Cleaning stains on drysuit exterior?

[Marie13]

It's like when you have a new car - you want to keep it looking nice as long as you can.

My USIA Techniflex is a little more than a week old. It's got some dirt stains on the knees and lower legs from kneeling in the quarry shallows last week and when I hit the bottom once when my buoyancy was a bit off. I've twice tried scrubbing at the dirt stains with a solution of Dawn dishwashing detergent and water with a washcloth and it's not really worked. That was following the manufacturer's instructions in the user manual.

What have you used that really works? Or do I just need to use a scrub brush gently?

Thanks!

 

[doctormike]

Don't do it! Stains on the knees are a sign of an experienced wreck diver. I heard that some companies offer to ship new suits with them, like "distressed" jeans.

 

[Marie13]

Don't do it! Stains on the knees are a sign of an experienced wreck diver. I heard that some companies offer to ship new suits with them, like "distressed" jeans.

Mike from DRIS called them "battle stains" when I asked him. I'm a chick, I like my stuff to be nice.

 

[tbone1004]

it will only be nice for so long... that said it is just nylon so instead of dawn try using some laundry detergent. Important for the suit to be properly wet though so I'd do it in the tub so it can soak a bit before you put the soap on and start scrubbing. Better thing to do is that if you notice stains before you get out of your gear to get back in the water and wash them off there since they are unlikely to have set.