If you are regular visitor to Pontoonopedia, you will know how much I love the Mr Clean Magic Eraser for cleaning boat seats and vinyl upholstery on boats. It’s an excellent product, and takes off mildew, mold, stains, and loads more. Magic Eraser on vinyl quite simply works – but you need to be careful on how you use it.
You can see and read loads more about how I use this cleaning product, which shows before and after photos like the one below.
How your vinyl boat seats could look if you use Magic Eraser with CLR Mold and Mildew Remover.
Why I recommend Magic Eraser for boat cleaning jobs
Like me, your boat is probably your pride and joy.
You’ve spent a lot of money on your ride, and nothing is more painful than seeing dirt marks, insects, mold, mildew, food, and water spots developing over time. If left, this dirt and grime can prove very hard to shift.
Taking care of your boat’s interior will prolong the life of your vinyl, keep your boat’s value, and just looks better, period.
But washing and cleaning takes time and discipline, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned down the years, it’s how some little hacks can save you a lot of time and money. And Magic Eraser on vinyl seats is just one such thing.
You can use Magic Eraser on vinyl floors, vinyl siding, and vinyl boats seats, and get amazing results as shown in the photo above.
For example, in high traffic areas on your boat such as walkways and decks, you’re going to get a lot of muddy footprints, dirt, grease, and more nasty stuff. Dirt can get toughly embedded into the diamond plate and tread bump areas too.
It’s not easy or quick to clean.
But what I have found best to work in these areas, as well as cleaning your boat seats, is Magic Eraser. It gets the whites on your deck and flooring back to looking like new, and can work miracles on vinyl boats seats too – see how I do it.
It’s not just mildew and mold it helps with, but also other dirt. For example, earlier I mentioned insects. Do you ever get squashed bugs all over your seats? They leave a nasty mess with blood and black spots and are really hard to clean off, but again, Magic Eraser works like a dream.
Can you use Magic Eraser on vinyl boat seats?
Yes, you can.
But, as long as you realize that the magic in Magic Erasers is micro abrasive particles. Every time you use one you are striping away a microscopic surface layer of your seats and/or anodized rails and you might eventually create a flat dull spot – which is why I recommend you go easy and use 303 protectant afterwards – see how in the steps below.
Other boaters might tell you that you can use a mix of water and vinegar, perhaps a specialist hydrogen peroxide solution, or even bleach but I don’t advise that.
All of these substances contain harsh chemicals and can harm the vinyl on your boat leaving a weathered and cracked look over time. Bleaching can also destroy the seams, threads, and stitching in your boat seats after prolonged use, so just don’t do it.
Magic Eraser on vinyl boat seats: 5 steps for cleaning
The best way for cleaning boat seats with Magic Eraser is to take the following steps:
- Use something like CLR Mold and Mildew remover
- Then brush the stains lightly with a soft brush.
- Wipe away any remaining mildew with a microfiber cloth.
- Now use Magic Eraser by using gentle motions over the tougher stains (view which Magic Eraser I use on Amazon).
- Seal your vinyl seating with a 303 protectant.
That method above wins every time for me, and you can see the step by step process in this boat seat cleaning guide.
Just one last piece of advice here though, if you are going to be cleaning boat seats with Magic Eraser, go careful. It can be quite abrasive, which is why I recommend you use a cleaning spray first to get the stubborn stains up.
I like the CLR Mold and Mildew Remover as this works great. Once that’s been applied and has started to break the dirt up, you can then use the Magic Eraser on the vinyl, but no need to be heavy handed. Small and gentle strokes are all that you need here.
Can you use Magic Eraser on a boat’s fiberglass or clear coat?
This is one instance where I wouldn’t recommend it if you have a newly applied boat gelcoat. But it’s not always going to be the case…
There are small amounts of a fine abrasive in the product, so for me, taking the risk of using that on newly applied gel coat or similar isn’t worth it.
They can make a shiny surface duller if you apply too much pressure – for example, I would never use it on my car’s paintwork.
However, if your gel coat is very strong and thick, or on bumpy non-slips gels, then it’s not so much of an issue and can work wonders. Essentially, it’s very similar to wet sanding your gel coat, but can leave water spot stains you will need to polish away afterwards.
The last word…
Magic Erasers work like micro sandpaper and they cam remove the outer protective layer of your vinyl boat seats. But don’t let that put you off as it could save you having to completely reupholster your seats over time.
By taking a lot of care, and getting the worst of the stains off first using a mold and mildew remover, you should then be able to just lightly use the Magic Eraser on the seats to take off any leftover residue. Once all cleaned up, apply a layer of marine-grade 303 protectant to seal the vinyl seats again.
As with anything like this, test it out on a small spot first, perhaps under the seat where it won’t be visible.
You might also be interested in some other tips I have for boat cleaning, accessed on the links below:
