Fiberglass gelcoat stain - wheel bearing grease

[cbloomer]

I blew a wheel bearing a few weeks ago and I just got my boat/trailer back from the shop. There were a few small splatters of bearing grease that made their way down the side of my light gray hull. After going at them with dish soap and a good bit of elbow grease they ended up smearing and fading a little bit - worse than the small specs before....
Next I tried Davis' FSR blue jelly stain remover, which honestly didn't do much better than the dish soap.
Any ideas???

[fsts2k]

how about a degreaser like Marine Spray Nine? That stuff takes everything off for me

[James]

Gelcoat is porous and it is likely the stain penetrated the surface therefore you are having trouble removing it. I would use a product containing hydrochloric acid such as “On and Off” bottom and hull cleaner or similar which can be purchased at most marine stores. If you want to go the cheaper way buy Muriatic Acid (hydrochloric acid) from any store that sells swimming pool supplies and it will do the same thing. The hydrochloric acid will penetrate the pores and remove the stain with no damage to hull or decals. It is best to do the job outdoors. Wear rubber gloves, eye protection etc. Wipe it on the stain with a rag and rinse with water a few minutes later then wax. Hydrochloric acid is HIGHLY corrosive. Don’t let the production come it contact with anything metal such as the rub rail, trailer etc. or your dock if your boat is on a lift, driveway if on a trailer.

[bturner]

We used to use Sno Bowl toilet cleaner. Or perhaps test with a bit of Acetone.

[CRZ]

I have a question to your suggestion... I was thinking about this the other day,
I have lake stains on my boat, I was going to use the instant hull cleaner from starbright. If you can’t clean the hull on your Trailor, or on your dock lift, then where and how do you clean the stains?

[Jonny Quest]

I have a question to your suggestion... I was thinking about this the other day,
I have lake stains on my boat, I was going to use the instant hull cleaner from starbright. If you can’t clean the hull on your Trailor, or on your dock lift, then where and how do you clean the stains?

I use the Starbrite hull cleaner product each time I come off the lake (our lake has lots of minerals and stains the hull). I first wet the hull with water and then spray the Starbrite on the hull. I take a car wash mitt and wipe down the hull in circles. Then I rinse everything off with the hose...especially the trailer. Since I started with water, the trailer is already wet and I've not had any side-effects. It works well for my application. Then I follow this up with Turtle Wax Quick and Easy. Boat looks great.

JQ

[CRZ]

I use the Starbrite hull cleaner product each time I come off the lake (our lake has lots of minerals and stains the hull). I first wet the hull with water and then spray the Starbrite on the hull. I take a car wash mitt and wipe down the hull in circles. Then I rinse everything off with the hose...especially the trailer. Since I started with water, the trailer is already wet and I've not had any side-effects. It works well for my application. Then I follow this up with Turtle Wax Quick and Easy. Boat looks great.

JQ

thanks for the tip, I will do that next time I pull my boat out. I’ve just been real nervous on where to do this at. Have you tried Hot Sauce cleaner yet? It’s supposed to clean all that stuff off if you just have your boat in the water for a day. It also puts a protective coat on it. I bought the package and it works great. I Have to use the hull cleaner because my boat sat in the water for five days on vacation. So I haven’t had a chance to see if the hot sauce works to keep the lake stains off on a day-to-day basis, I guess we will see how it does once I get these stains off.
Thanks!