Fungus in Carpet - Solutions ?

bullboy · 28th March 2010, 13:52

I identified the issue to be a/c.Ran the car with a/c on and again found lot of water . Need to fix it next week

bullboy · 29th June 2010, 10:14

Again water is sweeping into the cabin during heavy rains. Today i took the car to the SC , the SA told that there is a rubber seal for the electrical wiring below the bonnet near to the front passenger side .This is where the water from the front windscreen will be collected and drained away. The guys who installed autocop has teared the seal to route the wiring inside the cabin even though there is another dummy opening is available those idiots didn't use that.
SA told that they will try to glue the seal but he is not sure it will work or else the entire wiring kit need to be changed . :(
Guys, If anyone installing security system from outside dealer please be aware of this.

pramodkumar · 29th June 2010, 12:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by bullboy

Again water is sweeping into the cabin during heavy rains. Today i took the car to the SC , the SA told that there is a rubber seal for the electrical wiring below the bonnet near to the front passenger side .This is where the water from the front windscreen will be collected and drained away. The guys who installed autocop has teared the seal to route the wiring inside the cabin even though there is another dummy opening is available those idiots didn't use that.
SA told that they will try to glue the seal but he is not sure it will work or else the entire wiring kit need to be changed . :(
Guys, If anyone installing security system from outside dealer please be aware of this.

That is sad, post a pic of what you are talking about, my friends IKON totaled last month may be we can salvage some parts.

Pramod

bullboy · 29th June 2010, 12:33

Quote:

That is sad, post a pic of what you are talking about, my friends IKON totaled last month

This is too sad than mine.
Will try to put a snap.

pramodkumar · 29th June 2010, 12:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by bullboy

This is too sad than mine.
Will try to put a snap.

Stupid cochin private buses, was sandwitched between 2 buses.

Pramod

bullboy · 3rd July 2010, 21:51

i managed to get a snap with my mobile .The area in dark black is where the rubber seal is .The SC guys have glued the entire area. Hope it will stick there.

Quote:

That is sad, post a pic of what you are talking about, my friends IKON totaled last month may be we can salvage some parts.

If it is petrol one i'm not sure the electricals are the same

kollamraja · 3rd October 2010, 12:29

Ever since I got my Nano, its become the family favourite and as a result the Sumo is forced to sulk in the garage for weeks on end. This has created some problems. The battery used to get drained in about 3-4 weeks of non-use and I've had to get it recharged a couple of times. Now, as a matter of practice, I disconnect the -ve terminal to prevent it.
Another problem that has cropped up (pun unintended), is the growth of mold/fungus on the seat covers, dash board, door panels etc. This has never happened to me before and I suspect it started after I had the Sumo washed at a service station. Inspite of instructing them to ONLY wash the outside, they removed all the floor mats and washed them and also washed the inside floor boards.
The next morning when I opened the Sumo, I was greeted with an offensive musty smell. I lifted up the mat and found the underside literally dripping wet. The fools at the service station had put back the floor mats in the wet condition!
I immediately pulled out all the mats and laid them out in the sun, wiped the floor boards dry and left the Sumo out in the sun with all doors open. All this didn't seem to solve the problem completely because the next morning the musty odour was still there, though not as overpowering as before. Possibly the idiots had hosed down the upholstery (ordinary rexin) too. I resigned myself for the moisture to dissipate the natural way and left the Sumo with its window glasses partially down and went back to driving my Nano.
A couple of weeks later when I came back to the Sumo, I found the interiors covered with in off-white powdery coat. The musty smell was also present. I used a dry towel to wipe the mold/fungus as best as I could. However it keeps reappearing in a few days. Now after 3-4 weeks, the interiors are almost fully covered with this pale yellow coating and worse, its stubborn and does not come off easily when wiped with a dry cloth.
What's the solution?

Shall I try wiping the interiors with a disinfectant? Any suggestions?

