Best way to clean yellow power cables

should worry about the connection and not the appearance or paint them black or wrap with black tape
 
Wrap a 50’ cord in black tape?

That’s a lot of hot, gooey tape.

Grungy power cords are often attached to grungy boats. It’s part of maintenance.
 
I can’t explain it but my primary cord is 7 years old and still looks relatively new and it’s out in the weather 6 months out of the year.

I think if it got ratty looking I’d try to clean it. If it didn’t go well I’d get rid of it. At 1O bucks a year or not a big thing.
 
Soulshine said:
I can’t explain it but my primary cord is 7 years old and still looks relatively new and it’s out in the weather 6 months out of the year.

I think if it got ratty looking I’d try to clean it. If it didn’t go well I’d get rid of it. At 1O bucks a year or not a big thing.
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Have you priced a 50’ 30amp cord lately?
 
Jesus I would too. I have a double 30A EEL connector that was a great investment.

On the outboard end of it is a common 50’/30A cord.
 
I’m on a phone and my wife is still waiting for me to cook lunch or I would research that... if that’s the case $90 I would be investing in power cords that’s a really low price
 
The acetone did make my cable sticky. Next time I'll start with@ttmott 's idea of orange hand cleaner first, then toluene next if necessary. No 303 if you have a Cablemaster!
 
carterchapman said:
The acetone did make my cable sticky. Next time I'll start with@ttmott 's idea of orange hand cleaner first, then toluene next if necessary. No 303 if you have a Cablemaster!
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Have fun finding toluene. I couldn’t find any. Tried xylene and it worked fine with no stickiness. Also tried the orange hand cleaner but it didn’t seem to work.
 
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Just cleaned mine from the plug to the boat. Gotta pull all 75 feet out to do the rest someday but since it stays in the cable master bucket it’s not that bad. I tried the hand cleaner but this job stayed on my to do list too long. Acetone was the winner. I tried mixing acetone and mineral spirits thinking it would keep the evaporation down and make the job go better but the combo did not clean as well. I followed up with West marine inflatable boat preservative. I’ll put my Marinco cable jacket back on and see how the cables hold up. In the past they seemed to cook in the cover and did not stay very clean at all. No substitute for elbow grease on a consistent schedule.
I’m not gonna waste my time on the white water hose. $15 replaces that when it gets too grungy.
CD
 
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firecadet613 said:
@Carpediem44DB how has that cable jacket been holding up?
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That one is a year and a half old and beginning to fade. I’d say for us with year round use the most life one could expect is 3 years. I’m gonna sew one up with a good vinyl backed sunbrella and Velcro seams to see if it holds up better. I bought this one to replace an old tattered one. The plastic zipper is definitely compromised by the sun too. I think this marinco unit is best used when at a visitor dock for the weekend not permanent protection while at the home slip.
CD
 
Steve S said:
Have fun finding toluene. I couldn’t find any. Tried xylene and it worked fine with no stickiness. Also tried the orange hand cleaner but it didn’t seem to work.
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Most paint stores carry toluene in half gallon metal cans. It is cheap.
 
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We power wash our dock each spring to clean up after the sea gulls live on it the better part of 6 months when the boat is not there. The day after the dock cleaning I clean power cords. I have it down to about 30 minutes a cord by laying out the cord the full length of the now clean dock. I put a chair at one end of the dock and use a clean white towel soaked in toluene. I pull the cord through the towel and coil it at the base of the chair. Working on a breezy day carries the fumes away. This stuff in highly flammable but works well. I store the can in a barn away from every thing else with the lid screwed on well. One can lasts 10 plus years.
 
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