I tried a search and didn't find another thread on carpets.  I'm into my first bass boat this year, which has brand new carpeting (seller said he bought the correct carpet direct from BassPro/Tracker).  I'm still trying to wrap my head around how carpet won't be destroyed by fish slime, blood and other dirt. 

 

Q is, should I be pre-treating the carpet with something before first use?  Then what is the recommended care - vacuum, shampoo?  Any suggested products?

Vacuum the carpet regularly and any stains clean up as soon as you can. They sell many brands of marine carpet cleaner. I use auto carpet cleaner and it works great for me. But the key as I mentioned is vacuum regularly so there’s no dirt build up.

 

 

I use this ~

A-Jay

10 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I use this ~

Star Brite products are solid.

 

Being as most of the hull of my F-9 is unpainted - I use their Aluminum Cleaner to keep it looking good.

Easiest and most maintenance free solution is to just not use carpet in a boat. That is why you see more and more new boats without it nowadays. I would say about half the new fishing boats I saw at the boat show in January had no carpet. My boat has no carpet and I’ll never buy another one with it again after using the maintenance free hard surface for the past 6 seasons.

 

Being that it’s brand new carpet, I wouldn’t obviously tear it out. Always allow it to dry properly, clean stains as soon as possible, and try to avoid any rips or tears because they usually just get worse over time.

I don’t use carpet cleaners in my boat.  I have a dedicated shop vac that is for wet vacuuming only.  I keep the boat vacuumed for dirt, etc and at least monthly I wet down my boat carpet one section at a time, brush the carpet then use the wet vac., then I turn on the shop fan and go away.

 

 

Do not use a pressure washer on your carpet.  You could rip a seam loose.

I know this topic is about carpet but next time consider using vinyl flooring or synthetic material marine foam like SeaDek or a competing product which basically only require rinsing to keep clean. Makes your boating maintenance life a lot easier. 

10 hours ago, Dwight Hottle said:

I know this topic is about carpet but next time consider using vinyl flooring or synthetic material marine foam like SeaDek or a competing product which basically only require rinsing to keep clean. Makes your boating maintenance life a lot easier. 

I would have loved to - but considering it would have cost me around $700 to SeaDek the F-9, and I got the carpet for around $100...my slim budget made the choice for me.

Babasol  shave cream scrubbed into the carpet and rinse. Works for my friends phx  as well as Mr. Gerald  Swindle. Couple cans, stiff brush and a hose.

Rinse and shop vac, like jig man, is what I did.
I opted out on the carpet too, it’s a roll on nonskid coating. I put it on 2 yrs ago and it’s holding up very well. Maintenance is a lot easier, no more hooks getting caught. 

Park it inside, under cover or in the shade. The sun rots carpet, even miniature golf carpet.

 

My 2014 carpet is cheap red indoor-outdoor from Home Depot. I think the gallon of BassPro adhesive cost as much as the carpet. 

I've always used a 50/50 mix of simply green, scrub and vacuum...... smells good too ?.

 

Thanks guys.  It was a good deal on a used/fully refurbished boat, so I'm "stuck" with carpet.  I'm excited about the boat, just want to keep the carpet looking good.

4 hours ago, The Baron said:

Thanks guys.  It was a good deal on a used/fully refurbished boat, so I'm "stuck" with carpet.  I'm excited about the boat, just want to keep the carpet looking good.

Congrats and good luck with your new boat