sail washing

[hobie kernan]

Hi After several tries over at least a year today ,for what ever reason it let me on site to talk so here goes ,how do I clean my sails? thanks hobie 16/3

[Gil Weiss]

I trust mine to my local sailmaker who washes them with a bleach mixture and returns them looking like new. He has a very large washing machine and does a great job. I have read about many folks here having their sails washed and/or reconditioned at a variety of sailmaking shops. You can do it using UPS, etc if no one is local.

It is not an expensive process and I leave it to the pro as I have gotten great results for not much money.

[Mercrewser]

I threw mine into the washer.  let them soak with a strong simple green solution, and then ran them throught the gentle cycle.  Double rinsed, and hung em out to dry.  This is for the small 16 sails.  Any larger, and I would send them out.  I believe strong bleach mixtures will hurt Dacron, but I may be mistakin.  Be careful if you DIY.  Dont use to much bleach.  My profession is in the cleaning of delicate textiles, so I know what I'm doing.  You have to keep a close eye on them in the washer.  Soaking is better than agitation.  Any questions, you'd do better sending them out.

[spaul]

Mercrewser, Sodium Percarbonate or Oxy-clean might be better than bleach. Have you any experience with that on your sails? Need to soak for 20-30 minutes but shouldn't hurt any synthetic material.
Steve Paul

[Mercrewser]

Those would be a color safe bleach.  No, I havent used them.  I've only washed my sails once.  They are the original 1978 sails, in fair condition.  If I spent alot of money on new sails, I'd probably send them off, to be cleaned and overhauled each winter.  Oxyclean would be a good booster though.  Would help in the "whitening".  OxyClean is simply a color safe bleach that you could actually make at home.

[sawyer]

I HAVE SOME KIND OF LIGHT STAIN UP TOP, AND THEN MAYBE AN OIL TYPE STAIN NEAR THE BOTTOM THAT IS A LITTLE DARKER. (COULD BE DIRT). IS JUST THE SOAK BEST, OR SHOULD I TAKE A LIGHT BRUSH WITH SOME OXY-CLEAN TO IT?  I HAVE SOME LEFT OVER USED SAILCLOTH FROM MAKING THE SAIL WITH MAYBE I SHOULD EXPERIMENT WITH THAT...............  I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE CLEAN SAILS THIS SPRING, I DON'T THINK I'LL BE BUYING A NEW SAIL KIT YET, I'M ON THE  DAVE RAMSEY PLAN, I WANT TO RETIRE SOMETIME SOON.


DOUG/MERRY
CP-16 II
"SISKIWIT"

[spaul]

Doug, I'd try some mild detergent on the greasy/oily stain like Simple Green or just some laundry detergent and a gentle brushing. For the other dirty stains if you use Oxi-clean remember this. Oxy-clean (which is sodium percarbonate) has extra oxygen  attached. You must soak the sail for a period of time for this to work. You'll notice after a few minutes the bubbles coming up with the Oxy-clean, that's what does the cleaning. It works best as the water is warmer.
I'm not an expert but it seems sails endure some pretty hot Sun in the summer so hot water is better vs. colder water.   That's most of what I know. You might try Sail Care (if I got this right) who does the Le Mauney process (whatever that is). They'll clean and refurbish your sails for a fraction of the cost of a new one.

Steve Paul
cp27/2

[sawyer]

Steve:   Thanks for that info, that is what I will be trying.  The sail is really in fair condition, probably not ready for reconditioning yet.  I think for about $228 I can get the kit from Sailrite, I already have the Big Blue Machine that I use for many things.  I don't want to get too ahead of the game with purchases (I'm sure I can afford the Oxy), who knows when something will break and I'll need cash for that.  I actually have a sailboat savings account..    That probably shows how important it is to me.

[sawyer]

I bought the Oxy and have washed three sails.