Hashim · 3rd October 2010, 20:35

This is indeed very unpleasant to see, you can do the following steps which helped me:

-Remove mats, wash them in detergent and then dip them in dettol solution (or even lizol or other disinfectant with pleasant smell, no phenyl here otherwise smell will be even worse).
- Clean interior with damp cloth then make a strong 1:2 dettol solution and wipe interiors with that. Do this on a clear sky day in morning and let the car dry from inside whole day.
- Put mats back only when they are bone dry.
- Do not spay any air freshener or any perfume inside, it will only worsen the condition.

kollamraja · 3rd October 2010, 21:36

@Hashim: Thanks for your suggestion. Kerala seems to be under a spell of depression induced rains these past few days and the forecast isn't good for at least the next couple of days. So the anti-mold treatment will have to wait for the weather to clear.

dhanushs · 4th October 2010, 00:37

IMO, bright sunlight is the only solution for this. Well, if the rains don't give you a break, you could use a hair dryer to dry your seats. Believe me, its really effective.

Or else, some silicon based de-moisturisers should help. Experts please advice.

buntydey · 4th October 2010, 09:23

@Kollamraja - I have the exact same situation as yours. When I bought my Swift, my dad's Maruti 800 is parked in the garage, and is used only once a month. Now, it has a strong smell of fungus and molds. To add to this, I sprayed purfumes every where in the car, but this added to worsen the smell, and is unbearable now. I hope to find some time next weekend, and try to rectify this long pending thing.

msaudf · 4th October 2010, 10:51

fungus is something that grows where there is moisture, and an AC is something that eliminates moisture. why dont you just clean off the visible fungus, dry out your car in the sun(which will only heat up the exteriors) and switch on the AC in the car and leave it for about an hour or something. maybe the fungus might just die. and your battery gets charged and everybody is happy, except for the guy who bares the fuel bill.
just a thought, give it a shot.
cheers
Saud.

ariesonu · 4th October 2010, 12:07

[[A couple of weeks later when I came back to the Sumo, I found the interiors covered with in off-white powdery coat. The musty smell was also present. I used a dry towel to wipe the mold/fungus as best as I could. However it keeps reappearing in a few days. Now after 3-4 weeks, the interiors are almost fully covered with this pale yellow coating and worse, its stubborn and does not come off easily when wiped with a dry cloth.
What's the solution?

Shall I try wiping the interiors with a disinfectant? Any suggestions?]]

@Kollamraja: I suggest that once again you clean ther seats with damp cloth & then with dry cloth. The powder will keep re-appearing till the cloth lined back of rexin is not dry. Since you are having wet weather, I have this ultra-foolish-sounding solution but it worked for my M800. If you have a hair dryer at home then put a dry-towel over the seat & blow dry your seat till they are real warm. Dont blow directly on the rexin or it'll wrinkle up, thats why use dry-towel as shield. Towel will also hold the heat longer. Do this atleast thrice or till you are satisfied that there is no more mositure in the seats. Then run the a/c on full chill mode for a while & leave your car with full closed windows.
Remove all mats or other stuff lying old newspapers, wipe cloths etc till the offensive smell is gone (even if they are dry).

Raab Rakha.

PetrolRider · 10th August 2021, 10:37

Reviving an old thread.

Long lock-down means car is seating in the parking for long and now extended rain weather of Pune caused fungal growth on the cloth/cushion part of car interior. Moreover, the covered parking area of the society is adding to the woos. Almost everyday rain or cloudy weather is not helping either.

I rubbed and cleaned off the fungus, but they seem to be regrowing in the same areas. I haven't used any leather/leatherette seat cover currently and using the stock cloth one which in a way aiding the mess, I guess.

Any of the members also facing the fungus issues? Any pointer on how to get rid of them?

