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Removing mildew stains under tent ends

poppin_fresh
Explorer
Explorer
Hi everyone,
My 2005 has some mildew staining on the underside of the tents that has progressively gotten worse. I have tried every home remedy I could find on the internet to try an get rid of it, but nothing has worked. I also tried a few different commercial products for boats that also didn't work.

I finally found some info that suggested the Bass Pro Shops brand mildew remover has worked well for some people. I bought a couple bottles and tonight I finally tried it out on a small area. I think I finally found what I have been looking for!

The pics are before and then after a ten minute spray soak followed by a few rounds of a washcloth rinse with clean water. While not 100 percent perfect, it's MUCH better. I think the next trial will be a 15 or 20 minute pause to see if the results are even better.

Note, the product says not for use on fabrics, but my guess is that is because it would bleach the dyes out. Since this material is supposed to be white anyway, I'm giving it a shot. Worst case scenario is we get wet every time it rains, but at least we dont have to lie there and look at the stains anymore. 🙂







2016 Bullet 274BHS
2015 Silverado 1500 Double Cab
Andersen WDH
8 REPLIES 8

poppin_fresh
Explorer
Explorer
Just a quick update for anyone who stumbles across this one in the future.

I got the "ceiling" of the tent ends cleaned up and they are perfectly white like brand new. I also tested a small area of my gray window canvas and the Bass Pro mildew remover did not affect its color. It didn't seem to do as good a job on the side canvas, but I also didn't bother to let it as long since the windows were fairly clean anyway. Once I reinstall them I will give them a re-coating of 303 Fabric Guard to make them waterproof again.

Word of caution, this stuff is pretty potent so I ended up pulling the tents off and working with them outside in the shade. Being inside the camper and using it was not going to work without killing some brain cells or losing my sense of smell. Plus, outside I could hose it off real well rather than giving it a sponge bath.

Here's one more picture before I moved outside.
2016 Bullet 274BHS
2015 Silverado 1500 Double Cab
Andersen WDH

poppin_fresh
Explorer
Explorer
Just a quick update, I did let it sit for 15 minutes tonight and the stains were completely gone...no scrubbing needed. Just did a good rinsing with clean water and sponge.

For kicks I also tried it on the spare tire cover and the right side of the screw trim. While not back to new, the results seem positive! Sorry for the color differences, it was getting dark when I took the afters.




2016 Bullet 274BHS
2015 Silverado 1500 Double Cab
Andersen WDH

Candie4749
Explorer
Explorer
Just a bit of advice. I work for a company that manufactures these tents and we tell our customers not to use any products such as these on the tents as they will damage the vinyl. The only thing we recommend is hot soapy water.

ljdahd
Explorer
Explorer
352 wrote:
Mold armor. Green bottle. Ace-Home Depot- Lowes


Careful with this one. See my post from a few days back. Yellow stains on my canvas from this product. It's chlorine based.

Larry

epeters
Explorer
Explorer
I had a small mold issue a year ago and did the Bass Pro treatment. Worked awesome! But on my trailer, the tent roof was fine but the sides lost their water repellency. So I had to treat those to get it to not absorb water.
Erik

DW, DS, DD
2018 Nash 29S
2017 GMC Sierra
Retired --> 2004 Silverado Crewcab 1500
2008 Starcraft Antiqua - traded in
2003 Fleetwood Mesa - gone
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bovellois
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Explorer
100 per cent true
Bruno, Carol, Thierry and Julien
Sankei the fox terrier
Starla the Gordon setter
97 Dodge 2500 4x QC diesel
2006 ROO19

352
Explorer
Explorer
Mold armor. Green bottle. Ace-Home Depot- Lowes
The manatees of Halls river Homosassa Springs Fl

1985 Chevy Silverado c10. 454 stroker / 495 CI = 675 HP. 650lb of torque. Turb0 400 tranny. 3000 stall converter. Aluminum heads. 3 inch exhaust flowmasters. 2 inch headers. Heat and air. Tubed.

poppin_fresh
Explorer
Explorer
FYI, do not use a percent sign in your post, it will cause an error that could take you 20 minutes to figure out how to work around....
2016 Bullet 274BHS
2015 Silverado 1500 Double Cab
Andersen WDH