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

saab-bob · 09-29-2015, 03:25 PM

Just want to put out a kudos for Jerry on this mold issue.
I had been storing my holsters in a couple of sealed plastic containers out in the garage for years. Never had a problem till about 6 months ago. I went out to do my quarterly wipe down and found white mold spores on about 80% of my leather holsters! Of course,the item most effected was my dads 1911 rig he carried in WW2.

After doing some research, the most mentioned cure was the vinegar mixed with water in a spray,as David described. After testing on a inconspicuous part of a vintage holster,it turned the leather darker and roughened the surface of the leather. No good.

So I contacted Jerry for some advice. He was very gracious and gave me his oven heating method. Since I had a bunch of holsters to process he suggested heating the oven to 350 degrees and putting in a cookie sheet of holsters for 15 minutes,remove and repeat.

Long story short,it worked great. None of the holsters where effected. The mold magically disappeared. I did have to bake one holster twice.About 2 weeks after the first bake the mold came back,but only on 1 side. That side was against the cookie sheet and I surmise that side didn't get enough heat. After 2nd bake,with the holster propped up for better circulation,mold still gone after a few months.

I also sprayed the vinegar water solution on all the containers and lids and anything else that might have been contaminated.
I now have most of the holsters in the house now and check them every few days,no sign of mold!

Thanks again Jerry

Bob

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09-29-2015, 03:25 PM	#20
saab-bob User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: So Cal Posts: 459 Thanks: 774 Thanked 143 Times in 87 Posts	Just want to put out a kudos for Jerry on this mold issue. I had been storing my holsters in a couple of sealed plastic containers out in the garage for years. Never had a problem till about 6 months ago. I went out to do my quarterly wipe down and found white mold spores on about 80% of my leather holsters! Of course,the item most effected was my dads 1911 rig he carried in WW2. After doing some research, the most mentioned cure was the vinegar mixed with water in a spray,as David described. After testing on a inconspicuous part of a vintage holster,it turned the leather darker and roughened the surface of the leather. No good. So I contacted Jerry for some advice. He was very gracious and gave me his oven heating method. Since I had a bunch of holsters to process he suggested heating the oven to 350 degrees and putting in a cookie sheet of holsters for 15 minutes,remove and repeat. Long story short,it worked great. None of the holsters where effected. The mold magically disappeared. I did have to bake one holster twice.About 2 weeks after the first bake the mold came back,but only on 1 side. That side was against the cookie sheet and I surmise that side didn't get enough heat. After 2nd bake,with the holster propped up for better circulation,mold still gone after a few months. I also sprayed the vinegar water solution on all the containers and lids and anything else that might have been contaminated. I now have most of the holsters in the house now and check them every few days,no sign of mold! Thanks again Jerry Bob __________________ "I think,therefore I own guns"