Darkstar752
New member
Striker said:
Leather Masters Vital Conditioner, followed by the Protection cream. The conditioner is water-based, I'm not sure about the protection cream.
Leather Cleaner recommend
- Thread starter shadow85
- Start date
Leather Masters Vital Conditioner, followed by the Protection cream. The conditioner is water-based, I'm not sure about the protection cream.
CEE DOG
New member
I bought Lexol Cleaner and some Lexol Conditioner based on a lot of stuff I read. I thought this was great but I haven't used it yet and I saw this thread. Anybody got any comments from experience?
judyb
New member
LM products are all water based including their fluorocarbon protector - this was one of the first fluorocarbon protectors on the market and whilst it is not the strongest one there is it is a far better option than no protector or using 'conditioning' products. LM Strong Cleaner is perfectly safe to use on auto leather at full strength and does not require any dilution. Leather Vital does not contain any protection element and is merely a 'feel good' factor for leather. It should be used in addition to Leather Protector.
Woolite is not recommended for use on leather as it cannot be rinsed off. It is designed to clean clothing and fabrics in a situation where they can be fully rinsed free of the detergent after cleaning. As this cannot happen with leather it will leave residues on the surface that will attract more dirt which is what does the damage to leather finishes.
Hope this helps
Woolite is not recommended for use on leather as it cannot be rinsed off. It is designed to clean clothing and fabrics in a situation where they can be fully rinsed free of the detergent after cleaning. As this cannot happen with leather it will leave residues on the surface that will attract more dirt which is what does the damage to leather finishes.
Hope this helps
Showroom Shine
New member
judyb said:
So, since Woolite is not good for leather seating. Why does everyone always use? Is it because it's cheap. Do the detailers not care that they are decreasing the wear life of the seats? Also making the seat more ap to stain easier, as you said. What do you recommend as a good leather cleaner and conditioner?
Deanski
STUTTGART'S FINEST
judyb said:
So I guess you've not looked at a Lexus manual or other manuals from auto mfg's suggesting to use a mild detergent or Woolite.
I've used it for years on many vehicles with no ill effect and yes, it can be "rinsed" in that white cotton towels are used to gauge the level of dirt as I rinse with distilled water mist.
Cleaners for leather are nothing more than a soap, coloring fragrence and maybe some glycerin.
I'm not knocking LM product as I too use the products with great success.
Yes, Woolite is cheap, at hand. I've yet to see any degrading effects by using it properly, which inclused drying the leather seats prior to any "treatment".
Deanski
jfelbab
New member
Striker said:
Leather Vital Conditioner
Leather Master Vital
Protection Cream
Leather Master Protection Cream
Use the Leather Vital if you want softening of older leather. Use the Protection cream to preserve, and well... protect your leather.
LM has a pretty complete line of products, BTW.
Cleaners, Protectors, Ink lifters, Dyes, products for Nubuck, Suede, Oiled leathers,
leather repair kit, vinyl repair kit, leather cleaner, leather cleaning, leather dye & paint
I concur, go with LM Strong and Protect cream, I dont use the Vital.
I dont use woolite because of the rinsing concern. Though I still wipe the leather down with Distilled water after the strong cleaner.
To me I treat woolite like dawn. Woolite is meant for sweaters as dawn is meant for frying pans.
I dont use woolite because of the rinsing concern. Though I still wipe the leather down with Distilled water after the strong cleaner.
To me I treat woolite like dawn. Woolite is meant for sweaters as dawn is meant for frying pans.
Deanski
STUTTGART'S FINEST
If those of you who choose not to use Woolite, but use a "Leather Cleaner" what to you think is in it? It's still a mixture of water, soap, coloring, fragance, and other agents.
Bottom line, you're still cleaning with a "soap" type detergent. And, most leather cleaners do not instruct rinsing afterwards.
But those that do rinse, you're doing the correct way in making sure all cleaner is off the leather. Best way to judge is with 100% white cotton towels to inspect how much dirt or cleaner is left. It also aids in drying the leather as well.
Bottom line, you want to get whatever you used off the leather along with any dirt to better protect the skin.
