Cleaning Decoys

[CumbrianWildfowler]

How do people clean their decoys? Does anyone use anything other than water and a brush? Any chemicals?

I ask because some of the salt marsh here seems to act like melted plastic and is quite resistant to just mechanical means.

any tips?

[marsh man]

Never really bothered to much with cleaning duck decoys during the season , mine used to be out in all weather conditions so the wet weather saved me a job , I had my own block of marshes where I would leave half a dozen on a decent splash all the Winter , then one night I went down and they had all flown off since I had last been down , the local wildfowling club was next door but I could never prove who took them , which at the time was a very good job I couldn't .     MM

[CumbrianWildfowler]

42 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Never really bothered to much with cleaning duck decoys during the season , mine used to be out in all weather conditions so the wet weather saved me a job , I had my own block of marshes where I would leave half a dozen on a decent splash all the Winter , then one night I went down and they had all flown off since I had last been down , the local wildfowling club was next door but I could never prove who took them , which at the time was a very good job I couldn't .     MM

A low act indeed. I do have a couple of stashing points so I don't have to carry them all off every time, and the very real threat that I'd drown any thief in the creek if they dared. But they are attracting quite a tide scum of mud so I have brought them all back for a spruce up. The last time it was hard work hence the question.

Edited 4 hours ago by CumbrianWildfowler

[marsh man]

23 minutes ago, CumbrianWildfowler said:

A low act indeed. I do have a couple of stashing points so I don't have to carry them all off every time, and the very real threat that I'd drown any thief in the creek if they dared. But they are attracting quite a tide scum of mud so I have brought them all back for a spruce up. The last time it was hard work hence the question.

Could you spray them with anything like WD 40 to make the cleaning process easier ?

When I shared some marshes I would leave some in a hessian sack in the reed fringe around the dykes , never had any go missing   MM

[TIGHTCHOKE]

A bucket of warm soapy water and a scrubbing brush and as long as it takes, no shortcuts I'm afraid.   

[CumbrianWildfowler]

20 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

A bucket of warm soapy water and a scrubbing brush and as long as it takes, no shortcuts I'm afraid.   

Im just wary of chemicals with the paint? just bathroom soap? fairy liquid?

[Sweet11-87]

sorry lads standard fair chase rules apply. in some of states its illegal to leave any artificial lures out and "acclimatize"  the birds.  In many marshes in the uk you cant leave a temporary hide in place after you leave for the same reason.  inland and private land is a different matter but if its on a tidal area and i find decoys stashed or left out im gonna clean up the litter as its just plastic asking to float away on the first rough or high swell.  not popular i know but if everyone stashed a dozen decoys on the foreshore it would be a land fill

as for cleaning them they hose off no bother if you do it pretty soon after you get home.

[CumbrianWildfowler]

23 minutes ago, Sweet11-87 said:

sorry lads standard fair chase rules apply. in some of states its illegal to leave any artificial lures out and "acclimatize"  the birds.  In many marshes in the uk you cant leave a temporary hide in place after you leave for the same reason.  inland and private land is a different matter but if its on a tidal area and i find decoys stashed or left out im gonna clean up the litter as its just plastic asking to float away on the first rough or high swell.  not popular i know but if everyone stashed a dozen decoys on the foreshore it would be a land fill

as for cleaning them they hose off no bother if you do it pretty soon after you get home.

I didn't mean leave decoys in the water, I meant I leave them in a bag under a bush on private land where no other fowler should be, and if I found someone employing 'fair chase' I'd chase them into the creek and they would be  the landfill, you'd find that unpopular but its what you would get!  Sorry something may have been lost in translation? We are in the UK and talking about plain theft or Marshman was at least. Where I am the local wildfowlers all seem a decent bunch (its a small world), anyway the question was cleaning mud scum off the decoys. Rabbit hole?!

 

Edited 3 hours ago by CumbrianWildfowler

[TIGHTCHOKE]

2 hours ago, CumbrianWildfowler said:

Im just wary of chemicals with the paint? just bathroom soap? fairy liquid?

Fairy is fine, although other dishwashing liquids are available.    

[JKD]

When you use the scrubbing brush, make sure you only do it in a clockwise circular motion 👍😆

[Stonepark]

13 minutes ago, JKD said:

When you use the scrubbing brush, make sure you only do it in a clockwise circular motion 👍😆

Surely you should follow the   "wax on, wax off" process.....

[JKD]

4 minutes ago, Stonepark said:

Surely you should follow the   "wax on, wax off" process.....

Only half if it,,,, otherwise you risk removing some of the surface and ruining the 'goose effect' 👍😁

[marsh man]

27 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Fairy is fine, although other dishwashing liquids are available.    

 

11 minutes ago, JKD said:

When you use the scrubbing brush, make sure you only do it in a clockwise circular motion 👍😆

Neither of you two have mentioned if you should wear rubber gloves or not while using washing up liquids , also , as I haven't used my dish washer for nearly a year , I would be only to pleased to put the op's decoys in without using any powder or whatever they use and just use plain water , it would be free of charge as the water company owe me more enough to fill a commercial size flight pond