Any reason why not

[Washaway]

Any reason why I can't use one cup of 12.5% + one tablespoon of Tide + 5gal h2o in a bucket to clean these vinyl awnings?

[Beth n Rod]

Why do you ask?
The Tide is a bit strong (1 cup does a full load of laundry 25-30 gals)
Awning cleaners are like carpet shampoo's which are full of surfactants and low sudsing agents (some).

That particular awning didn't look like it was that bad from the angle.
1 cup of bleach in a solution should be fine for the microbial problems.

I keep in mind that vinyl has a sealer on it and if the cleaner is too strong, it will damage it and cause the awning to fade and become brittle. You may need to add a sealer anyway depending on the condition of the awning and previous maintenance practices.

Rod!~

[Washaway]

I ask b/c I don't have time to send away for something that is manufactured for this particular application.

Although I meant to say a Tablespoon of tide and not a cup........making that correction now.

[Beth n Rod]

ok...go for it.

Rod!~

[Washaway]

Should I use Dawn instead of Tide.... or maybe I'll just buy concentrated carpet shampoo instead.

My main concern here is not damaging the awning.

[Big Bill]

I clean alot of awnings, but have never cleaned a light colored awning such as this. All the ones I have cleaned have been colored. One sugestion I will make is to do a test. These particular awnings look like they are made of quality material like Sunbrella. Using a little bit of Dawn won't hurt I don't think. Go to Sunbrella's website,http://www.sunbrella.com it says to use 8 oz. bleach, 2 oz. Woolite,Ivory Snow, or Dreft per 1 gallon of water. I use other chems & sealers for different types of fabrics, & they all work well. Use a soft bristle bush to clean, do not use high pressure to clean awnings. After cleaning the awning, the most important thing is to re-seal the fabric. For the best sealer, go to http://www.303products.com There fabric guard is the best sealing product I have used to date, it's not cheap, you get what you pay for. I let the customer know this before I give them the bid.

[Jeff]

How do you all figure a price for awning cleaning. Say like the ones in the pics, 10 them = ?

Just wondering

JL

[Washaway]

Bill,


Thanks for the input. My plan of attack was to brush the awnings, like you said, and then rinse with the ball valve open all the way.........in other words no high pressure.

By the way these are vinyl type awnings and not fabric.

[Big Bill]

I really couldn't tell from the pics that they were vinyl. You should still be able to use the bleach like you were talking about. I would guess that you will be cleaning the building also? If you are, then just scrub your wash mix w/ a brush, and rinse, rinse, rinse. You will be removing most, if not all the sealer, so a good sealer will need to be used to help prevent further damage in the future. 303 Fabric Guard is not to be used on vinyl, so don't use it on these awnings.

[jon chapman]

Ive used bleach and soap on white vynl awnings before and it does an adequate job. Awning Rejuvination Systems makes a vynil cleaner that does even better and is inexpensive. the results last longer too. I beleive they are in Ft. Lauderdale.

[Aplus]

I've cleaned hundreds of awnings. Although I typically use cleaners formulated for specific awning materials, I can say I have enhanced some cleaners by including other chems. Many commercially prepared cleaners contain a mild form of either sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide.

Whether or not to use bleach, or if you really need it is another question. Depending on what is under the awnings, can help you decide, as well as the degree of mold on them. If mold is heavy, you need more chlorine, but you have to be careful of the runoff and what it lands on. If that's a concern, then quaternary ammoniums work really well because they are less toxic to greenery underneath.

Citrus based cleaners can work well too, but they don't mix with chlorine products. So a one-size-fits-all approach really doesn't work. Tide and bleach could work in some situations, but not necessarily all. Every time I've cleaned awnings I've done some testing with several products to determine which combination works best. In fact, it's always best to do upfront testing BEFORE bidding on a job. If that's not possible now, then plan on having several products on hand, and test when you start. When you find out what works best, you can always send someone out to buy more if needed.

Good Luck!