Boat fire residue cleanup

[Bob L]

I'm tackling the cleanup of a boat that had a smoldering fire, leaving the interior coated with what is referred to as "wet smoke residue" - a thin black layer of residue that is difficult to remove. I made some test cleanings with the Mr. Clean Magic eraser and also with Spray 409 - the residue comes off (of the gelcoated liner, wood bulkheads and cabinetry, and hard surfaces) , but with a lot of elbow grease involved.

Does anyone have a recommendation on the proper cleaning product for this situation?
(Alcohol, Simple Green, 409, Spray 9, ???, something commercial?)

Also, the cushion covers are coated in this stuff. I'm hoping that taking them off and sending them to the dry cleaner will do the trick. Thoughts??

The foam seems to have been protected by the fabric and will be saved, but should be salvageable after prolonged airing, perhaps vinegar treatment, etc.

[Capn_Tom]

I would try trisodium phosphate. If that fails make some calls to one of the many companies that specialize in fire restoration and see if they will pass on some trade secrets.

[Chris Campbell]

The last issue of Good Old Boat (not the current one) had a good article on cleaning up fire and smoke damage - they recommended several things that were useful for cleaning up. Any way you can get hold of a copy? If not, I can type in some of the highlights here.

[Bob L]

Thanks Tom and Chris for your suggestions. I read about TSP, then contacted a bunch of cleaning supply companies to find out what the pros use. They just seem to sell it, not use it, but the consensus is a degreaser - I was recommended an orange citrus base cleaner, stuff similar to Simple Green (Greased Lightning, etc.) , Nilodor floor-wall-ceiling cleaner, Big D products, Soot-Solv (catchy name!).

Then I talked to some people who recommend oven cleaner for the fiberglass areas - this sounds like a winner, but I'm concerned about overspray.

I did find a company that promises to make the cushions (covers and foam! like new, money back guarantee, and will pick up and deliver - FRSTeam (Fabric Restoration Services Team) at an unbelievable low price (which I will double or triple in my head just be conservative).

I'll have to hunt up the Good Old Boat issue. Do you know what was on the cover/month of publication?
Thanks again,
Bob

[Chris Campbell]

The Good Old Boat issue is Nov-Dec 2009, and it has a fellow sitting on his foredeck readin while sailing with an asymetrical flying. The article is called "Aftermath of a fire on board", and is about the author's (Durkee Richards) experience cleaning up his J/32 Sirius after a power bar arced and caused a fire in the head.

He recommends Versitol and CleansAll, from Winsol Laboratories: www.winsol.com, QuickNBrite (available at supermarkets), and the Servpro Cleaning Company: www.servpro.com.

Cheers,

Chris

[Popeye1865]

spray nine works extremely well basically all i use for smoke damage cleaning.

[Bob L]

For everyone's information:

Simple Green: No effect
Greased Lightning: Nada
SootSolv: Works slightly, if left on damp for days
Solvents: Effective, but danger of explosion
No Fume Oven Cleaner: Works slightly
Regular spray oven cleaner: Effective, but atomized spay will gag you

The magic bullet: Oven Cleaner in gallon jugs! Straight for very tough areas, but just fine mixed half and half with water. Melts the stuff right off. Takes off light varnish on plywood bulkheads, cabin sole unaffected. I decided it will be easier to re-varnish than to work on the soot for days with the other cleaners.

Hardest part: Changing the rinse water. One wipe and the rag it totally black. Wring it out a few times and the rinse water is black. Some sort of carpet cleaning machine with drapery attachment would work well, but then I'd have to change the water in the machine, plus the drips would be everywhere, so I have resigned myself to wiping.

Thanks to all for the tips.
Bob