It's Not the Toilet: Your Boat Might Smell From the Bilge

You’ve treated the holding tank, the toilet’s working perfectly, and the boat still has a musty, stale smell when you open it up. Before you pull the toilet system apart, check the bilge. It’s one of the most common sources of onboard odour and one of the most overlooked.

What collects in the bilge

The bilge is the lowest point of the boat, so everything ends up there:

stagnant rainwater and seawater
engine oil, diesel and grease
organic matter like leaves, food scraps and dead marine growth
on some boats, grey water from the shower.

Left sitting in a warm, closed hull, that mix turns anaerobic and produces strong, persistent odours that soak into upholstery and timber.

Why it smells even when the toilet is fine

Bilge odour has nothing to do with the toilet system, so treating the holding tank won’t fix it. It’s a separate source that needs its own treatment.

How to treat the bilge with ProPower

ProPower’s microbes feed on organic waste, oils and grease, which makes them ideal for bilges:

Remove loose debris and arrange lawful disposal of contaminated bilge water. Never discharge oily or chemically contaminated water into waterways.
Dilute ProPower 10:1 with water in a pump sprayer.
Spray the whole bilge, including the sides and hard-to-reach corners.
Leave it. The longer it sits, the more time the microbes have to feast on the waste.

Repeat regularly, especially before laying the boat up. Because ProPower is 100% natural, it’s far kinder to the marine environment than solvent-based bilge cleaners.

Shop and learn more: ProPower Marine Tank Treatment · ProPower Probiotic Surface Spray