another awning question

[Allisdad]

We recently bought a used Coleman pop-up camper; it is in great shape except for one thing the awning is extremely moldy. I tried cleaning it with CLR and a power washer, but it really didn’t do much for the stains. Can you guys suggest something I can use to get rid of these stains? If I leave it open will the sun fade them out? We are not planning on using it until spring so I have time. Thanks in advance for all your help. Oh, a side note. Before anyone yells at me about washing canvas in Ohio in the middle of winter it was done in a barn so I wasn’t real concerned about it freezing and cracking lol. I was just so excited about my new camper I have spent every weekend doing something to it.

 

[freshlybarked]

DH has tried everything and nothing seems to work. In Florida mold is a given if your RV is stored outside. If there is something that works we'll try it. So far we haven't found anything that takes the stains off completely.

 

[ElementCamper]

Mold stains are extremely hard to remove and due to the spores it leaves will come back. There are some commercial canvas cleaners, not sure of the names but have seen then in places like Camping World and online. Most awnings are made of a material like Sunbrella and won't fade (usually) if cleaners with bleach are used. Homemade remedy you can try is some detergent in a gallon of warm water with about a cup of bleach to kill the mold. Try a small test spot first and be sure to rinse well.

Your mold was probably caused by the previous owner putting the awning up damp. If you do get it clean, be sure all canvas is completely dry before storing.

Your mileage may vary...

 

[ataylorrdh]

My husband uses MEAN GREEN or a mold and mildew bathroom cleaner.

 

[Born 2 Fish]

We have done fairly well using "Magic Erasers" and "Awesome"(spray) .
The Awesome you can buy at a lot of the Dollar Stores and the Magic Erasers you can buy just about everywhere.

 

[des1954]

We tend to shy away from using bleach on the awnings, so here are a couple of natural solutions to try.

First - on a day you know it will not rain, open the awning and let sit in the direct sun for about 30-60 minutes so you know it's good & dry. Then if you can, take a stiff bristle brush and dry scrub the mildew spots really hard to loosen the spores.

Second - on the really tough spots, spray lemon juice directly on the spots and then liberally sprinkle the spots with salt. Really scrub hard & let sit for 3-5 minutes. Rinse and let dry thoroughly.

Another method that works and is very cheap is to use vinegar straight from the jug and scrub, let sit for about 30 minutes and rinse. Vinegar is an effective mold and mildew killer and remover. It doesn't work as quickly as bleach, and you may have to apply 2 or 3 times, but vinegar won't damage the fabric. Bleach will weaken the fabric and you may end up with little pin holes in your awning.

It's going to take a lot of elbow grease, but that beats putting out big $$$ to replace the awning.

 

[bama_ed]

You can try cleaning the awning but it will be difficult to remove all the stains but you certainly can improve the appearance by cleaning (either with a commercial product or home-made blend).

The cardinal rule of pop-up camping (one of them anyway) is to never EVER close up and store a damp pop-up. Morning dew, rain, condensation, anything is BAD NEWS. Always let your pop-up dry completely before closing it up to go home. Or if you need to leave and it's damp, when you get home pop it up in the driveway and let it dry out there (or within a day or two).

I've learned (the hard way) these lessons and now when it's "going home" day I get up in the morning and run a sponge or cheap kitchen sponge mop over the top of the canvas (standing on a portable step or milk crate) and squeeze it out frequently to get the moisture off. That way it will dry a little sooner while we're eating breakfast and getting things put away.

Finally if all else fails, original awnings or after-market ones are expensive (I bought one for $400 after it tore from the weight of a rain puddle but that's another story). If or when I need another one I'm just going to get an EZ-Up awning or something like that. Much cheaper, not trapped up against the trailer, and more versatile.

Good luck! Bama ED

PS-I was born/raised in the Akron-Cleveland area of Ohio so I'm not gonna give you any smack about cleaning in winter. On the contrary, I admire you for thinking "pop-up" in the winter .

 

[ElementCamper]

I sold my popup for the very reason you have to store it dry. It was a total pain if you had to take down camp in the rain, when you get home you had to wait until a dry day and put the popup back up again to let it dry. If you had a wet spell and had to wait a few days, by then the damage was done.