it is REALLY humid in the summer, but my boats get sotred in the garage.  I usually let them dry out in the sun before putting them away.

 

dave

Permalink Reply by Lawrence E. Long on May 4, 2011 at 12:08pm

Chris:

This is really off the wall  and I have never used it on an oiled boat.  There is a product called ON-Off that I use to take off the "scum line" and slime that gets on the bottom and sides of my skiff and the fiberglass center console.  (they sit on moorings in saltwater all summer)- I think it is oxcallic acid- need rubber gloves.  If you can get a small bottle of it at a  marina/boat yard(not cheap) try it on a small out of the way place on the  boat.  As Dave Z says- don't forget the Japan Drier and go 50/50 On the turps and boiled linseed oil. 

Good Luck

Permalink Reply by Frank R on May 4, 2011 at 1:12pm
Like Lawrence mentioned, there is more than one kind of bleach. Look up wood bleaching and you should find what you are looking for. Most furniture bleaching kits are available at home centers.
Permalink Reply by Eric Loudenslager on May 4, 2011 at 1:18pm

See Rabecca Wittman - The brightwork companion.  She provides methods for finishing and restoration of oil, and varnish on bright finished boats.

 

Be careful on heavy scrubbing to remove mildew, it will take took much pith out of the wood. 

 

Because of the problems you describe I painted and left just enough clear wood to keep the impression that it was a wood boat.  I would paint again without hesitation.

 

My clear doug fir gunnels that were oiled became mildewed.  I cleaned them with bleach and tsp (Wittman provides other solutions as well) then sanded and sealed with epoxy and then varnished.  No more wood mildew problems.  I get mildew on the painted interior (interlux brightsides), and it just cleans up with soap and water.  No noticeable staining of the paint.

 

 

Permalink Reply by chris towles on May 4, 2011 at 2:12pm

everyone,

    thanks for the advice. i have been using penofin marnine oil...an off the shelf product. i like the color of it, and it offers uv protection. bleach has dealt with much of the mold, but there are still some stains. i may just have to live with them. its the tops of the boxs (seats) that look bad. there is speckled mold all over the boat but its only bad on the seat tops, the rest cleans up enough with bleach that is hard to see once scrubbed. i'll probably go one more round on bleach and call it good. i'm already ready to start on the next boat, so i just need to gussy this thing up enough to be river worthy for the season. been getting alot of my little things done this week with the nice weather..looking forward to floating soon, and having the boat lookin good by the end of the month for the boat show

Permalink Reply by Dave Z on May 4, 2011 at 3:34pm

Chris,

 

I oil everything in my boats EXCEPT- seats, seat frames, seat tops, fly line decks, knee locks.  That stuff gets Captains varnish. I don't like to sit on oiled wood.  I can deal with stains in my boats.  Hell, there is enough spilt beer, cracker crumbs, banana peels and sand/dirt and fish stink to fill in any gaps in my workmanship.  I haven't run into the mold issues, but I think it is key that you air dry your boat out before storing it inside a garage or barn.  Also,  dont leave a wet anchor rope on anything oiled.  Sure to get black marks.

 

Permalink Reply by Charles Ray Heater on May 5, 2011 at 1:12pm

Try 30 Seconds moss and mildew remover.  It is inexpensive and can be purchased at
Fred Meyer.  It is best to store a wood boat indoors.

 

Ray

 

 

 

Permalink Reply by chris towles on June 5, 2011 at 12:52pm
So a little follow up. I have tried mucho household bleach to no avail. I did a little research and basically found that linseed oil is derived from flax seeds and the lipids in the oil provide food for mold.. Which is why linseed oil is boiled so to speak... It has driers added to prevent mold. Anyhow, because wood is a pourous surface, it absorbs the oil and the roots of the mold form down in the wood. Bleaches are really only effective in removing surface mold, but are not effective for pourous surfaces. I tried tsp, bleach, oxygen bleach all to no avail. I was able to pull alot of the surface oil off with the tsp, but the mold is still there deep and apparently will keep coming back. I hear that I need some kind of mildewcyde or fungicide. Anyone know of a product to pull out these deep spots. They look like crap and I would realty like to get rid of them.

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