You want to be absolutly sure the leather and whatever is below it is dry before any treatment. And with todays leather, go very lightly. Only the areas where there is quite a bit of wear will absorb more conditioner seeing that the protection that was once on the leather has now worn off.
LM products work very well and can maintain leather in the best shape possible. Use it sparingly and follow the directions carefully. Do not over-apply any conditioner no matter which brand it is. Treat the leather as if you were applying a sealant, less is better.
As for other leather products that once were used in tack rooms, it became a marketing idea that they can use it on automotive leathers. They have reformulated it, but it still remains as a tack room leather cleaner/conditioner for unprotected leathers. Some swear by it, but that's due to treatment of older leathers that had no protection.
Always use a leather product for it's intention. Automotive cleaner/protectants for the car and keep the others for home use only.
So far, I've used LM, Zaino, Sonus, 1Z all with very good results and for different reasons. Zaino has a very distinct leather aroma. Sonus does not, but draws it's smell from the liquor used in tanning of the leather. 1Z has a more mild leather aroma and a more creamy format to it.
As long as you get all the dirt, oils, sweat etc off leather, you'll be presearving it longer!
Deanski
Bottom line, you're still cleaning with a "soap" type detergent. And, most leather cleaners do not instruct rinsing afterwards.
But those that do rinse, you're doing the correct way in making sure all cleaner is off the leather. Best way to judge is with 100% white cotton towels to inspect how much dirt or cleaner is left. It also aids in drying the leather as well.
Bottom line, you want to get whatever you used off the leather along with any dirt to better protect the skin.
You want to be absolutly sure the leather and whatever is below it is dry before any treatment. And with todays leather, go very lightly. Only the areas where there is quite a bit of wear will absorb more conditioner seeing that the protection that was once on the leather has now worn off.
LM products work very well and can maintain leather in the best shape possible. Use it sparingly and follow the directions carefully. Do not over-apply any conditioner no matter which brand it is. Treat the leather as if you were applying a sealant, less is better.
As for other leather products that once were used in tack rooms, it became a marketing idea that they can use it on automotive leathers. They have reformulated it, but it still remains as a tack room leather cleaner/conditioner for unprotected leathers. Some swear by it, but that's due to treatment of older leathers that had no protection.
Always use a leather product for it's intention. Automotive cleaner/protectants for the car and keep the others for home use only.
So far, I've used LM, Zaino, Sonus, 1Z all with very good results and for different reasons. Zaino has a very distinct leather aroma. Sonus does not, but draws it's smell from the liquor used in tanning of the leather. 1Z has a more mild leather aroma and a more creamy format to it.
As long as you get all the dirt, oils, sweat etc off leather, you'll be presearving it longer!
Deanski
Accumulator
Well-known member
jfelbab said:
Which is a big plus IMO. Within a short time, any scent completely dissipates leaving "Audis smelling like Audis", "GMCs smelling like GMCs", etc. They just smell like *clean vehicles*, not like some leathergoods store.
Deanski
STUTTGART'S FINEST
Accumulator said:
Good point!:2thumbs:
Deanski
jfelbab
New member
NSXTASY said:
Lexus seems to disagree with your Woolite opinion. This is from a Lexus owners manual:
Accumulator
Well-known member
Well...the owner's manual of my Jag says to wash it with plain water, no shampoo/etc. and to dry it with a chamois 
I dunno if an owner's manual is geared towards the kind of car care that we practice here. Most of the owner's manuals I've bothered to read have rather rudimentary-level detailing advice.
That's not a slam at Woolite use or anything, just a general observation. Hey, I for one have zero problem with using non-automotive stuff for detailing *IF* it's suitable to the job.
I dunno if an owner's manual is geared towards the kind of car care that we practice here. Most of the owner's manuals I've bothered to read have rather rudimentary-level detailing advice.That's not a slam at Woolite use or anything, just a general observation. Hey, I for one have zero problem with using non-automotive stuff for detailing *IF* it's suitable to the job.
SuperBee364
New member
Very educational thread... subscribed.
