Removing Pine Resin from Tent Rainfly

Greetings fellow campers and hikers!

Lo and behold I had one of my tents pitched under a white pine tree. This tree decided to "rain" it's resin all over my tent, thus making a real sticky situation to clean up! LOL! :)

How doth one go about removing all this resin fron my tent without doing any damage to the tent's materials? Any ideas/suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

Mineral spirits would probably work. Tecnu (the poision oak soap) was originally intended for sap removal and its primary ingredient is mineral spirits, and that might be less likely to remove the coating on the tent as well.

Thanks for your suggestion. I will give that a try. Mineral Ghost (Spirits) stinks real bad though, doth it not?

White gas works for me

I tried white gas Mr.Tentman. It did not take it off I'm sorry :( to report.

ministercreek said:

Thanks for your suggestion. I will give that a try. Mineral Ghost (Spirits) stinks real bad though, doth it not?

Yup, which is why I mentioned Tecnu, it uses de-odorized mineral spirits. It's diluted some by the soap part tho, and may not be nearly as effective.

Mayonaisse or hand sanitizer also work, from what I'm told. Haven't tried those myself.

I used to work in the woodyard of a pulpmill and handled pine logs. Peanut butter was the best natural "solvent" I ever found. The oil in it would cut right throught the sap. I would imagine the mayo would work as well. I'm not sure I would use any "food" item on my tent, fly or otherwise. The critters might take a liking to your it!

I think you can buy dry ice in a can. It is used to remove gum from carpets. I know cleaners carry it so consult a company that supply cleaning products. I have a can at home but I cant remember the name.

Good Luck

I bought a REI family dome tent about 11 years ago. The instructions recommended using kerosene to remove pine sap but I never had to try it.

Mad Medic said:

I'm not sure I would use any "food" item on my tent, fly or otherwise. The critters might take a liking to your it!

Like those cute little harvestmen for example?

Doesn't some Seam Sealer products use alcohol as an ingredient?

Therefore I would imagine alcohol would not damage tent material and wood alcohol is made from pine sap, and dissolves sap very easily. Just be sure to air out the tent very well, prior to use.

I have used denatured alcohol for removing pine tar. It does not leave a stain and evaporates totally leaving no smell.

People use that denatured alchohol in stoves, do they not?

I should give that a try. Thanks.

Yes, denatured alcohol is used in stoves. I carry a soda can stove my son-in-law made me, which burns alcohol. So I always have it with me on the trail.

Let us know if it works for you.

I would NOT use mineral spirits!

I'm and artist and use it alot. It will leave a oil film, that doesnt fully dry. No matter what you use you may have to weather proof your tent again . I think your best bet would be denatured alcohol, as it will leave no film behind. And in the long run oil products will shorten the life of your tent. Good luck.

mikemorrow said:

I would NOT use mineral spirits!

I'm and artist and use it alot. It will leave a oil film, that doesnt fully dry. No matter what you use you may have to weather proof your tent again . I think your best bet would be denatured alcohol, as it will leave no film behind. And in the long run oil products will shorten the life of your tent. Good luck.

Thanks for the head's up.

Denatured alcohol it is then.

Thanks again.

Turpentine is distilled from pine sap and is probably the best solvent for still-sticky sap. We used to use it to keep saw blades from sticking in conifer trees and to clean our hands. I think it will do a good job of removing the pitch and, you can do a final cleanup with rubbing alcohol to remove any residue film. It is a little pricey these days though.