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BEST WAY TO CLEAN MILDEW HOLSTER??

fishermankw

fishermankw

Senior Member
I feel like this topic has to have been discussed at some point, but couldn’t find a sticky. Have this coming to me and the holster has obvious mildew. What’s the best way to clean this up without using leather cleaner or solvents? Want to make sure she keeps her color and integrity.
 

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I had a pretty ratted out PP holster that I did this to. I figured that if it ruined it, oh well. It actually….worked. On mine, I set the temp pretty low, like 150 or 200 degrees from what I remember. So, just a disclaimer. Weigh your risk tolerance on whether to try this or not. I’m just putting this out there for an option.
 
here is a link to the Luger forum where they discuss getting rid of mold. It does work

www.lugerforums.com

How "not' to kill mold spores, and the right way

This is a tough thread to write and a super-cautionary tale!:( I recently bought an Artillery holster in nice shape at a good price, 1917 marked, belt converted, nice supple leather. Had Jerry the holster man take a look at it before I bought it, looked fine, except for some white mold spores...
www.lugerforums.com www.lugerforums.com
 
350 degrees is way too hot IMO all you have to do is get the mold spores above the temperature range they have evolved to live in. 175 worked for my sling. I would say try on low heat first and you can always redo it if it doesn't work.
 
the mild white stuff . I have used a hair dryer to spot treat.. keeping holsters dry and mold free store them in zip lock bags seems to help.
 
Hellraiser said:
water + vinegar mix worked for me
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This is what worked for me also.
50/50 mix of white vinegar and WARM water.
On BROWN/RUSSET leather, some darkening will occur.
On BLACK/SHINEY leather, no discernible darkening occures.
Let leather dry SLOWLY . . . .NO direct sunlight!
 
luftpirate said:
Has to be treated or the mold will just come back. I fought a sling that did this for a year then ended up using the low heat oven method and seemed to have worked.
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Makes sense as I'm not sure much can survive in heat like that. I just wouldn't want to put anything on it to try and kill this stuff. Heat makes much more sense as long as it's not too much heat. That "350-degree job" was just too much heat.
 
I just tried it on one of my holsters. My honey looked at it before I cooked it and after it cooled down. She didn't believe it was the same holster. 250° for 15 minutes does work.
 
I have used Jerry's recommendation on killing mold many times, I talked with him about it at a Gun Show and he felt the 350 was necessary to truly kill the mold spores. I've used it on holsters, slings and belts, and never had issue, 350 for 5 minutes, turn oven off and let sit for an hour. The leather has always looked better and it kills the mold spores, they've never come back, the only caution is if you do a holster that has brass fittings with verdigris it will liquify and come off, so make sure those areas are facing down, otherwise they can run on the leather, found that out with a 1911 holster. Lower temp may work for some folks, totally a personal call, just my experience

Nick
 
Used this method to clean up a revolver holster today. Worked like a charm.

*I heated up to 200° turned it off and let it stay in there until the oven cooled off. (45min-1hr)

Thank You. 👍😁
 
Aaron said:
Sunlight or a UV light, all it takes is UV light exposure. Anyone telling you to put 80+ y/o leather in a 350 degree oven is fucking insane. Water and vinegar treatments are dangerous on antique leather at best. On a related note, never use any sort of leather treatments or oils, you will simply accelerate the decay of the leather.
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UV and heat can both be used to kill mold spores, have you had a bad experience using 350 heat or heat in general? Using 200-250 didn't work for me, it would initially remove the mold spores but they would return when ambient moisture in the air was high again (I live in a very humid area and try to maintain humidity balance as much as possible but it's not perfect), 350 killed it and caused no ill effects on the 80+ year old leather. If you've had a negative experience I would be interested to hear, I am always trying to learn and "cause no harm" with my collection, if there is a better way to remove mold I'm open to it. The 350 has been widely used in the Luger community for holsters and other leather pieces for many years and I have yet to see anyone report a negative outcome, quite the opposite actually.

Nick
 
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I would never put vintage leather in an oven just as I would not carry a pistol inside a rotisserie chicken. Read up on vintage leather conservation and you’ll understand why. It is all about temperature, UV, humidity, and insect control. Nothing else.

1) Humidity management. It’s why museum humidity levels are generally about 50%. Proper HVAC will do this, with help from a dehumidifier and/or desiccant bags in the safe.

2) I’ve found that Ballistol kills mold. Use as little to no Ballistol on leather as possible. Do nothing that cannot be reversed.

My house stays around 50% humidity in a very humid environment, which is why my HVAC really works efficiently. A well designed system tends to pay for itself. I have a humidity / temp meter. My gun room has a floor dehumidifier that I keep on 45%. I have to dump it maybe every 4 months. I have much leather in there. Haven’t seen mold in the 8 years we’ve been here. In the old house it was a regular occurrence in my safe. That HVAC system was poorly designed and laid out.
 
Hambone said:
I would never put vintage leather in an oven just as I would not carry a pistol inside a rotisserie chicken. Read up on vintage leather conservation and you’ll understand why. It is all about temperature, UV, humidity, and insect control. Nothing else.

1) Humidity management. It’s why museum humidity levels are generally about 50%. Proper HVAC will do this, with help from a dehumidifier and/or desiccant bags in the safe.

2) I’ve found that Ballistol kills mold. Use as little to no Ballistol on leather as possible. Do nothing that cannot be reversed.

My house stays around 50% humidity in a very humid environment, which is why my HVAC really works efficiently. A well designed system tends to pay for itself. I have a humidity / temp meter. My gun room has a floor dehumidifier that I keep on 45%. I have to dump it maybe every 4 months. I have much leather in there. Haven’t seen mold in the 8 years we’ve been here. In the old house it was a regular occurrence in my safe. That HVAC system was poorly designed and laid out.
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Exactly, invest in a good storage environment, not old myths and remedies that destroy artifacts. I have literally hundreds of pounds of leather items in my basement and have never had mold because I keep a dehumidifier running.
 
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