Wet leather...

[Mr Cujo]

I spent all day in torrential rain on Saturday.
Got home, hung everything up in the shop with what I thought was plenty of ventilation, same as I have always done after riding in the rain.
Never had this problem tho...

My vest is still damp and is now it's starting to smell pretty foul.
Mrs. Cujo's gloves are positively growing with mold.

My question..How do I ...

a) get rid of the mold without ruining the leather
b) clean it so it won't stink.

Anyone ??


.

[Y2K]

Mink oil

[nightrob]

Dissacant will make it dry. A light misting of vinegar will kill mold and odor. If that fails (odor wise) stick it in a trash bag with a open bag of charcoal and leave it for about a week and the odor will be gone.

[goliath1031]

Cujo,

y2k is on the money.. I actually use a product that is a mixture of mink oil and pine pitch. I buy it local but fox creek sells a product online that is similar. As far as the mold goes, let me ask you this, how long is it taking to air dry? If air drying takes too long mold can develop. I suggest using boot dryers or even a hairdryer on low so it is more air than heat. That will usualyy dry the garment before the mold can develop..

[BigD]

Originally Posted by goliath1031

Cujo,

If air drying takes too long mold can develop. I suggest using boot dryers or even a hairdryer on low so it is more air than heat. That will usualyy dry the garment before the mold can develop..

Another good use of the AirForce Blaster if you have one for your bike. Moves a lot of air with just a little warmth to it - not hot.

[strokerjlk]

a little late now....but I bought a product called Bad Ass. It works pretty good at waterproofing leather. I dont wear leather much expecially in the rain. but it has waterproofed my boots and my bike seat pretty good. google it pretty good stuff.

[wulfdaddie]

Obenauf's boot grease works well. It will condition the leather as well as water proof and such. It contains beeswax, sap, and a few other things. I use it on all my leathers and it works great. ohh...and it's great for chap stick too!

[LVNDRM2]

I was in a sideways rain a month or so ago after a charity run. Relentless rain for 70 miles.
When I arrived home, I put my boots upside down, and stuffed them with paper towels to wick moisture for a day.
Following day I used my side-kick blaster to finish them. Harley engineer boots, no shrinkage.
Harley leather I actually put in dryer on low heat for delicates on a 80 minute dry.
No shrinkage or smell.
Last year I and my Monte Carlo were in a flood. My wingtips that I wear at work molded in a day.
Good luck to your situation.
Steve

[TriLs]

Cujo-

If you have dogs, perhaps you would want to check to see if they are scared of it. I put mink oil on a pair of snowshoe bindings once and lost the love of two malamutes I was fond of...

Some dryers have a "no heat" or "air fluff" setting that might work. Once the moisture is gone, the mold will eventually disappear. You can speed it along, once the leather is dry, by wiping it down with a good leather dressing.

Tri

[LVNDRM2]

Cujo:
Have you been shopping for new items, or did any of the suggestions work?
Steve

[Mr Cujo]

Thanks for asking Steve, actually it is working out much better than I had hoped for.


No new leather..The vest dried out the rest of the way after hanging it in front of a fan for a couple of days...no more smell.
No wash necessary at this point, but I was preparing for it. I got some Camp Dry silicone spray to put on it. I've used that on my chaps and boots with good success. That's tomorrow's project.

The oil rub down would be ok, but working around the patches would be a deal killer and there would be no protection under them. At least with the spray, there's a fair chance that some will penetrate through the patches and offer at least some level of protection there..

Nothing yet on the gloves. Mrs & I talked about it, but as I'm inept as dirt on operating her washing machine (new one with timers, locks, and a pilot's license requirement), they are still on the "to do" list. They have not gotten worse, so I think the mold is essentially dead and dry...as soon as they get damp tho, it'll be full bloom.
Not that she's necessarily avoiding them, but Atlanta has been busy with flood issues this past week...we had some issues under our house, and my good friend at the end of our road got 20" of the Yellow River in his living room. We got distracted with work.

.

[LVNDRM2]

Cujo :
Good to hear most of the clothing dried out.
Hope your home issues lessen real soon.
We did not have any home issues when we received the huge rains on 13 September 2008, here in Illinois.
That is when I took in four feet of water in my Monte Carlo, with me in it.
Better my car, then for it to have been my wife's car.
Illinois Farmers Insurance had the claim settled in 10 days. This included the time needed for me to fill out and return the necessary paperwork, through DHL.
I had car rental insurance, which they paid me the remaining that I did not need to use.
Their claims service was totally professional.
Steve

[Mr Cujo]

Holy crap !! 4' of water..and you in it ?!?!?

That could have turned out much worse. Glad you came through that ok.

We'll be ok. I'll have to replace the duct work under the house, but compared to the total losses suffered by many..I'm counting myself very fortunate indeed.

I did two trips to N.O. after Katrina to do storm clean up and then restoration work.
The experience has proven to come in handy of late.....

.

[LVNDRM2]

Water came into the air cleaner duct work on the core support and into the engine which immediately seized.
I was never down this street in our village, and it just appeared to be standing water.
Idiots on either side of the street could have placed garbage cans or even lawn furniture out until the Department of Streets could put out needed road closed signs.
Believe it or not, on one side of the street were people on their porch, and others on their truck's hood watching as if this was entertainment for them.
A couple of young men came out of a different house to help push me out, just as another car began the same fate as me.
Bad day indeed.
Steve