Snow storms do not cause mould and mildew, excess humidity and fungi spores do. Mould spores are everywhere in the atmosphere and will settle and start to grow on damp surfaces or in a humid atmosphere. You can use EZ Vinyl Cleaner to safely remove it from your upholstery and any other soft surface. If you have it on hard surfaces, use Boat Scrub. Stains are indelible and are difficult or impossible to remove.

You can protect vinyl upholstery from permanent damage and staining by applying 2 coats of Vinyl Guard to the surface. It will make the mold easier to remove and prevent staining. Use Premium Boat Shine on hard surfaces or Sure Step on your deck.

The mold will return unless you keep the surfaces clean and dry. The cleaning products mentioned above will do the cleaning, but you should do something to get better air circulation. If the boat is tarped, pull the tarp out from opposing sides or attach a block or tube between the boat and tarp so that air will flow through from one side to the other. If it’s shrink wrapped, you can get plastic vents that are inserted into the plastic, allowing air to flow through, but preventing rain and snow from getting in. You will need a minimum of 2 on opposing sides of the boat for good through flow of air.

Make sure that hatches, companion ways or port holes under the tarp or shrink wrap are open to allow air inside the boat.

If you have electricity to your boat, installing a dehumidifier or a small fan to keep the air moving will be very helpful. Also installing low wattage light bulbs, 25 to 60 watts in each cabin or compartment will provide enough warmth to keep the boat dry. Other alternatives are using desiccants like Silica Gel, Powdered Zeolite or Active Alumina to dry out the air. Avoid the salt type of desiccant because they give off a corrosive gas that will cause corrosion and rusting to the metals in your boat and may also damage the upholstery.

First of all; Do Not Use Bleach on vinyl. You can cause permanent damage.

I suspect that your stain may be indelible and you will have to replace that section of vinyl or live with the stain, but before you do, here are a few things you can try. You have little to loose.

The solution used by most professionals for tough spots on vinyl is a 50/50 solution of EZ Vinyl Cleaner and Boat Scrub. Try rubbing a small spot with this solution on a cloth or a small scrub brush. If this lightens the stain, try exposing the stained section to the sun, as much as possible for several weeks. UV has been known to bleach almost everything. The sun damage should be minimal and it will help remove the stain.

Mold and mildew require moisture, food, a constant temperature, calm air and shade or darkness to grow and flourish. If you remove any, or preferably as many as possible of these prerequisites, you will eliminate your mold problem. The other problem is that if left unchecked, mold and mildew will stain the surface and in some cases the stain is indelible and can not be removed. This is especially the case with vinyl seats. Using the right protectors will reduce the chance of permanent damage and make cleaning much easier.

To solve your immediate problems, wash the fiberglass swim platform and with a 1 to 4 solution of EZ Vinyl Cleaner and water, using a scrub brush. While still wet, squirt some Boat Scrub on the swim platform and scrub again in all 6 directions. If any stains still remain, mix a 50/50 solution of EZ Vinyl Cleaner and Boat Scrub and scrub the areas that are stained until the stain is gone. Rinse well and dry or air dry in the sun. Boat manufacturers use these products to resolve warranty issues.

When the surface is dry, apply 2 coats of Sure Step. This will seal the pores in the gelcoat, leave a protective surface that will resist mold, protect against UV, put a nice shine on the platform and will give you some added traction, especially when the deck is wet. It will also make the swim platform much easier to clean.

To clean the seats, first spray EZ Vinyl Cleaner, full strength onto the mold and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. Wet the seats with water and spray EZ Vinyl Cleaner, full strength onto the seats. Scrub the seats with a scrub brush to clean the indentations in the pattern and rinse clean. If stains still remain, scrub these areas with a 50/50 solution of EZ Vinyl Cleaner and Boat Scrub, until the stain is removed. If stains still remain, uncover the boat and let the sun get at the seats for a couple of weeks. Sun acts as natural bleach. If the stain still remains then they will have to be recovered. Chlorine bleach, aggressive solvents etc. will remove the stain but ruin the vinyl in the process, so you will have to recover.

When the seats are dry, apply 2 coats of Vinyl Guard. Vinyl Guard is not greasy or slippery and is a double barrier protection system. One part penetrates into the vinyl to restore the plasticizers and make the vinyl feel more luxurious. The second remains on the surface and protects your vinyl against mold staining, UV, suntan oil, food spills and stains. In your area it will last about 3 months before you need to wash with EZ Vinyl Cleaner and re-apply.

Once vinyl and rubber becomes sticky it’s usually a sign that the damage is irreparable, however if the materials are not too badly damaged, Speed Clean may remove the sticky surface. It’s worth a try before you replace these items, but no guarantees. If it works, you have saved yourself the expense of replacing these items. If you do get it off, be sure to protect the surfaces with Vinyl Guard to reduce the chance of reoccurrence. Vinyl Guard will restore some of the lost plasticizers which will help protect the vinyl and rubber.

From your description it sounds like something was applied to the surface which caused a migration of the plasticizers out of the material which in turn led to degradation from UV rays from the sun. Some of the causes of this type of damage are using the wrong cleaners or protectors, suntan oil and insect repellents. If the driver used sun blocker or suntan oil on his arm and rubbed it on the vinyl, this would explain why the side panel was damaged. In future clean the vinyl with EZ Vinyl Cleaner and apply several coats of Vinyl Guard to all of the vinyl and rubber to prevent this from happening again. Vinyl Guard is different than other protectors. It uses new polymer technology instead of solvents. It’s not greasy or slippery and will protect against suntan oil and sun blocker damage as well as UV, food and beverage spills etc.