Staining above the water line looks like metal

[outbacktommy]

I have brown staining above the water line. I tested it with vitamin c, which lightened it a bit, but did not remove it- I made a loose slurry of crushed ascorbic acid vitamin c, sponged it on a test area and lightly scrubbed for about 3 minutes. It did not respond to a household cleaner test patch and it does not feel as though there is any build up of any kind.

Thoughts?

 

[mknauss]

Typically is a build up of body oils, lotions, sunscreen, overall gook. Most folks have had luck with Magic Eraser pads.

 

[outbacktommy]

I believe that it is probably a build up, but why isn't it sticky or gummy? Why does a household degreaser have no effect? I also tried magic eraser, which works, but also appears to scour a bit of the ink pattern off. The liner is about 12 years old. We bought the house 3 years ago and the stain has always been there, but i think it might be getting worse. Is there a better solution?

 

[mknauss]

At that age of liner the vinyl above the water line is getting UV exposure that will change its characteristics. The vinyl below the liner is no doubt fading after a decade of chlorine exposure, especially the uncontrolled early years prior to your maintenance.

Magic Eraser can take the ink off the vinyl also. A light touch helps, but no doubt if the vinyl is nearing its end of life, it will become less resilient.