Can you help How to remove mold from car interior

Stephen McLachlan said:

Hi all. As the title states. I'm looking for help.
I have an old toyota blade that's been sat still unused.
It's got mold over the dash and in air vents seats and carpets. What is (if any) the best way to remove and hopefully stop it from returning.
Thanks in advance. And hope this is the right thread.

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You can start with cleaning with APC to remove as much as you can. Then if you have a steamer then steam clean the area. Lastly sit a ozone generator box in the vehicle for about 2 hours then you should be fine.

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Make sure to wear a respirator mask and gloves the whole time you’re cleaning it.

In my opinion, mold removal, to do it right is a huge undertaking.

You must remove 100% of the mold or any spores left behind can simply start the mold infestation problem over again.

I'm not a mold removal expert, I teach it in my boat classes but we tend to work on surfaces that are white, not colored. So if the product we're using stains a surface white it's of no consequence.


My one strong suggestion would be any FABRIC material that you can throw away - do throw away - like floor mats.


It might be worth it to find a shop that offers this and warranties it and is also insured, and take it to them. At least for a estimate.

Mike Phillips said:

In my opinion, mold removal, to do it right is a huge undertaking.

You must remove 100% of the mold or any spores left behind can simply start the mold infestation problem over again.

It might be worth it to find a shop that offers this and warranties it and is also insured, and take it to them. At least for a estimate.

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I agree with Mike's reaction!

However, this video by Larry Kosilla (Ammo NYC) shows the steps he faced in getting his personal car ready to sale with similar problem.
YouTube

Larry seems to take on big jobs like this and has several videos on this topic that might show all he does to protect himself as he works through the issues of mold removal or worse!

I’m almost embarrassed to admit this, but when I sold my Cadillac Seville it had a problem that almost prevented me from even considering selling it at all.. As a matter of fact I was set on junking the car until my friend convinced me to post an ad up for sale.

What was the problem? Mold. If anyones familiar with GM vehicles and the notorious “leaky trunk” issue... My car had it. To make matters critically worse my electronic trunk pulldown motor took a dump in the halfways position and somehow shut itself a week later, never to be opened again.




Well nearly 2 years passed by with the occasional rain, and the inability to open the trunk and vacuum out the water.. In the end I started getting visible warning signs with a couple of patches of mold showing on my rear leather seats. I stopped driving the car got rid of it asap. I didn’t dare risk opening that trunk nor was it worth it. Heck I didn’t even want to sell it to anyone which is why I sold it so cheap. I still regret even selling it at all. I should’ve junked it. Luckily it wound up in the junkyard within a months time. I know it did because I got a letter in the mail..

Moral of the story, mold ain’t no joke. Protect yourself because it’s not something you just clean off wearing a t shirt.

In case you’re wondering, yes I made sure to warn the buyer about the trunk and made sure get the point across that it would likely be a serious situation when the trunk was opened.

Hi Stephen,

Thanks for the picture, looks kind of like an icky job.




Cool to see a right-hand drive car though.


Let us know what you eventually decide to do.

Just to add....


Back in the early 1980's I had this,


My 1959 Cadillac 4-Door Convertible Boat Puller


Here’s the 1959 Cadillac I cut the top off of and used to pull my drag boat to the lake and the races.





If you look carefully, you'll see this is a 4-door. Cadillac never made a 4-door convertible.... but I did. This was a 1959 Cadillac Flattop that was heading to the salvage yard. The salvage yard was going to yank the motor and transmission to resale and then CRUSH what was left.

It ran great but I didn't want a 4-door Flattop, back then I thought they looked ugly. I figured, if they're going to crush it, I can't make it any worse by cutting the top off? I paid $165.00 for it and drove it home. I still have the check today. I carefully marked the top for re-attaching before carefully cutting it off and in a couple of hours I had a 4-door Caddy Convertible. I would take the top off in May, usually about this time of year as I would always take my boat to Foster or Green Peter reservoirs for Memorial Day Weekend.

Usually in October, at the very end of summer in Oregon, I would re-attach the hardtop and drive this car all winter.




Before I bought this Cadillac it sat OUTSIDE in Tangent, Oregon where it RAINS A LOT - for 4 years with no windshield.

Read that again, it sat outside in the rain for 4 years with NO WINDSHIELD.

The inside of the car was covered in black mold and had what looked like, Lungwort Lichens growing on the sides of the seats.

The seats were originally black and white but for the most part were completely black with mold.

I pulled all the carpeting out and then scrubbed the seats and door panels with Comet, (with bleach), and a horse brush. Then hosed the car out.

Cleaned-up nice. I drove that car with those seats for 3-4 years an no more mold.



Where there's a will there's a way

If you are looking to wipe off the surface mold, try diluted distilled white vinegar. And borax on the carpets once you finish help keep the mold down. And like the others said, use a couple pairs of gloves and a real respirator mask. These items are probably scarce though.

Before you attempt to clean up your mold problem.. what caused it in the first place? If you don't stop the source, it's just coming back.