Getting mold smell out of leather seats

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Trilapis

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Hello

So we're working on a 1997 Jaguar XK8 (seats are covered with Connoly leather, best of its kind, they don't produce that kind of leather anymore, so we really need to save it)

The car had a mold and mildew smell, we've identified (almost) all the causes - HVAC system, underneath the carpeting, under the rear seats, inside door panels etc.

We've used Vital Oxide to kill the mold and replaced all the parts that were destroyed (like a sponge lining of the HVAC ventilators).

Now for the seats. they look pristine - so no visible trace of mold - but after driving the car for 15-20 minutes the smell clings in the clothes.

We've used countless Leatherique treatments and now we're spraying Vital Oxide on them once a day but the smell remains.

Any advice? as a last resort we were thinking to repaint them...

Thank you
 
Going out on a limb...but thinking it is not the leather but the 'stuff' under the seat covering.

Bill
 
The mold is suspended in the seat foam and probably on the inside of the leather. You are forcing the smell out through the seams and openings when you sit down and compress the foam. I've no idea how you would go about trying to clean that...I'm guessing the seats have to come out and have new foam installed, and at that time clean the underside of the leather.
 
We've already done that - took out the leather cover, cleaned the interior of the leather and the foam. but seems we need to do it again and use the stronger disinfectant. or if that foam is attacked is useless?

same goes with the carpets. the foamy interior (the part that goes on the car metal) stinks, although there is no visible mold...can that foam be saved?

thank you
 
Having worked in a body shop, and dealt with a lot of flood damaged cars...I would say that the foam needs to be replaced....especially the seat foam. Cleaners can only do so much.....mold is nasty stuff
 
Good luck with the mold hunt. I was curious about the leather company and found the Connolly Leather entry on Wikipedia. Sad business story, but it looks like the family "established C B Leather Ltd and resumed the manufacture and production of high quality leather and now sells under both C B Leather and Connolly." If you still end up needing some help with the leather, you might give them a try.

CONNOLLY

Connolly USA Leather Hides & Skins 800-222-9577
 
briarpatch said:
Having worked in a body shop, and dealt with a lot of flood damaged cars...I would say that the foam needs to be replaced....especially the seat foam. Cleaners can only do so much.....mold is nasty stuff
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Spoken to a classic car restorer yesterday. He told me that before throwing away the foams, to wrap them in plastic foil and then re-mount the cleaned leather on top. This way the smell is "locked down". So we'll do it in three steps: treat the foam with a more powerful disinfectant - Vital Oxide 4000 ppm, check the result, try with the foil and if all fails we build new foam.
 
scuff said:
Good luck with the mold hunt. I was curious about the leather company and found the Connolly Leather entry on Wikipedia. Sad business story, but it looks like the family "established C B Leather Ltd and resumed the manufacture and production of high quality leather and now sells under both C B Leather and Connolly." If you still end up needing some help with the leather, you might give them a try.

CONNOLLY

Connolly USA Leather Hides & Skins 800-222-9577
Click to expand...

That is nice, didn't know they relaunched the business. I've dropped them an email however i hope i will save that leather as it looks perfect and surely the cost will be huge.
 
So new "intelligence" has arrived: seems that the leather covers are attacked by spores, that have penetrated deep inside the leather fibers. i think using Leatherique actually fed the spores with water, as Leatherique also hydrates. Bumped into an Australian product called Leather Therapy, they say they are specialists in killing mildew deeply rooted in leather. anybody has experienced this product? It's the last chance before throwing away the leathers and stitching new ones...Any other kind of tips in trying to save this leather? even heard that putting it in a freezer works, as cold kills the spores...

thank you
 
If you can get your hands on a steam cleaner use that. Steam kills bacteria and steamers are designed to eliminate odors. I have the VX 5000 and love it!

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 
We've steamed the seats, then treated them with Vital Oxide and Leatherique. As i was saying there is no visible mold on them, but the spores are somewhere caught deep in the texture of the leather. So this is why i'm not sure there are any solutions for this...
 
If a steamer will not rid the smell I'm not sure anything will. You could try another steam treatment. Wrap the end with a microfiber to prevent damage and work across seats slowly. Maybe use some APC 10:1 and agitate with a soft bristle leather brush then steam.

If that still doesn't work hopefully you can find some used seats at a junk yard or something for a good price. That would be last resort of course.

I'd do another steam treatment though first and again, work it slowly.

Good luck and let us know how it works out!

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 
Several years ago, I purchased a WWII-era German leather coat for a collection I have. The previous owner was a heavy smoker and the coat absolutely reeked. George at Leatherique suggested I try wiping it down with hydrogen peroxide (the normal stuff you can purchase at any drug store). One simple wipe-down and the odor was completely removed, never to return.
 
I've also read about this, we will give it a try. Thank you.

GS2011 said:
Several years ago, I purchased a WWII-era German leather coat for a collection I have. The previous owner was a heavy smoker and the coat absolutely reeked. George at Leatherique suggested I try wiping it down with hydrogen peroxide (the normal stuff you can purchase at any drug store). One simple wipe-down and the odor was completely removed, never to return.
Click to expand...
 
Mad Wax said:
ozone machine
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We've ozoned the interior several times. that was in february. we did that until we realized we need to find the pieces that were destroyed by mildew and eliminate them. like the isolation material around the HVAC ventilators. We are now close to a "naked interior" - only the dashboard and metal - we'll ozone until the interior stops smelling. then we'll treat the leather, seat pads, carpets and isolation and see what should be replaced and what is ok.
 
If you want a product that kills the mould, gets rid of the odour and is safe to use on fabrics, leather etc try Em Clean - well tested and kills mould and prevents it from returning even when deep in the leather fibres. May take several applications but always works
Hope this helps
Judyb
 
judyb said:
If you want a product that kills the mould, gets rid of the odour and is safe to use on fabrics, leather etc try Em Clean - well tested and kills mould and prevents it from returning even when deep in the leather fibres. May take several applications but always works
Hope this helps
Judyb
Click to expand...

Thank you, we've ordered and will give it a try. I would be nice to save the leather as it is in very good condition. No mildew stains either.
 
Trilapis said:
I've also read about this, we will give it a try. Thank you.
Click to expand...

Sorry to say this solution didn't work. We'll keep on spraying hydrogen peroxide until Em Clean arrives. Besides a yellowish foam (might be the coloring of the leather it is butter beige) nothing happened. The leather smells like medicine and mildew.
 
So the Em Clean arrived, sprayed two bottles with no effect. We are starting to run out of options and ideas. Don't think this leather can be saved...
 
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