Kosfactor · 10th August 2021, 11:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by PetrolRider

I rubbed and cleaned off the fungus, but they seem to be regrowing in the same areas. I haven't used any leather/leatherette seat cover currently and using the stock cloth one which in a way aiding the mess, I guess.

Any of the members also facing the fungus issues? Any pointer on how to get rid of them?

You have removed part of the mold that is on the surface, with enough moisture in the environment the remaining part of the mold beneath the surface is still alive and will emerge into a colony in the same place as before.

Solution is to remove moisture which they need to survive. Vehicles that are in regular use do not suffer this problem, that is one solution. The alternative is to dry the interior out with a dehumidifier of some sort, after cleaning the visible bits of course. You can also remove the seats and leave them out in the sun for drying.

28th March 2010, 13:52	#16
bullboy BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 613 Thanked: 107 Times	I identified the issue to be a/c.Ran the car with a/c on and again found lot of water . Need to fix it next week
	() Thanks

29th June 2010, 10:14	#17
bullboy BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 613 Thanked: 107 Times	Again water is sweeping into the cabin during heavy rains. Today i took the car to the SC , the SA told that there is a rubber seal for the electrical wiring below the bonnet near to the front passenger side .This is where the water from the front windscreen will be collected and drained away. The guys who installed autocop has teared the seal to route the wiring inside the cabin even though there is another dummy opening is available those idiots didn't use that. SA told that they will try to glue the seal but he is not sure it will work or else the entire wiring kit need to be changed . :( Guys, If anyone installing security system from outside dealer please be aware of this.
	() Thanks

3rd October 2010, 12:29	#22
kollamraja BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Kollam, Kerala. Posts: 62 Thanked: 6 Times	Help remove mold/fungus from upholstery Ever since I got my Nano, its become the family favourite and as a result the Sumo is forced to sulk in the garage for weeks on end. This has created some problems. The battery used to get drained in about 3-4 weeks of non-use and I've had to get it recharged a couple of times. Now, as a matter of practice, I disconnect the -ve terminal to prevent it. Another problem that has cropped up (pun unintended), is the growth of mold/fungus on the seat covers, dash board, door panels etc. This has never happened to me before and I suspect it started after I had the Sumo washed at a service station. Inspite of instructing them to ONLY wash the outside, they removed all the floor mats and washed them and also washed the inside floor boards. The next morning when I opened the Sumo, I was greeted with an offensive musty smell. I lifted up the mat and found the underside literally dripping wet. The fools at the service station had put back the floor mats in the wet condition! I immediately pulled out all the mats and laid them out in the sun, wiped the floor boards dry and left the Sumo out in the sun with all doors open. All this didn't seem to solve the problem completely because the next morning the musty odour was still there, though not as overpowering as before. Possibly the idiots had hosed down the upholstery (ordinary rexin) too. I resigned myself for the moisture to dissipate the natural way and left the Sumo with its window glasses partially down and went back to driving my Nano. A couple of weeks later when I came back to the Sumo, I found the interiors covered with in off-white powdery coat. The musty smell was also present. I used a dry towel to wipe the mold/fungus as best as I could. However it keeps reappearing in a few days. Now after 3-4 weeks, the interiors are almost fully covered with this pale yellow coating and worse, its stubborn and does not come off easily when wiped with a dry cloth. What's the solution? Shall I try wiping the interiors with a disinfectant? Any suggestions?
	() Thanks

3rd October 2010, 20:35	#23
Hashim BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Aligarh Posts: 449 Thanked: 49 Times View My Garage	This is indeed very unpleasant to see, you can do the following steps which helped me: -Remove mats, wash them in detergent and then dip them in dettol solution (or even lizol or other disinfectant with pleasant smell, no phenyl here otherwise smell will be even worse). - Clean interior with damp cloth then make a strong 1:2 dettol solution and wipe interiors with that. Do this on a clear sky day in morning and let the car dry from inside whole day. - Put mats back only when they are bone dry. - Do not spay any air freshener or any perfume inside, it will only worsen the condition. Last edited by Hashim : 3rd October 2010 at 20:41.
	() Thanks

