Cleaning Upholstery

[Johns]

Hi all.

I'm not sure if this is of any interest, but......

Whilst waiting for the rust proofing to dry on Thelma's (my 1959 FC wagon) front floors. I turned my attention to the front seat. GMH called the material Elascofab, introducing it in late FJ specials with the two tone interior. It is quality stuff, it wears and lasts very well.

Thelma's front seat seat is pretty typical for these cars, 49 years and 120,000 miles old. It is sagged on the drivers side, where it is worn and shiny and the stitching on the pleats is coming apart. In short it looked terrible. The colour is Riff Red.

From past experience, I have learned that upholstery cleaners won't remove the ingrained dirt. However Jiff and Nifty will. I have used both. Jiff is very effective but it is abrasive and can damage the colour of the trim, if you must use it be careful.

Nifti is gentler, however, it will also affect the colour so test it on a small area which can't be seen first. In Thelma's case, though, the seat looked so far gone I wasn't worried. I spray two pleats at a time and use a hard toothbrush (this probably affects the colour more than the Nifti, but nothing else would remove the dirt). As soon as these are scrubbed I immediately wash it down with a Wettex and clean water. I don't let it dry on the seat and after finishing I wash the whole seat down with a clean Wettex and clean water.

I took some photos with the seat partially cleaned so you can see the result. (it looks better in the photos than it really is)





Here is the finished job, the red has lost a little colour but overall it looks good, so much so that I'm going to have the springs repaired, pleats restitched and use the existing vinyl



This really can revitalise an interior that looks beyond saving - and Nifti is cheaper than upholstery cleaner too  ;) A word of warning though, don't be aggressive on the black parts, using a toothbrush can make the black go patchy, I just use a Wettex here.

I hope this helps

John

[graham_fuller]

Hi John,
Very interesting. I will give it a try on my project car. So far I have used Sunlight soap and a nail brush and that seems to work well, also a little spray and wipe helps. As you say wipe it off as soon as you do it.
Cheers,
Graham

[TTV6FC]

Yes,thanks John for the post.I would love to re-cover my seats,but by the time I get that far,I doubt I'll be able to afford it.My seats are in good nick but are just a bit grubby,so I'll give it a go.Cheers,Jamie.

[HAD 708]

Heh guys
In my experience the BEST cleaner and without any fading etc is Dissol. Been around for years is without doubt the best thing can be used every time without fading on any color, Will need a bit of elbow grease with a nail brush or similiar and does not have silicone or any other fading or cracking nasties in it but in my experience the best!
Cheers
Brett

[KFH]

Brett.  Where do you obtain Dissol from - grocery store, auto supplier, pub?

Thanks

Keith

[Johns]

Thanks for the tip Brett, I'll get some.

Keith, these guys make it http://www.viponds.com.au/index.htm. They tell me Autobarn and Repco stock it or you can get it from the manufacturer.

Cheers
John

[greyone]

I brought some dissol from supatrim in coburg last week,thats all they use and say its the best
regards mal

[rustyholden]

Good Morning Everybody,after 20 plus years of fixing,cleaning, swearing and generally letting cars rule ones life the best product i have found is a product called ARCO.Dont know if you have it down south but in queensland its readilly available at supercheap and coles or woolies.Just arm youself with old tooth and nail brushes,clean rags and your set.Its a silicone based cleaner and i think was originally made for fridge seals,so you know where else its great.Its not dangerous ,non abrasive and leaves a great smell... cheers paul v

[peterm]

I recently did my upholstery and roof lining. I used Dissol and Mr Muscle but instead of s nail brush I purchased a dust pan and brush set from Bunnings. I chose a brush with the sofest longest bristles and used this to scrub in the dissol and Mr Muscle, it worked well and I did it in lot less time. Hope this helps. Regards PM.

[Philby]

Hi All,

Thanks for starting this John.

As a result of this thread I went out and bought some Dissol and gave it a go. I used a soft nail brush, bucket of water and a wet towl.

Here are a couple of pics. Sorry about the inconsistent light.

Back seat


Back seat finished with a coat of 303 Aerospace Protectant (no silicone oils).


Front seat with the first panel started.


Front seat almost finished.


I'm very happy with the results but I still have more scrubbing to do.

Cheers,

Phil

[ridgey_didge]

I know its an old topic now, but want guidance on cleaning/revitalising panic straps. Is there any reason Dissol won't work equally well on these that anyone is aware of?

Cheers
David

[Philby]

Hi David,

Last night I tested it on my panic straps with an old toothbrush and a damp cloth and they came up quite well.

The only issue I had was some of the old stitching was a bit brittle and I scrubbed a few stitches away but I'm not too worried about that at this point.

I also polished up the chrome bracket/mounting thingy with some Bowden's metal polish (great stuff) then used a mini wire wheel on a Dremel to remove surface rust from the studs.

Finished it all off with some 303 Aerospace Protectant and they look great.

I'll post some pics shortly.


303 Aerospace Protectant
http://www.carcareproducts.com.au/products/303_products


PS. I hope the motor (engine) is coming along well.


Cheers,

Phil

[Philby]

Here are some pics.

Before


One done







Cheers,

Phil

[Glenn 'Stinky' Stankevicius]

The only issue I had was some of the old stitching was a bit brittle and I scrubbed a few stitches away but I'm not too worried about that at this point.

Now would be a good time to replace the stitching before the construction starts letting go, they can only be hand stitched though. You'll need one or two thickish blunt needles (follows the exsting holes without making new ones) and some motor trimming thread. Suppliers still have the old style, but as you have found out it deteriorates. I have some of the "modern stuff" and am happy to post out a metre or two for this, just PM your address and colour preference.

[Philby]

Thanks Stinky,

Great advice.  PM sent.

Now I know what to do I'm keen and the job has made it's way up the priority list :)

A big thanks to Johns again for starting this thread!

Phil

[Glenn 'Stinky' Stankevicius]

The same can be done with sunvisors, I have even repaired them when the binding has come off.
The best method for the visors is to get enough thread for the entire job and thread through equal lengths each side at the start point. Get a needle on each side and start stitching, this allows you to maintain tension as you go rather than sewing one side and risk buggering the tension when doing the other.