Mildew/Mold on Leather Briefcase

Had my good leather briefcase stored in a downstairs/under-the-stairs closet for years. Wanted to put some suitcases down there but wife said "not in that smelly place!" And, yes, it was smelly! While cleaning it out I found my leather briefcase had some gray powdery stuff on it. So I sat it in the sun today (after emptying and cleaning the closet), and about ready to embark on cleaning it. Ehow (I think) said to treat it with tea tree oil, then saddlesoap it, then put on some leather nourishment stuff. Got the tea tree oil today and have the saddlesoap. Tea tree oil is suppose to be a natural substance for treating mildew and good for leather. But BEFORE I do this, thought it prudent to ask if this was going to work okay! Thanks!

I have no idea about the tea tree oil ... not in my lineup so I don't know about it ... but I'd have suggested saddlesoap and then conditioner.

Thanks, Doc. I was waiting for a response. It is sufficiently late at night for me that I will probably wait until tomorrow to try it. Perhaps I will test it on a small area to see what happens. What I read was that leather sucked up tea tree oil and that the oil would kill the mildew. We shall see!

Spray Lysol on the leather for mold & mildew. Wipe off, dry & treat leather.

Good luck...mold is alive,and spreads rapidly.If it is deep into the pores of the leather,you may not be able to get rid of it.Let us know how you make out.

Lexol leather cleaner and lexol leather conditioner. I use the cleaner on everything leather. My kids left their baseball gloves outside in the rain threw them in the garage and they got moldy. The cleaner did a great job of removing the mold, and I waited a day or two before conditioning. I know this doesn't sound like a good comparison but one of the gloves was a high quality Rawlings.

I also use the cleaner on leather upholstery, leather pillows even my red wing iron rangers.

You should be able to buy it at a good auto parts store as they sell it to clean and condition leather interiors.

http://www.lexol.com/Category_leather.aspx

After some more reading I used the tea tree oil; already had it. Put one coat on this afternoon. The leather seemed to have absorbed the oil nicely, and it seemed to have cleaned it half-way well. So far no spotting or discoloration; only a bit of polish came off on the application rag. I will put another coat on tomorrow. Then I will let it dry and use the saddle soap.

Decided not to put on another coat of tea tree oil; went straight to the saddle soap today. Looking good. Next have to find some conditioner. Thought I had some but haven't been able to locate it.

Aha!! Found some Kiwi Mink Oil! Will try that.

Put the mink oil on late last night. Apply halfway generously and let sit overnight to dry. This morning, as per directions, I wiped off the excess then buffed it with a buffing cloth. Seemed to work fine. Only observation is that the mink oil still might not have dried completely because I see buff marks. Will let it dry some more. The mold/mildew is not evident. Am guessing that this worked.

I had some Alden's get mold in the back of the closet. Sprayed with Lysol & polished. No issues.