White stuff on rear seats

[Conrad 16.5]

I haven't been in the CX in a couple of weeks. Yesterday I went out to get something and noticed some white stuff on the back seat. It looked a lot like white mold. It was kind of powdery like mold and It was only on the back and seating area of the rear split seat on the passenger side, nowhere else. I cleaned it up with some 303 and it came right off and looks fine now.

303 is the only protectant that I've ever used.

The CX is garage kept and there's never been any water inside and no sign of moisture, it's dry as a bone inside.

Anyone experience this?

 

[sm1ke]

I have not, but I have read that in the application of 303, you're supposed to spray it on and wipe it off, basically buffing until it's dry to the touch. It may be possible that there was some excess product that was not wiped clean, but I don't know if excess 303 would present itself like that.

Did you have a passenger in that seat? Sometimes, depending on the lotion/cream that the passenger uses, it can rub off on the seat/seatback/door panels, and when it dries it looks like white dust.

 

[rmtaylor51]

Make sure you clean your seats before using the 303 protectant. if you don't, you are just sealing in the dirt, mold or whatever is on your seats.

 

[Conrad 16.5]

I have not, but I have read that in the application of 303, you're supposed to spray it on and wipe it off, basically buffing until it's dry to the touch. It may be possible that there was some excess product that was not wiped clean, but I don't know if excess 303 would present itself like that.

Did you have a passenger in that seat? Sometimes, depending on the lotion/cream that the passenger uses, it can rub off on the seat/seatback/door panels, and when it dries it looks like white dust.

It's possible that in my last use of 303 in the fall that I didn't buff it enough. I'm pretty sure that I treated the entire back seating area the same way. As I said the white stuff was only present on the back seat passenger side, nowhere else on the back seats. Maybe I didn't get all the 303 off of that seat, unlikely, but possible.

Nope, no rear passengers in a long time. When I first saw the white stuff I initially thought that it might have been sunscreen but it's doubtful that anyone had sunscreen on their naked butts in the back seat, that I know of anyways...

 

[Candurin]

You would have to have significant moisture in your vehicle to have mold growing on your seat.

Did the white residue look “fluffy”?

You can always use some hydrogen peroxide (household, 3%) and just wipe down the seats if you are legitimately concerned with it being mold, but, I’m very doubtful.

Source: 20+ years of microbiology experience and a few fancy graduate degrees

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

 

[Conrad 16.5]

You would have to have significant moisture in your vehicle to have mold growing on your seat.

Did the white residue look “fluffy”?

You can always use some hydrogen peroxide (household, 3%) and just wipe down the seats if you are legitimately concerned with it being mold, but, I’m very doubtful.

Source: 20+ years of microbiology experience and a few fancy graduate degrees

I agree about the significant moisture and if there was that much there should be mold elsewhere on the back seats. There was no smell but the 'white stuff' certainly looked like mold, it wasn't fluffy but a bit dry and dusty. Not dust but dry and I could brush the top layer off easily.

Thanks for your advice using the H₂O₂. I'll be keeping a better eye on this in the future.

 

[kdaug]

If you live in northern parts of the US (or in Canada like me), salt is used a lot on winter roads. With all the wet salt that gets tracked into my front floors it eventually dries to leave a white powder. Could this have been something that could have gotten on to your back seat?

 

[Conrad 16.5]

If you live in northern parts of the US (or in Canada like me), salt is used a lot on winter roads. With all the wet salt that gets tracked into my front floors it eventually dries to leave a white powder. Could this have been something that could have gotten on to your back seat?

Thanks for your reply but as I said in #4 above I've not had anyone in the back in a long time. It's just my wife and I at home so no one uses the back seat. It most definitely was not salt.

 

[kdaug]

How about something that leaked out of a bag of groceries?

 

[Conrad 16.5]

How about something that leaked out of a bag of groceries?

I thought of that too. If something had leaked it would have (most likely) been only on the seating surface of the seat and not high up on the back. Besides, I'm the person who always carries in the groceries and I certainly would have noticed a bag with that much leakage.

I knew I should have taken a pic!