The jib was easy, left it in for a good soak, then added just a touch of bleach and ran it thru a really light cycle.  After that cycle there was a bit of sand stuck to the sail so I rinsed it thru again and it came out great.

The genny was different, it has a panel of light blue across it so I took it easy on the Oxy and the bleach. Still had the sand and had to second rinse.

The main was the tough one.  It had quite a large stain way up in top of the triangle. I soaked it, scrubbed it, agitated it, and still had the stain. So, I took some cleanser on a sponge pad and just scrubbed both sides and then let it soak overnight in the Oxy with the rest of the sail hanging out onto the floor of the laundry room.  The next morn, I scrubbed it some more and then washed the whole thing once more and then a full final rinse with no oxy.  The sail is real clean, just a faint hint of a shadow of stain.  I wonder what it was.  This sail was made from an old sail I had and although the dacron is good, it was kind of dirty.  I had decided if I trashed that panel by scrubbing it too hard, I would cut it out and put a new panel in from the leftovers of the old sail.

All in all, thanks to everyone that posted here, the sails look great and I cannot wait to haul them up.......

[TroyVB]

Just received a bid from SailCare for my jib, a 110 for a CP16/2.  Don't know what kind of a job they do but the quote of $32 seems reasonable to clean and apply some sort of resin.  

If anyone has any insight into sails being done by SailCare I would be interested in knowing what you thought of the process and if it was worth it.  My jib is not real bad but I like bright white and crisp.  Is this what I will receive?

[steve brown]

Hi Troy, I think Sail Care is good way to clean and restore your sails. The folks there are quite familiar with Com-Pac and are friends with the folks at Hutchins. They are constantly getting Com-Pac sails in for service. I have my CP 19 jib and main with them for service. My main needed a new leech patch full length plus a new logo and numbers. Cleaning, repairs, and renewal came to a bit over $300. They also give you new tell tails for the your sails. I believe they also have all the patterns for Com-Pac sails and will make you what you want. I expect my sails back in March. They do not charge your card until they ship. I must emphsize that anyone shipping their sails to them make sure each sail is tagged with your name, address and phone number. I also added my boat mfg. and type. They said they have lots of sails with no names waiting for the owners to come in and claim them.  I will definetely send a report to the site on the work quality when they arrive. They also have a nice catalog with all sorts of marine items. Regards, Steve

[TroyVB]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the reply.  I need to find out how long the process will be.  If I could have the sail back by April, I think that I would go ahead and have them do the job.  They replied back by email in a very timely manner so I expect that the service is good.

Did you get specific instructions from them about sending the sail with your name, etc. on a tag or do you know this from experience?

I appreciate your help.

[steve brown]

Troy, Their instructions stated to make sure your name and address came with the sails inside the box. I included a letter plus made tags and attached same to the sails for insurance. I folded them correctly and took them to a UPS store. They will notify you within 2 weeks what the charge is for your authorization to proceed. They then bill your credit card when they ship them back. I believe all this is spelled out on their web site or a call will get you the info. I am glad I found about my main's deteriorated leech now rather than in the middle of the sailing season. That was worth the price alone. I think my sails go back to 1982 when the boat was made but they seem to be in decent condition. Best wishes. Steve

[TroyVB]

Thanks Steve

[Craig Weis]

Sail washing for me started as a kid who's dad would have 'the kid' spread out the sails from our schooner in the back yard and meticulously scrub with a horse hair bush every square inch of all the sails. Both sides and rinse, rinse, rinse with a garden hose and dry them before folding them and putting them back into there sailbags.

Then years later the sails of the Star boat, my Penquin, and Rhodes 19 that I was 'spinnaker man' on race Sundays were washed the same way, but with a nylon brush.

I always followed dad's instructions and that was to simply use a couple of handfuls of powdered TIDE in a bucket. Now it's liquid TIDE with warm water...as I'm now a wuss when it comes to cold water. I hope dad's not spinning over in his grave. LOL Skip.