Making a clean sweep of the dirtbuster business
Issue 62 : Sept/Oct 2008
My favorite weapon for attacking dirt on our boat deck is a broom.
We have one of those expensive, expanding boat-brush systems, but for daily maintenance I recommend an inexpensive broom with angled plastic bristles.
First, there are times when the deck only needs a dry sweep to rid it of a layer of dust, leaves, or the “dandruff” from a rusty anchor.
Second, the broom can be used as a quick-and-easy deck brush. Dip the bristles in soap and water, add a little pressure to flatten them on the deck, and start scrubbing. Whenever my husband and I work together to do the whole boat, he uses the official boat-brush system for washing the hull, and at the same time, I tackle the deck with my broom. I like it better for that because the broom easily cleans behind and around the stanchions and cleats where our big, fat deck brush has trouble. It also slips nicely under the lines.
Third, my broom can morph into a mop. I keep a heavy-duty rubber band wound on the neck of the broom. To change the broom into a mop, I fold a large-sized Absorber (a manmade chamois) around the bristles and pull the ends up through the rubber band, securing them as tightly as I can. A towel could be used as the mop head instead, but I like the Absorber because when it absorbs as much water as it can, I can wring it out easily, and when it’s wrung “dry,” it’s as absorbent as it was at the start. The Absorber is gentle on the hatch covers and the dodger’s plastic windows, and it leaves them streak-free. Best of all, I never have to store a dirty, smelly mop. I rinse the cloth in a solution of vinegar and water, then immediately stow it away (damp) in its plastic container. Every so often, I throw the Absorber in with the week’s laundry.
My broom-brush-mop stores easily in our lazarette. And best of all, it was dirt cheap.
Judee Stalmack, and her husband, Tom, retired from Detroit Edison in 1997. If they aren’t cruising the Atlantic coast aboard the Cheshire Cat, a Nonsuch 30, they’re exploring the interior of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico in their motorhome, Ratherby Sailing. Judee writes freelance articles for boat and RV magazines.
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