Are you in a crisis of molded leather saddle? Are you looking for a way to make it good as new again? Then look no more. Here, you can find the ultimate way to remove mold from leather saddle. These optimum quality saddles are quite expensive and molds decrease their life span. If you are a passionate rider, you already know about that. If leather is exposed to the moisture of high heat (60°F-80°F) for long or stored in the basement, which has no ozone generator for mold, it starts a mildew formation on it. Let us jump into what to do to tackle this situation.
Mold Removal Process:
Step-1: Choosing a Suitable Cleaner
Clearing mold from leather is a four-part process. The first step is finding the cleaner. There are four types of mold cleaners. Baking soda and borax, chlorine bleach, distilled white vinegar and Hydrogen peroxide are four substances that make fine mold removers. You can use any one of them that will suit your purpose. Baking soda solution and white vinegar solutions are very effective for killing the mold and stopping the spread. Cleaners with anti-fungal components work the best. Because the best mold remover is the one that kills all the spores.
Step-2: Preparation
Firstly, you have to separate the saddle from other equipment. Then it needs to be dried out in the sun. The leather must be dried wholly. It makes the cleaning process more susceptible. The preparation also includes some personal safety precautions. It would be best to put on rubber gloves and a face mask while working with a mold cleaner.
Step-3: Cleaning
You must take the saddle apart from the other parts to clean it thoroughly. Taking the parts apart will help to keep it separate from other leather and metal gears. It will keep the mold from spreading too. After separating the mold infected saddle, you can use basement mold removal kits to disinfect the entire area for safekeeping.
- You can use an old but clean damp rag to wipe the moldy areas. If the saddle is dried thoroughly before, the mold spores will come right off. It is necessary to acknowledge that this rag must be thrown away or soaked in rubbing alcohol for disinfecting, or else it can expose the mold to other things and environments.
- It would help if you scrubbed off as much of the mold as possible with the damp rag. The more mold can be rubbed off, the better. It is less mold to worry about. The mold cleaners are chemical solutions that cause decay, which makes the leather surface rough. So the less the mold, the less the chemicals used.
- Now it is time to use the cleaner. The cleaner is usually two parts water and one-part mold killing substance (Alcohol, Vinegar, Ammonia, Bleach, Baking soda etc.). Spray it on the saddle or use a fresh new cloth to apply it on. Spray bottles work the most effectively. Easy to use and handle. You have to cover the corners carefully and around the stitches’ gaps. No part of the leather surface shall remain undisclosed because even one spore can cause heftier mold formation.
- Let the saddle parts dry out now. It is advised to avoid direct sunlight; in case you have used vinegar. It induces the chance of leather cracks. Keep it a dry room not too warm or moist. After it gets completely dried, it will be conventionally free of mold. This is how you remove mold from leather saddle.
Step-4: Conditioning
Conditioning is the final step of the cleaning process. It helps to preserve the contents of leather and keep the mold away for the time being. After drying the clean saddle, apply pH neutral and anti-fungal moisture maker conditioners work pretty well. There are plenty of leather conditioners in the market to choose from. The right conditioning will prevent the mold from coming back, even when your ozone generator for mold is out of order. This also keeps it crack-free for a long time. The purpose of conditioning is to induce the longevity of the leather saddle. Finally, store the leather in a room, which is safe for leather. It is highly recommended to use a room with an air purifier for mold. The purifier helps to prevent mold in humidifier as well. It makes it a multi-purpose feature to add to your home.
Bottom Line:
The bottom line is that to remove mold from leather saddle, you must follow the steps mentioned above. For future reference, you might need to look into a commercial ozone generator for mold. They keep your home mold-free. But some rainy/humid weather times even defy the work of the best ozone generator there can be. For these very situations, we recommend the cleaning and conditioning process for leather saddles.