[Shaun_Ashmore]

www.scs.co.uk/product.php?id=711

A customer wants a price on cleaning and spot removal of urine (doesn't smell), it's about 30 miles away but the job goes on and on so it could b a good un.

I'd say it's a pigmented 2 tone, what do you think?

Shaun

[*paul_moss]

Defo pigmented

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Customer is sending me pictures of his I'll post them here (with his permission) and we can have a better look.

Shaun

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Urine from a bitch!!

[Shaun_Ashmore]

another

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Doesn't look so pigmented now!

Shaun

[LTT Leathercare]

This is obviously an absorbent style leather of some sort as you can see from the staining.  Could be a micro pigment or an aniline style leather you would need to check this out thoroughly before you give a pirce and talk to the customer about what to  expect as we have discussed before with these style leathers.  This leather would restore fantasticaly but will be more than a cleaning job as it is also quite faded.

You would be wise to clean with an enzyme cleaner first to get rid of any bacteria that there may be present - we have one that has been tested for leather and will not do any damage to the finish.

If you are restoring you will need to quote a good price for it.

You do not say how old the suite is but the customer has obviously not been advised about protecting this furtniture which would have helped a lot with problems like this and would also have helped inhibit the fading. 

[Joe H]

Is'nt it a shame how some people treat their possessions - or neglect is perhaps a better word.

I heared people say - "oh I will get leather suite next time, does'nt need cleaning". What!

That would have been lovely when new, and no doubt will be again.

[*paul_moss]

Shaun its a pimented leather end of. It might have a light covering of pigment or finish ( micro pigmented  : but just treat as normal.Would not use enzyme cleaner but a good acidic cleaner will remove/ kill off any ( micro  ) pathergens in it. Then clean as normal. Recolour and finish.

They are a little trickier but if you need to add more paint to cover staining wick back then advise customer on heavier feel to those areas.

[*paul_moss]

Looks also two tone.

[Ben Staerck]

Hi,

I would use the degreaser to remove the stain. This will create a lighter patch instead of the darker stain and so make applying colour easier.

If you wanted to kill any enzymes use such a cleaner to do so. A normal urine neutraliser will work.

Then apply the re-colouring balm. Depending upon how the degreaser works on removing the stain and/or leather colour you may find you need to flick a paint colour in with an airbrush to belnd it in properly

We do this all the time when restoring handbags and find that if you only put a small amount colourant on, it won't really effect the texture that much.

[LTT Leathercare]

The crucial thing here is to identify exactly what you are dealing with before any quote is given and any work commenced and to alwasy be sure of the outcome so that you can discuss this in full with your customer first.



If this is an aniline style leather then using pigments or pigment based products will change the nature of the leather and the customer may not be happy with the results.   Urine cannot be 'degreased' out of leather so the stains will probably be permanent if on an aniline style although cleaning with an enzyme cleaner may help to dissipate the stain somewhat.  Recolouring needs to be done with aniline dyes so as not to change the leather style

If this is a micropigment then a light pigment coating can be reapplied to cover stains that are still evident but if the coating is applied too thickly on one area it will look very different to the rest of the suite and this should be avoided. Very light pigments are available for this. Texture should never be compromised when recolouring with pigments.
Two tone effects can be tricky but not impossible to replicate on these style of leathers.

[Roger Koh]

After receiving the above pictures from them, I would send them this little information about urine stains on leather.

I would call them and explain further the decontamination process, the pros and cons.

From the conversation we would have asked certain key questions to determine the prospect of a deal.

Then follow-up with a detailed price, sequencing the necessity steps to achieve the desired result.

This will again follow up with other relevant products usage and why.

What do you people think of this approach?

Roger Koh
Leather Doctor® System

Urine Stain:

Urine begins as an acid but the metabolic wastes such as urea and other organic materials attract bacteria from the atmosphere that turns it alkaline.

Dark marks may suggest recent untouched incident.

Ageing alkalinity will eventually strips the acid dye causing discoloration.

Prolong stains may also manifests from tackiness to sliminess in presence of moisture.

The culprit is the ever shifting pH value of urine from 6 to 9 away from the leather pH neutral of 4 as bacteria activities continues.

As pH is measured in logarithmic in the power of ten, it means that when the stain pH value shift from 4 to 9.

The urine stain is now 100’000 times more in concentration of adverse alkaline exposure that destabilizes the leather pH chemistry integrity.

In extreme cases this pH shifting phenomenal revert the leather to rawhide and rots the leather away.

Fresh urine typically has little odor.

The offending urine smell begins once it starts to decay and release ammonia gas.

The second stage releases a foul-smelling organic compound close to skunk spray.

Leather will gradually loose it softness and strength as the fatliquor diminishes during this deteriorating process.

Urine Stain Decontamination Process:

Urea & Organic Material Removal:
d’Protein11.0™ is used to remove the urea and organic material composition from bacteria activities as the first step.
   
Ammonia & Alkali Phosphorus Salt Removal:
d’Urine2.2™ contains an ingredient to neutralize the ammonia and alkali phosphorus salt found in urine from denaturing the leather as the second step.

Sour Odor Removal:
basifier8.5™ in this application is to neutralize d’Urine2.2™ distinctive sour odor.

Cleaning:
clean3.8™ pH value 3.8 is a leather safe aqueous general purpose cleaner for all leathers.

Rinsing:
rinse3.0™ pH value 3.0 is a leather safe aqueous mild acidifier rinse for all leathers.

Structure Conditioning:
fatliquor5.0™ pH value ±5.0 is an anionic (-) charged micro emulsion fatliquor conditioner to soften and strengthen all leathers.

Disinfecting:
d’Bacteria3.7™ pH value 3.7 is a leather safe disinfectant that is biodegradable, odorless and colorless to control bacteria causing odor.

Deodorizing:         
leatherScent’B™ D, S or W is a non film-forming, non-stick tactile feel conditioner to enhance a sensuous feel and mask odor with a classic leather scent.

[Roger Koh]

Auxiliary Process:

Tackiness or Sliminess Removal:
acidifier2.0™ is an odorless pH neutralizer to rectify tackiness or sliminess for all leathers.

Blotchiness Removal:
relaxer3.3™ plays a role here in rehydrating thus plums the leather structure to move solutions within the structure freely for a more even appearance.

Optical Brightening:
d’Yellow7.0™ pH value 7.0 when mixed with 20 parts by weight with distilled water is a fluorescent whitening agent to help rectify urochrome stain.

Roger Koh