David Fermani
Forza Auto Salon
Woolite is not made for automotive surfaces. Woolite is designed to clean fabrics and be flushed away with water, not clean plastics, vinyl and rubber and be wiped off.
I spoke with two reps from Woolite(Reckitt Benckiser) as well as their Supervisor and asked them specifically about cleaning car interior parts with woolite. Their response was that it offered the two problems. To fully remove the soap requires a large volume of water to flush it away, simply wiping off would leave a large amount of residue behind that could attract more dirt. The second problem they alluded to was that Woolite was never intended to clean materials other then fabric so they have never tested it as such.
When I specifically asked about Cadillac's & Lexus (as well as all other car manufacturers) recommendation for using Woolite to clean leather, both representatives where dumbfounded, stating that the Woolite has never, and never will, recommend their product for cleaning leather (specifically).
I followed this Woolite question up with highly regarded leather expert Roger Koh. When shown the MSDS sheet on Woolite, Roger was shocked that anybody would use this product on leather surfaces, stating that..
"pH Value:
The pH value indicated is 8.
The pH neutral of average leathers is 3 - 5.
Assuming the pH neutral of leather is 4, then this product at pH 8 is 10,000 times more alkaline than the average pH of leather.
pH scale is calculated at the power of 10.
The continue use of this product will cause the leather constituents like tanning agent, fatliquor to break bond (hydrogen bonding with the protein fibers), thus denaturing the leather.
The perforated and needle holes will crack as the leather weakens through continuous alkaline exposure combine with physical stresses and flexes.
Uneven application of alkaline cleaning products may results in streaks or brightening effect.
Most leather finishes will also turns tackiness on continuous use and can be detected by wet finger testing.
These adverse effects however can be corrected by neutralizing with a low pH of 2 with acidifier2.0™."
I also forwarded the Woolite MSDS to well known detail & chemical expert Ron Ketchum (Automotive International) his response was:
There is one component that is seriously high in percentage, and could create some damage, the sodium hydroxide . There is no reason for leather cleaner to contain it at all.
Below is the link to the MSDS for Woolite:
http://msds.reckittprofessional.com/customer_services/msds/dist/003291_r.pdf
I spoke with two reps from Woolite(Reckitt Benckiser) as well as their Supervisor and asked them specifically about cleaning car interior parts with woolite. Their response was that it offered the two problems. To fully remove the soap requires a large volume of water to flush it away, simply wiping off would leave a large amount of residue behind that could attract more dirt. The second problem they alluded to was that Woolite was never intended to clean materials other then fabric so they have never tested it as such.
When I specifically asked about Cadillac's & Lexus (as well as all other car manufacturers) recommendation for using Woolite to clean leather, both representatives where dumbfounded, stating that the Woolite has never, and never will, recommend their product for cleaning leather (specifically).
I followed this Woolite question up with highly regarded leather expert Roger Koh. When shown the MSDS sheet on Woolite, Roger was shocked that anybody would use this product on leather surfaces, stating that..
"pH Value:
The pH value indicated is 8.
The pH neutral of average leathers is 3 - 5.
Assuming the pH neutral of leather is 4, then this product at pH 8 is 10,000 times more alkaline than the average pH of leather.
pH scale is calculated at the power of 10.
The continue use of this product will cause the leather constituents like tanning agent, fatliquor to break bond (hydrogen bonding with the protein fibers), thus denaturing the leather.
The perforated and needle holes will crack as the leather weakens through continuous alkaline exposure combine with physical stresses and flexes.
Uneven application of alkaline cleaning products may results in streaks or brightening effect.
Most leather finishes will also turns tackiness on continuous use and can be detected by wet finger testing.
These adverse effects however can be corrected by neutralizing with a low pH of 2 with acidifier2.0™."
I also forwarded the Woolite MSDS to well known detail & chemical expert Ron Ketchum (Automotive International) his response was:
There is one component that is seriously high in percentage, and could create some damage, the sodium hydroxide . There is no reason for leather cleaner to contain it at all.
