On Sep 13, 4:26 pm, Norminn wrote:
Artful Dodger wrote:
On Sep 6, 9:52 am, Artful Dodger wrote:

On Sep 6, 4:11 am, wrote:

On Sep 5, 10:51 pm, Artful Dodger wrote:

My vinyl? some kind of not porcelain ? bathtub has a nasty blackish
stain on the narrow front ledge just under the faucets. I have
applied mildewcide several times. Also applied bleach. Also tried
SofScrub. Nada.

I don't know what the stain could be from.

Is there anything else I can try?

I would guess you have a fiberglass tub and you might try one of
the products make just for that. Keep in mind that it may not be
removable and that using the wrong products on it can damage the
finish making matters worse. However I would guess the products you
have used should normally be fiberglass safe.

Yep, that's it -- fiberglas.

I should add that stain runs along the seam that connects tub to wall.
The rest of the "seam" doesn't show that stain.

This might tie in with comment by another poster about possible water
leak.

(a) I keep faucets firmly closed. So how/why would water leak
create blackish stain on the *outside* rather than in the wall (sob!)

(b) If true, what do I need to do (sob!) ?

I will look for fiberglas cleaning prods, but not much hope,
considering what I have already tried.

Tx to all, and I welcome more thoughts.

Update: I tried mildewcide one more time. N.G.
I got sodisgusted I took an old screwdriver to the
grout, and guess what? The tub is perfectly clean.
It was the GROUT that was stained.

OK, I now face the disagreeable job of removing
the grout and replacing it, which I'm not very
good at.

But it does raise the question: Why did the mildewcide
not work on the grout?

Inquiring minds...

The mildew was behind/under the caulk?

No, actually WITHIN it, is the only way I can express it.

Common problem, due to
insufficient cleaning before caulking.

Puzzling thing is that the caulk was in place for YEARS before that
blackish-grey
stain began to appear.

I assume that you meant to say
that you
removed caulk from between tub and wall?

Basically, yes. Due to my poor caulking skills, quite a bit of
overlap
lay on the tub surface.

If so, Clean it EXTREMELY well
(and carefully so's not to
scratch the fiberglass). Then wipe with denatured alcohol to get grease
off. Dry. Wipe joint with
full strength bleach. Let dry. Apply new silicone caulk.

A nylon scrubber (not 3M abrasive stuff) with full strength Dawn dish
detergent should get all of your
soap scum off fiberglass.

So many people mention Dawn! Can it really be any different than
all the other liquid dish soaps??

Rinse, dry. Scrubbing Bubbles is a great
cleaner, too S.B. is the best tub/tile
cleaner I have ever used - wish I had discovered it long ago. Even used
it on the kitchen cabinets, floor
and fridge )

Will look it up. I've lately been using Greased Lightning, that my
helper
recommended after I had surgery. Anybody can compare GL with SB?
I'd be interested in your experience.

Thanks for step-by-step rundown on cleaning & prep before new caulk.

I guess everybody has their favorite brand? What's yours -- keeping
in mind tub is fiberglas.