Over the past 26 years of cleaning boats, one thing stays constant. Moisture. Moisture issues arise when damp or wet areas are overlooked when your boat is put away. In the winter, one of your most valuable assets gets hauled or stays in its slip and the cold weather sets in. Most of us are busy with other priorities and tend to forget about what is happening inside our boats.
Moisture, whether it is damp indoor/outdoor carpet, isinglass and damp canvas thrown inside, life jackets, bilges or engine rooms with excess water, or just a moist interior caused by the changes in temperatures, becomes a huge issue when there is no air movement. Even during the winter, sunny days can warm up your boat enough to encourage mold growth.
Mold starts by having a moist environment followed combined with a food source (dust, food, dirt etc). By making sure your boat is clean and dry mid-season, we can significantly reduce the likelihood of mold growth and an unhealthy environment in the spring.
My recommendation is to go back inside your boat and dry and clean the bilges, engine room, and any other areas that will hold moisture and dirt after your boat has been wrapped. We will be happy to provide this service if you are not able to get down to your boat mid-winter. Our intention is to perform this service in December and January. When we clean these areas, a low VOC chemical is used to reduce harmful vapors. Interior surfaces are cleaned with microfibers, green sealed certified chemicals and carpets vacuumed utilizing hepa filtration. The cost will vary based on each individual job due to the level of effort needed.
Over the past few years, I have had more calls for mold remediation on boats than ever before and the result is so much more costly than doing a little preventative maintenance. We want to help our customers save money in the long run by checking on their boats as well as making sure they stay clean and dry. We want you to open up your boat and enjoy it!
There are a few basic services I would not skip and are listed below. We can customize more services based on your needs and budget.
Necessity for winter
- Clean all water from engine room
- Clean all water from bilges inside and outside
- Make sure interior is dry and clean
- Make sure all contents inside are dry
Options you can add on for winter
- Detail engines and engine room
- Detail bilges inside and outside
- Open and disinfect sump boxes
- Steam clean your carpets
- Paint your engine room
- Paint your bilges
- Redo any wood work inside
We look forward to helping you maintain your boat this Fall Season, and hope to hear from you soon!