Below is the link to the MSDS for Woolite:
http://msds.reckittprofessional.com/customer_services/msds/dist/003291_r.pdf
jfelbab
New member
Odd that the MDSD data sheet referenced does not agree with the one provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services. Perhaps they have changed the ingredients. I suspect the US HHS data is out of date.
Household Products Database - Health and Safety Information on Household Products
At any rate I've used Woolite on leather for about 20 years now and have seen zero ill effects. Perhaps the dilution makes all the difference since when diluted it is not as alkaline. Water from the tap has a PH of range of 6-8.5 around here so this detergent has about the same PH as tap water. So from a PH level this is no worse than wiping down with tap water.
That said, I do use LM on my own vehicles as I mentioned earlier.
PS. Upon checking the msds for LM Strong Cleaner I find that the PH is listed as 6.5-8.5. and their soft Cleaner has listed PH of 6-8. So I'd suggest that the PH of Woolite is identical to that of the LM products.
PPS: After thinking about this for a minute I would conclude that the PH level of the cleaning solution is pretty irrelevant when cleaning protected leathers. You are not cleaning the raw leather anyway. You are cleaning the urethane coating on the leather.
Household Products Database - Health and Safety Information on Household Products
At any rate I've used Woolite on leather for about 20 years now and have seen zero ill effects. Perhaps the dilution makes all the difference since when diluted it is not as alkaline. Water from the tap has a PH of range of 6-8.5 around here so this detergent has about the same PH as tap water. So from a PH level this is no worse than wiping down with tap water.
That said, I do use LM on my own vehicles as I mentioned earlier.
PS. Upon checking the msds for LM Strong Cleaner I find that the PH is listed as 6.5-8.5. and their soft Cleaner has listed PH of 6-8. So I'd suggest that the PH of Woolite is identical to that of the LM products.
PPS: After thinking about this for a minute I would conclude that the PH level of the cleaning solution is pretty irrelevant when cleaning protected leathers. You are not cleaning the raw leather anyway. You are cleaning the urethane coating on the leather.
Deanski
STUTTGART'S FINEST
PH of Meguiars Detailer line of Leather cleaner/conditioner is 9.0 and contains several other hazardous ingredients.
We can go on and on about this, but bottom line, most leather cleaners are nothing more than soap, water, coloring, fragrance and other items.
Most users are cleaning protected leather, not unprotected leather, so in reality we are cleaning a coating that sits on leather. Yes, there are some that have holes etc in the leather. All the more reason to use a mild cleaner.
I've seen first hand what conditioners for unprotected leather can do to foam cushions when I was at the shop that does the repairs for me and it's not pretty. Some was caused by older versions of conditioners as most seats that I worked on were from a '60 series Austin Healy.
Use what is designed for automotive leathers for conditioning. Use a mild soap and correct towels etc to clean with.
Deanski
We can go on and on about this, but bottom line, most leather cleaners are nothing more than soap, water, coloring, fragrance and other items.
Most users are cleaning protected leather, not unprotected leather, so in reality we are cleaning a coating that sits on leather. Yes, there are some that have holes etc in the leather. All the more reason to use a mild cleaner.
I've seen first hand what conditioners for unprotected leather can do to foam cushions when I was at the shop that does the repairs for me and it's not pretty. Some was caused by older versions of conditioners as most seats that I worked on were from a '60 series Austin Healy.
Use what is designed for automotive leathers for conditioning. Use a mild soap and correct towels etc to clean with.
Deanski
Junebug
JAFO
For me - I did a test of my own on a dirty old caddie's leather interior and woolite 8:1 worked better than all the other "leather" cleaners. I didn't have a problem wiping off any traces of woolite from the leather with just a clean damp terry cloth towel. Maybe CSI could find a trace, but I couldn't. David - you say Woolite doesn't recommend using their product on leather and then say that they've never tested it either, why not listen to Scott, Deanski and a few more that have used it for years and had no issues.
Remember - you can go with these chemical "experts" or believe your lying eyes - it's up to you.
Remember - you can go with these chemical "experts" or believe your lying eyes - it's up to you.
Daniel3507
New member
what kind of woolite do you use? i grabbed some today that says is for "delicates"