Have you ever boarded your boat looking forward to a relaxing sojourn afloat but when you open the cabin door you’re assaulted by a pong that makes your eyes water? Your boat smells like a refuse heap with undertones of sewer gas and old gym socks. Folks in adjoining slips are starting to complain. It’s time to do something about it—but where do you start?
Fighting odors is a two-pronged mission. First you have to kill the smell, then kill the source. Neutralizing the smell is easy, any spray will do, but finding and eradicating the source can be difficult. Chances are it lives in the farthest nooks and crannies of your bilge, or in some other nearly impossible-to-reach area that hasn’t been properly cleaned recently or maybe ever. Or the stank was born in a puddle of moisture from a leak, one whose source even Sherlock Holmes would be hard-pressed to find. But mold and mildew can find it, and they love it. You’ve got a job ahead of you.
