Removing blood stains from sails

[Mahana]

Thank you all for the helpful suggestions. I'll see what's in the cupboard and try and report back on what worked best...

[softdown]

Blood is easily explained away. My problem is getting rid of the teeth. Tough little bastards.

[hpeer]

Originally Posted by softdown

Blood is easily explained away. My problem is getting rid of the teeth. Tough little bastards.

Good!

[jamhass]

Send the son out again and enjoy your new tanbark main?

[flymike]

Get an eye patch, a parrot and a skull and crossbones flag and no one will mess with you.

[CaptsWife]

I'm still trying to figure out how a cut shin gets blood on a mainsail. ??

[hafa]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Slightly OT: Should NOT be used on cuts and wounds, unless truly necessary, because it also destroys healthy tissue and leaves a fertile "soup" to encourage bacterial growth. Been deprecated for over a decade because of that problem.

An interesting article about this topic.

Three things you need to survive the tropics:

1. WD-40
2. Duct Tape
3. Hydrogen Peroxide

[softdown]

Originally Posted by hafa

An interesting article about this topic.

Three things you need to survive the tropics:

1. WD-40
2. Duct Tape
3. Hydrogen Peroxide

Having been cut and scraped many dozens of times, I have found peroxide to work as well anything else. I also like soaking savage wounds in saltwater for extended periods of time. I have never seen a bacterial infection on a saltwater fish...a business I have been in for 24 years.

The problem with getting in the ocean with a bleeding wound? You will attract sharks from long distances. My theory is that blood in the water is a precursor to many shark attacks. I mean....what kind of guy doesn't have a scab or two?

[DeepCut]

As a surgeon and prior life a paramedic: (Blood on White shirts)
Soak immediately in cold water for hours. Generally takes care of it.
Can use 50:50 water /hydrogen peroxide. If necessary, hydrogen peroxide.

[Sailorbob8599]

I was going to suggest you leave the stain on and explain it happened the week "Captain Bligh" came aboard to teach seamanship 101.

[donradcliffe]

H2O2 gets week old bloodstains out of my clothes. If they are fresh cold water will do.

[UNCIVILIZED]

Originally Posted by hafa

An interesting article about this topic.

Three things you need to survive the tropics:

1. WD-40
2. Duct Tape
3. Hydrogen Peroxide

And the WD-40 is for ??? There are a lot of good lubes, & or, corrosion preventatives out there. WD-40's never impressed me as being one of either.

[meatservo]

Peroxide? Who knew. I will have to try that and see if I can get the rest of the blood out of my clown suit...


meatservo

[hafa]

Originally Posted by UNCIVILIZED

And the WD-40 is for ??? There are a lot of good lubes, & or, corrosion preventatives out there. WD-40's never impressed me as being one of either.

They might be "out there", but they're not here. Combustibles ordered off-island have to be ordered in bulk (read, by the pallet) and shipped via surface. This means that WD-40 is the best available option.

That said, it works very well in preventing/removing corrosion and getting rid of water. On the boat, that means engine surfaces and tools. I also use it on exterior ferrous metal surfaces around the house, including, but not limited to, folding tables and the BBQ. Items treated with WD40 after each use never develop rust. It's also highly effective at removing certain adhesives and dried up heavy lubricants, like grease.

To the horror of other riders, I use it exclusively on my bike chain (yeah, yeah, it's not a lubricant, yada, yada). My chain, however, never rusts and the chain and sprockets usually outlast the bike, even with hard daily riding. Shifting remains smooth and effortless throughout the service life. This has been borne out over 35 years of consistent off-road riding.

The apocryphal evidence against the use WD40 does not match my long-term experience. I try other options from time to time as they become available; to date, however, none of them have proven superior to the point where cost and difficulty in procurement are justified.

[hellosailor]

"Combustibles ordered off-island have to be ordered in bulk (read, by the pallet) and shipped via surface. "
Guess what? If you are in NY, Nebraska, of California, the same thing applies. Combustibles generally are classed as HAZMAT and must be shipped by ground, unless you want to pay $75 per order.

"This means that WD-40 is the best available option. "
Only because it may be cheapest to order a case of that popular product and amortize out the hazmat charges.

According to the inventor, it was designed for water displacement, and it does a fine job of that. As a lubricant? Yeah, like the Mad Hatter said "But it was the best of butter!"

Nothing wrong with "make do" that's the yankee spirit. Just don't do that in front of any German engineers, unless you ply them with gallons of beer first.