Faded 911 Carpet

[Daryl Ganske]

Hello! I just bought a used 2001 Nitro 911CDC today. It is charcoal gray,silver and black and has charcoal colored carpet. It is in great condition with the exception of the carpet. It was a charcoal gray color when it was new, but now it has faded to a beige tan color. The carpet is still shoft and stands up but just looks bad because it doesn't match the rest of the boat. It is in great shape with no tears in it. Does anyone know if it is possible to dye the carpet back to the original color or would it have to be replaced? Have you ever heard of this before? Did older Nitros have a carpet problem? Thanks!

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

Hmmmmmm, gray usually holds up really well. Never heard of it fading like some of the other colors. I would try a deep cleaning before replacing it. Usually it will wear out or tear if it has been exposed to enough sun to fade it.



TOXIC

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Sure it wasn't tan and just faded?

I've seen grey get nasty with dirt but, not turn tan:wacko:

I'd try pressure washing it and see how it comes out?

Me personally could care less how my carpet looks anyway because there are so many slimy fish comin' over the side and landing on my carpet! Dang fish anyway:lol:

 

[Larry Harp]

Boat carpet as well as other outdoor and commercial carpet is made from solution dyed polypropylene. Solution dying means the dye goes in while it's still in a liquid chemical state so the color goes all the way through... like a carrot. Once it's extruded into carpet fiber it is non-porous which makes it very stain and fade resistant. However, sunlight is a very strong bleaching agent and everything will fade if left out in the sun long enough. Darker colors especially black and red absorb more UV and therefore fade faster. Because of the non-porous nature of the polypropylene carpet fiber I don't think you'll have much luck with dying it. I'm not sure exactly what would happen... either the dye would not stay on at all or would rub off on hands, feet, clothes, etc. You might experiment on a piece that is hidden away and see what happens but I wouldn't expect positive results. My crystal ball tells me you have new boat carpet in your future.

 

[Daryl Ganske]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try pressure washing it and see what happens.