DEET stain on black leather from Off! bug repellent spray

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starkraven

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I just got a 2011 M3 with black leather. I take my daughter to school every morning, right after my wife spritzes her with OFF! insect repellent. I noticed today that there were stains all over the back seat from where my daughter climbs in to her car seat.

A google search told me that DEET can stain leather. I dug deeper and found that DEET is a plasticizer that can melt synthetics. It's a pretty decent solvent. I called SC Johnson -- the maker of OFF! -- and it confirmed that. I suspect that the protective coating on my leather is etched.

Any ideas on how to remove or repair the damage?
 
Welcome!

Since they know of the problem, what did they suggest to clean it with?
 
rwright said:
Welcome!

Since they know of the problem, what did they suggest to clean it with?
Click to expand...

They suggested a leather cleaner and conditioner, but I got the feeling that they were pessimistic about my chances of success. They also pointed out that if I read the warning on the bottle, it says that it can damage leather (among a slew of other substances.)
 
Personally I would start with a bottle of Lexol leather cleaner to see if that would do anything. Lexol is pH balanced and can be found OTC at a lot of places. Hopefully someone with a little more leather care experience will chime in with their opinion. I haven't used Pinnacle or Wolfgang Leather care products so I can't vouch for them at this point. I'm sure they are great products though as it is evident with their other products I own! Best of luck to you and keep us posted as it may help out another person along the way.

*Edit

Take a look at the leather care section at Autogeek.net while waiting for additional responses.
 
I've used Lexol cleaner, and it does a good job. Don't know about the DEET damage, though, I haven't had that. You can get Lexol from AG. I found some at a farm store that has horse supplies. They use it for saddles. Get the conditioner as well. Both cost around 10 bucks per container. Haven't used a lot of products to compare, but in my opinion, it works pretty good.
 
Thanks, guys. I'm really familiar with Lexol and Leatherique. I've got some Lexol that I could give a shot, but I think this problem is much bigger than it can handle (plus, see below). I think I'm looking at damage to the clear coating on the leather.

I've got a pro detailer whom I trust coming to look at it Monday. He asked that I not touch it further. (Hence, no Lexol.) If he can't fix it, my next step is to contact a couple of leather coating specialists that someone on another forum put me in touch with and go from there.
 
Sounds like you're doing the right things. Good Luck!
 
Ask your detailer friend about using Megs APC. I detailed a friend's RX-330 last week which had curious orange stains on the driver's seat. Turns out the stains were from her using spray on tanning products. APC, diluted 10:1 and light scrubbing totally removed the stains.
 
If this deet has indeed removed the protective coating on your leather then no product will repair the damage

I would suggest putting a beach towel on the seat for baby girl to crawl on

Hope this info helps and don't get upset at baby girl. She didn't mean to ruin your leather I bet
 
I would still try stuff like Leather Masters's line of products before replacing leather panels. There is also some kits (other brands) for restoring leather, consisting of sanding or abrading the leather and building it back up. Never used them, though.
 
jsgntulok said:
Any further news/info to report on this?
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Coincidentally, my detailer took a final stab at it today. He was able to remove some damage and mask the other damage to my satisfaction. It doesn't look brand new, but that's what I expect when I let a 2 1/2 year-old in the back seat. :)
 
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