Cleaning Sails – but be careful how you go about it

Sailcloths are amongst the most compactly woven cloths in existence, with their quality depending largely on the density of the weave. High quality cloths are woven slowly and very tightly, while cheaper ones are woven on higher speed looms that result in a looser weave. Nearly all woven sailcloths are post-treated by impregnating them with a plastic resin – typically melamine, sometimes along with other additives. This process helps stabilise the cloth against distortion, particularly in the ‘bias’ – that’s to say diagonal – axis. The cheaper, looser sailcloths, need more melamine filler than the high quality ones. Indeed, the latter are incapable of absorbing as much, due to their denser weave.

The proportion of filler in a sailcloth affects its service life. The flapping and shaking to which sails are naturally subject, gradually breaks down the melamine so the stability of the cloth diminishes over time. Overstretching the cloth can have the same effect in an instant.

Soiled and stained sails certainly detract from a boat’s appearance so the impulse to do something about it is understandable. But here you should be very cautious. High quality woven sails will survive being tumbled about inside a commercial washing machine, but not so your melamine-enriched budget sail that will be thrashed to within an inch of its life. A top drawer sailmaker told me of the dilemma that sometimes faced him when a customer brought in a sail to be washed.

‘Yes, we do launder our own sails, and also those from some other sailmakers but…’ And here he would tail off. ‘Please believe me when I tell you that I wouldn’t be doing you any favours if I bunged this… er… sail in the washing machine’. If they insisted he thought of it as work creation.

So, what are the alternatives?

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  Quite a lot of improvement can be gained by simply laying the sail out on a flat, non-gritty surface (flaked on a wooden-planked pontoon works fine for me) and giving it a light scrub with a mild soap and water solution– and by soap I mean real soap, not a detergent. Some sailmakers recommend adding white vinegar to the mix. Then...
• Use a soft bristled brush to apply the solution before rinsing off with fresh water.
• Oil and tar stains can be removed with a scrap of cloth dipped in petrol or lighter fluid but be careful (particularly in the case of tar) not to spread the stain further. Work inwards from the outside of the stain.
• A very weak solution – no more than 3-5% by volume – of domestic bleach (sodium hypochlorite ) will remove mildew, but its use is not without risks. There have been reports that it can cause damage, chiefly to stitching which could lose its protective anti-UV coating.
• And NEVER use bleach on nylon spinnaker cloth or laminates.If at all possible, dry the sails before re-bagging and stowing them.
  

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Also of possible interest....

Follow the link to Sail cloth choices