Removing mold from leather seats?

[RogueGypsy]

A friend of mine has an Excursion that sat unused for a year in our wonderful Great NorthWet weather. The drivers rear door seal leaked and water saturated a newspaper sitting on the back seat. Now there is a newspaper size patch of mold where the paper was sitting (no, the spots are not newsprint).

She tried leather cleaner and bleach (ouch) before asking me how to remove it. Neither the cleaner or bleach did the job. I told her I wasn't sure, but could try to find a solution. My only idea is hot water extractor???? She has a 'Little Green Machine', could it work?

Any suggestions would be great. The leather is light gray and although now moldy, it's in otherwise good shape. She cleans homes for a profession and has access to all kinds of heinous chemicals and cleaners. I don't even want to think about the atrocities she'll commit on that leather if I don't find her an answer (she's a bit of a neat freak and the spots are driving her nuts).

TIA,


Brock



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[Lydia]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

Not sure how she applied the leather cleaner, but I've removed mold spots off leather seats before by using Meg's consumer line one step leather cleaner/conditioner, applied and worked in very well with a terry cloth. Wipe off, and apply and work in very well again with a terry cloth. Worked great for me.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

There is an extensive thread on this on "that other site." Dealing with mold is fairly serious as it can involve health hazards and should be taken seriously.

It's not just about removing the mold you can see, but also the spores (I think) that will continue to multiply.

[Megafast13]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

Yeah, mold is bad. Many people are allergic to it. Try The meguiar's Cleaner/Conditioner...

[AeroCleanse]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

Now I have one, I'd probably hit it up with a steam cleaner.

[RogueGypsy]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

I hear what you're saying about the mold. I'm one of those allergic to it, you don't even want to know how I found out. That's why I'm staying away from it.

She applied the leather cleaner (Lexol) with a terry towel and agitated it with a tooth brush. It removed the 'fuzz' on top, but left spots that look like they are in the leather. She followed that with a 10% bleach/water solution on a terry and still has the spots.

Now she has tried Murphy's oil soap and Saddle soap, both agitated to a foam with a nylon brush and wiped with a terry towel. The spots are still there, but the seat is reallllllllllllly clean. Now she's washing the rest of the seats with Saddle soap to match.

I think she plans to try the LGM this afternoon. All suggestions are welcome.

I'm going to check 'that other forum' to see what they tried.


Thanks,

Brock


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[akimel]

Re: Removing mold from leather seats?

Mold needs to be taken seriously. Be sure to wear proper equipment. Hopefully the bleach solution has killed it, but what if the mold has moved into the cushions?

Over at Autopia I found this thread. You may find it helpful:

http://www.autopia.org/forum/pro-details-before-after/112826-1979-mercedes-450sl-complete-interior-mold-abatement.html