Suggestions for cleaning moldy seat upholstery (1 Viewer)

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Joined
May 3, 2010
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Location
Dallas, OR
The upholstery in my 60 is moldy especially the rear seat. Cleaning it would help the budget greatly. What methods have people successfully used to clean their seats.
 
I purchased another rear bench and the fabric was absolutely filthy disgusting - but no mold or mildew. I cleaned it with regular Bronners peppermint Castile soap and warm water. Scrubbed it in with a brush until it foamed then vacuumed it clean with a strong shop vac. Worked on small sections at a time. Rinsed with spray bottle and vacuumed water up too. When I was done it almost looked brand new.
I'd be wary using a strong chemical cleaner on the seat fabrics. The foam will soak up a lot of it as you're working on it and become saturated with it. I'm not a fan of breathing those chemicals after the car has heated up in the sun. Every time you park it, the vapors will contaminate the cab.
My vote is use pure safe organic soap. Smells nice when done and it won't kill you . Works well too (Bronners soap)
 
My thought was to pull the covers off the seats to try and clean them but the driver seat is ripped and so is the rear seat.
 
Unfortunately the best way is to remove and hand wash in a bathtub or large tote. Are the rips along seams or no? If along the seams, an upholsterer can easily repair before you wash.
 
If the seat covers are moldy, then most likely you have mold growing in the foam padding too. Also the headliner, the carpet and the door cards. If there's too much you may consider replacing the soft parts of your interior and washing rest. I hate when I go to a cruise in and smell the moldy interior of an old car that someone "thinks" they restored.
 
This may be an extreme example but here's a pic of a junk yard vehicle that had some bad water intrusion and left to mold. No way can you just clean it on the outside and expect to get rid of the mold. It'll also be in the dash pad, the steering wheel pad, the steering wheel cover...any soft parts.


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I’ve done this to a few seats now. Works great and gives you a chance to stitch up and loose seams while the covers are off.

Strip the covers off the seats.
Pull the wires out of the seat covers (this will make sense when you have the cover off).
Put them in the washing machine with normal detergent, regular cycle.
Hang dry.
 
I worry about the material getting torn up by the agitator of the washing machine, but if I try it and they get torn up I guess I'd just get new upholstery. I'm planning on replacing the seat belts also.
 
I worry about the material getting torn up by the agitator of the washing machine, but if I try it and they get torn up I guess I'd just get new upholstery. I'm planning on replacing the seat belts also.
It's pretty tough fabric. Using Tide in the washing machine has worked well for me. The fabric will shrink a little and make reinstalling a wrestling match. With patience it will fit and conform to the new foam you installed on the bottom ($OR is expensive but is a perfect fit) and the cut sections you strategically glued onto the existing seat back (rebuilding the bolsters and lumbar areas). If the vinyl sides are cracked even slightly; have an upholstery shop replace them. Good color matches are available. I don't know of any good fabric matches. Several people have tried but its never close enough to match the door cards.
 
I've heard diluted water and white vinegar. Then a detergent and water mixture and use a scrub attachment to a cordless drill to clean seats. Then you can rent a small carpet cleaner for $18 for 4 hours.
 
Proper upholstery shampooing machine with good upholstery soap. That will clean it without
removing the covers. If the foam is mouldy then remove hog rings, remove covers. Wash
covers separately. Try to laundry soap the foam, let it dry naturally and see where your are
at. If you get ‘dust’ off the dried foam it’s pretty much done. Look for new.
If you don’t know what hog rings are, look at farmers supply. Or upholstery supply store.
 
I've been a Subaru tech for over 20 years so I've done my fair share of upholstery work but I've never really ventured much into the interior detailing side of things. Usually it's warranty work and if it's messed up we just replace it.

I'm pretty sure we have a carpet cleaner somewhere in the garage. I'll have to see if it has a handheld attachment.
 
I’ve got some extra upholstery, including a decent rear seat back in grey. If you’re skeptical of the washing machine, toss your seat back through. If it gets shredded (it won’t) I’ll send you one.
 
I bought a Bissell spot clean pro for cleaning my carpets in my house when the dogs get sick. I went with this model after seeing it used on detailing videos on YouTube and figured I’d use it on my cars as well. It works great around the house, unfortunately I had already cleaned the carpets and seats in my FJ62 prior to buying it, but I wouldn’t hesitate to used it on anything in the cruiser. For mold I’d start off by spraying everything with white vinegar. Test is somewhere first though to make sure it doesn’t ruin the colors. I’d scrub the vinegar in everywhere and let it sit. Then follow up with some carpet/upholstery cleaner and then use the bissell extractor to finish it off.
 
pull all your seats out
rent a carpet cleaner from the grocery store
buy some Mr. Clean of your preferred scent
clean the interior carpets and seats till the water coming out of the rented cleaner is clean

park truck undercover or in garage overnight with heater and a couple fans to dehumidify with windows cracked
 

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