Removing rust spots on old vinyl.

[Sea lyin’]

New old boat came with a decent camper top. Heavy vinyl instead of canvas and good overall condition. I can live with the dull grey color it is now but these two rust spots drive me crazy. I think they’re forever but anybody got any suggestions?

 

[walleyes]

Pure CLR on a rag and scrub and scrub then rinse with water. I pulled unreal amounts of rust of my wellcraft with CLR and elbow grease. The stuff works.

 

[RiverBoy]

Pure CLR on a rag and scrub and scrub then rinse with water. I pulled unreal amounts of rust of my wellcraft with CLR and elbow grease. The stuff works.

does it do damage to the vinyl? like discolour or anything? i have white vinyl seats and there’s this one rust stain that drives me mental

 

[walleyes]

does it do damage to the vinyl? like discolour or anything? i have white vinyl seats and there’s this one rust stain that drives me mental

I can’t answer that with any confidence. I would think regardless of what you use if it’s a strong cleaner used on dyed material it could have the chance to remove some of the dye. On white I wouldn’t be scared to use it. If using straight CLR on vinyl I would follow it up with some warm soapy water and a good vinyl protectant to keep it from drying it out. I keep a small spray container of pure CLR as well as a spray container of Acetone around all the time. Acetone for the non plastic material, nothing better for taking out scuff marks and small stains than Acetone, just keep it away from plastics as it will melt it.

 

[Trophy]

Try “Bar Keepers Friend”. Great stuff, found on Amazon.

 

[beemer]

I have had success on fabric and canvas with this product.

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/whink-rust-remover-946-ml-1530881p.html

I would stay away from products not designed for fabric or water them down initially.

 

[Oceanmaster]

You could try oxalic acid, available at the pharmacy in crystal form just mix with water, it makes rust stains disappear on fibreglass.

 

[marbledmurrelet]

We had a lot of rust stains caused by an old crab trap this stuff worked very well:

Quick Rust Off - Pacific Northwest Green Cleaning Products

Tried And Failed To Get Rid Of Stubborn Rust? Look No Further For The Solution That Really Works! Starts dissolving rust on contact! Absolutely no scrubbing is necessary most of the time Removes rust stains and any mineral staining that is associated with water like iron and lime stains.

greencleaningproducts.ca

Found it at Milltown Marina.