Mold removal and prevention

[Firehouse Mike]

Here in the Great (albeit soggy) Pacific Northwest we see our fair share of mold. In the last few weeks I've had several cases of bad mold to deal with . This particular truck sat for two years with major water leaks.
My Process for upholstery / carpet: : - All in full PPE I might add!

* Spray down entire area with White Vinegar. Helps with odors and is a natural, safe mold killer. Let air dry.
*Very through vacuuming
*Application of Megs D10219 Carpet Cleaner Foam...agitate with carpet brush
*Hot water extract with water / white vinegar solution
*Air or fan dry
*Application of CaviCide 1 (an EMS / Hospital grade disinfectant / decontamination cleaner)
*Finial application of OdoBan ( another disinfectant cleaner with an incredible deodorizing Eucalyptus scent. I LOVE this stuff as well as customers!!)

Hard surfaces get a similar treatment but with Megs APC at 3:1 through a foaming sprayer and a good scrubbing. Finished with Megs Hyper Dressing at 6:1.

I do not use a steamer on mold because I don't want to blow spores around. I try to use foaming products to capture spores and hold them in....

Customer Education on mold growth and more importantly, what caused it and how to prevent it from regrowing. I have a document I give them on this topic.

 

[Goin Rogue]

Great transformation. I assume you charge a premium for this type of service.

My question is, what are the chances there is mold still in the foam of the seats?

 

[Firehouse Mike]

Great transformation. I assume you charge a premium for this type of service.

My question is, what are the chances there is mold still in the foam of the seats?

The up-charge really depends on what the customer wants. If it's just the removal of the mold, typically no, I'll charge my normal interior price. If the are expecting a typical interior detail along with the removal then absolutely!

And on this truck there may be some spores still in the foam, but mold needs the moisture component to regrow. If it's kept dry it should be OK as the spores will not form more mold. I do give the seats a slow hot water extract with the water / vinegar solution, it should reach deep enough to kill them off. I have not had a regrowth issue that I know of.....

Mike

 

[fly07sti]

Great turnaround. Good tip on not using a steamer to blow spores around.

 

[Guyb]

Thanks for the info on mold. I haven't tackled that yet so glad you provided the products and steps. That is a good looking job you did.

 

[WaxMaster1]

Amazing work! I hope you wore some kind of pollen mask of some sorts.

 

[GSKR]

Great transformation. I assume you charge a premium for this type of service.

My question is, what are the chances there is mold still in the foam of the seats?

100 percent,but if you eradicate the mold really good that percent will drop.If it were me I would of walked ,and charged 600 to remove it.But nice turnaround .

 

[asianisafish]

Nice turnaround. But the mold will come back in a few months if it wasn't all taken care of.

There is probably lots of mold sitting within the ac system, just ready to be blown back into the cabin.

Nice job cleaning that, I hope you took proper safety measures

 

[Firehouse Mike]

Thanks for the feedback and comments!

Yes, I do wear full PPE.....gloves, N95 mask, safety glasses, I even have Tyvek suits for the really bad jobs. I'm an EMT so I have training in bio-hazard handling and cleaning.

I am aware and I make the customer aware too, that mold spores are still in the interior. The active mold has been removed, but spores will very likely remain. I stress the importance of keeping it dry thus the spores dormant.

I do run atomized Cavicide 1 disinfectant through the AC system, but yes I'm sure there are still spores in there too.

Mold usually cannot be removed 100% from an interior such as this. I do a lot of work for a couple local body shops and I've seen severe mold in newer cars, and the insurance will sometimes total a a car out just for mold because the entire interior would have to be replaced.

:dblthumb2: Mike

 

[High Caliber]

Here in the Great (albeit soggy) Pacific Northwest we see our fair share of mold. In the last few weeks I've had several cases of bad mold to deal with . This particular truck sat for two years with major water leaks.
My Process for upholstery / carpet: : - All in full PPE I might add!

* Spray down entire area with White Vinegar. Helps with odors and is a natural, safe mold killer. Let air dry.
*Very through vacuuming
*Application of Megs D10219 Carpet Cleaner Foam...agitate with carpet brush
*Hot water extract with water / white vinegar solution
*Air or fan dry
*Application of CaviCide 1 (an EMS / Hospital grade disinfectant / decontamination cleaner)
*Finial application of OdoBan ( another disinfectant cleaner with an incredible deodorizing Eucalyptus scent. I LOVE this stuff as well as customers!!)

Hard surfaces get a similar treatment but with Megs APC at 3:1 through a foaming sprayer and a good scrubbing. Finished with Megs Hyper Dressing at 6:1.

I do not use a steamer on mold because I don't want to blow spores around. I try to use foaming products to capture spores and hold them in....

Customer Education on mold growth and more importantly, what caused it and how to prevent it from regrowing. I have a document I give them on this topic.

Thanks Mike for this write up, great information to have if I or anyone ever run into something like this. Any tips on hitting the air ducts? Maybe mist the disinfectant in the vents then recirculate the air with the cabin closed up for a bit? Thanks!

 

[Joe@NextLevelDetail]

Awesome thread, and awesome tips and info.

Good job, going to take a screen shot of this for future purposes.

Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing

 

[Firehouse Mike]

Thanks Mike for this write up, great information to have if I or anyone ever run into something like this. Any tips on hitting the air ducts? Maybe mist the disinfectant in the vents then recirculate the air with the cabin closed up for a bit? Thanks!

Actually what i do because i want the spores out not just to be moved around, is to first pull the cabin air filter (if there is one) and mist into the outside intake vents with the system on high and the doors open to blow it all out of the car. Then I'll switch to recirc and do it again from the inside. And replace the air filter with a new one

Mike

 

[High Caliber]

Actually what i do because i want the spores out not just to be moved around, is to first pull the cabin air filter (if there is one) and mist into the outside intake vents with the system on high and the doors open to blow it all out of the car. Then I'll switch to recirc and do it again from the inside. And replace the air filter with a new one

Mike

Roger that.. Thanks again Sr!