Mold all over carpet, steering wheel, seatbelts, and seats. What is the best way to eliminate these molds and keep the interior original. What have you guys found, especially you guys up in the NorthWest, to get rid of such molds? My car had been sitting for a year because of engine/transmission work. A door got left open for a day, and a puddle was found on the passenger floor. The interior is leather. Please Help ME ASAP!! Thanks, Jake.

First you want to get a dessicant (like the little "Do Not Eat" packets but alot more) to remove all of the moisture inside the car. Then I'd remove all the interior stuff you can and clean by any means possible. High pressure sprayer to the carpets and seats. Scrub brush to the door panels etc...

 

I'd also run your vent on full blast and stand outside by the vent intake and spray lysol to clean out the vent system because there will probably be mold in there as well.

use some pink stuff cleaner through the whole car if the car does not run then you'll have to either take a hair drier or a small space heater to dry the interior then spray every thing down with febreze and put a box of baking soda inside

go to wal mart and pick up some generic athletes foot spray.

 

i left my soob out in the rain one night with the sunroof open. the next day it had an ambient mildew smell brewing, but the foot spray quickly put an end to the smell till it dried out, it was a good preventative measure.

 

but all in all its still not as bad as having a dog dook on 3 of the seats.....

Use Lysol or some such spray to kill the mold. A fan with a small electric heater for a few days will dry everything out again. To get the smell out cut up some apples into sections and lay them on the floor front and rear to get out the smell. Don't laugh, I had this problem and the apples got rid of the smell in about a week or two. Just don't use rotten apples.

My g/f told me to use the cut up apple trick with my brat too, haven't done so yet though.

I think the process is covered pretty well by the comments above:

 

a: Dry out the car completely

b: Kill the mold

c: Clean up the upholstery and panels

d: De-stinkify the car

 

I like using bleach to kill the mold but you hafta be careful because it's so harsh.

 

The best air freshener {IMO} is throwing a bar of deoderant soap under the seat. Something strong like Irish Spring or Coast. Learned this trick from a professional "used car reconditioner".

 

good luck, John

In the original post Jake says

"The interior is leather. "

What old generation Subaru has a leather interior?

Do not use ArmorAll on the leather - seals the pores and can cause crazing (small cracks) use the proper leather cleaner and "food"

After all it is an organic material and must be fed.

This advertisement for "LEXOL" is purely coincidental

I think Jake left us for a Jeep forum

Wha...no Corinthian leather in the old Subes???

 

Armour All is actually dicey for ALL types of interior materials. Supposedly accelerates the oxidation of vinyls, plastics etc.

 

The best protectant is the stuff they use for interiors in boats (can't remember the brand name). Another tip from my "clean up shop" pal...

 

John