Soft top mould, how to tackle?

[saaby93]

Good call

Some other threads discuss baby steriliser for similar reasons
Milton sterilising Fluid a bactericide has 2% sodium hypochlorite - what's that?
Whatever it is, once worked in with a soft clothes brush/nail brush it kills the green stuff

[bitwrx]

saaby93 said:

Good call

Some other threads discuss baby steriliser for similar reasons
Milton sterilising Fluid a bactericide has 2% sodium hypochlorite - what's that?
Whatever it is, once worked in with a soft clothes brush/nail brush it kills the green stuff

Bleach.

[Rangeroverover]

I take mine through the rotary brush car wash about once a month then treat with autoglym, whatever is in the detergent in the car wash keeps the roof clean

I use the eastern european hand carwash trhe rest of the time

[8bit]

My wife had an MX-5 for a few years that had some green st in places around the soft top. I found this stuff cleaned it very well (spray on, agitate with a brush, hose off):
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/303-conver...

And this stuff did a great job of sealing and protecting the hood, so it stayed nice and black and water just beaded off it:
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/303-high-t...

ETA - we no longer have said MX-5 but I still use these products to clean and protect the fabric on our garden furniture, to similarly good effect.

[andyps]

saaby93 said:

Good call

Some other threads discuss baby steriliser for similar reasons
Milton sterilising Fluid a bactericide has 2% sodium hypochlorite - what's that?
Whatever it is, once worked in with a soft clothes brush/nail brush it kills the green stuff

I had heard about using Milton sterilising fluid but didn't like the idea of using bleach, both for the negative impact it has on material and also the likely reduction in black colour. As far as I could tell the Ecover Limescale Remover I used had no bleach in it.

8bit said:

My wife had an MX-5 for a few years that had some green st in places around the soft top. I found this stuff cleaned it very well (spray on, agitate with a brush, hose off):
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/303-conver...

And this stuff did a great job of sealing and protecting the hood, so it stayed nice and black and water just beaded off it:
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/303-high-t...

ETA - we no longer have said MX-5 but I still use these products to clean and protect the fabric on our garden furniture, to similarly good effect.

Thanks for those recommendations - may give them a try next time particularly if the solution I've just used doesn't work longer term.

[HarryFlatters]

I used Renovo cleaner and waterproofing stuff on the mohair roof of my old Mazda. Worked a treat

[saaby93]

andyps said:

I had heard about using Milton sterilising fluid but didn't like the idea of using bleach, both for the negative impact it has on material and also the likely reduction in black colour. As far as I could tell the Ecover Limescale Remover I used had no bleach in it.

It didnt seem to bleach and still doesnt- its been on for over a year but it was followed with a coat of Renovo black
The initial Renovo pretreatment didnt seem to do enough but the Milton worked a treat

[Dr Interceptor]

Milton fluid works for me. I buy the tablets, and use one tablet in around 2 litres of water combined with a soft nail brush to get into the fabric.

The small amount of chlorine in it kills the algae, but isn't strong enough to bleach/rot the fabric.

Obviously try on a small area first.

[CitTone]

Thread resurrection...

Following a hint on another forum, I just cleaned the green grot off my Saab's soft top using Dettol Mould & Mildew remover.

After a successful spot test, I went over the whole hood a patch at a time, working it in with a medium nail brush and rinsing after about 10 minutes.

The hood returned to its original blue from a grey-green colour, though is a little patchy where I should have perhaps allowed a little more contact time. No bleaching seems to have resulted, but that is, I suspect, due to the short contact time.

The stuff is a combination of hypochlorite (about twice as strong as Milton) and surfactant, so it seems to work its way into the fabric effectively and loosens the grot while killing off the growth.

Unfortunately it then rained before I had a chance to proof it, but it looks 100% better than before.

It's a lot cheaper than any specialist cleaner, and I have loads left for the bathroom!

[droopsnoot]

Thanks for the update. Mine's been better, but not perfect. At the moment I can't do much with it because the rear glass is coming away from the hood, so I have to try to avoid that bit when I'm washing it.

[Alibi]

I had a green algae problem with my TT, probably due to a combination of bird droppings, water dripping off trees, and endless grey damp weather with not a lot of sunshine. After reading this thread, I used limescale remover (not the brand mentioned above but same ingredients), then a rinse, then Dettol mildew and mould remover, followed by another rinse. I worked the products into the cloth with a sponge/scourer as the limescale remover in particular didn't spray over a wide area - the Dettol product had a wider spray pattern. Once the hood had dried, I applied Fabsil with a paintbrush (might try the spray but probably need to mask the surrounding area). I applied extra Fabsil to seams and to the bit round the top of the windows. So far the algae doesn't seem to be coming back. The hood is slightly faded (08 car) so might use a something to make it darker but it looks far better. Still to do a second full coat of Fabsil. Chemicals from Homebase, under £4 each. Fabsil one litre can from Halfords £13, or 600ml spray can for £8. Available cheaper online.

[Saabmistress]

Bought a cover for my Saab 900 convertible and within a Matter of weeks all green algae was gone. I just cover the car overnight.

[Clifford Chambers]

Saabmistress said:

Bought a cover for my Saab 900 convertible and within a Matter of weeks all green algae was gone. I just cover the car overnight.

Which cover? Any problems with condensation?