3rd October 2010, 21:36	#24
kollamraja BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Kollam, Kerala. Posts: 62 Thanked: 6 Times	@Hashim: Thanks for your suggestion. Kerala seems to be under a spell of depression induced rains these past few days and the forecast isn't good for at least the next couple of days. So the anti-mold treatment will have to wait for the weather to clear.
	() Thanks

4th October 2010, 00:37	#25
dhanushs Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 4,441 Thanked: 11,492 Times	IMO, bright sunlight is the only solution for this. Well, if the rains don't give you a break, you could use a hair dryer to dry your seats. Believe me, its really effective. Or else, some silicon based de-moisturisers should help. Experts please advice.
	() Thanks

4th October 2010, 09:23	#26
buntydey BHPian Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 155 Thanked: 3 Times View My Garage	@Kollamraja - I have the exact same situation as yours. When I bought my Swift, my dad's Maruti 800 is parked in the garage, and is used only once a month. Now, it has a strong smell of fungus and molds. To add to this, I sprayed purfumes every where in the car, but this added to worsen the smell, and is unbearable now. I hope to find some time next weekend, and try to rectify this long pending thing.
	() Thanks

4th October 2010, 10:51	#27
msaudf BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Cochin Posts: 269 Thanked: 164 Times	fungus is something that grows where there is moisture, and an AC is something that eliminates moisture. why dont you just clean off the visible fungus, dry out your car in the sun(which will only heat up the exteriors) and switch on the AC in the car and leave it for about an hour or something. maybe the fungus might just die. and your battery gets charged and everybody is happy, except for the guy who bares the fuel bill. just a thought, give it a shot. cheers Saud.
	() Thanks

4th October 2010, 12:07	#28
ariesonu Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Bombay Posts: 1,343 Thanked: 2,445 Times View My Garage	[[A couple of weeks later when I came back to the Sumo, I found the interiors covered with in off-white powdery coat. The musty smell was also present. I used a dry towel to wipe the mold/fungus as best as I could. However it keeps reappearing in a few days. Now after 3-4 weeks, the interiors are almost fully covered with this pale yellow coating and worse, its stubborn and does not come off easily when wiped with a dry cloth. What's the solution? Shall I try wiping the interiors with a disinfectant? Any suggestions?]] @Kollamraja: I suggest that once again you clean ther seats with damp cloth & then with dry cloth. The powder will keep re-appearing till the cloth lined back of rexin is not dry. Since you are having wet weather, I have this ultra-foolish-sounding solution but it worked for my M800. If you have a hair dryer at home then put a dry-towel over the seat & blow dry your seat till they are real warm. Dont blow directly on the rexin or it'll wrinkle up, thats why use dry-towel as shield. Towel will also hold the heat longer. Do this atleast thrice or till you are satisfied that there is no more mositure in the seats. Then run the a/c on full chill mode for a while & leave your car with full closed windows. Remove all mats or other stuff lying old newspapers, wipe cloths etc till the offensive smell is gone (even if they are dry). Raab Rakha.
	() Thanks

10th August 2021, 10:37	#29
PetrolRider BANNED Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: BBSR/Pune Posts: 566 Thanked: 636 Times View My Garage	Re: Fungus in Carpet - Solutions ? Reviving an old thread. Long lock-down means car is seating in the parking for long and now extended rain weather of Pune caused fungal growth on the cloth/cushion part of car interior. Moreover, the covered parking area of the society is adding to the woos. Almost everyday rain or cloudy weather is not helping either. I rubbed and cleaned off the fungus, but they seem to be regrowing in the same areas. I haven't used any leather/leatherette seat cover currently and using the stock cloth one which in a way aiding the mess, I guess. Any of the members also facing the fungus issues? Any pointer on how to get rid of them?
	() Thanks