Leather Recliner - I’ve tried Multiple Cleaners and it’s Still Tacky.

[Question]

I’m looking for something to help clean & restore my leather recliner.
Sections have become tacky not sure if I went overboard with conditioner before.
I’ve tried multiple cleaners and it’s still tacky.
Do you have something that will help? Thanks, Brian

Here are a couple of pics of the chair.
It’s only the headrest area.
It’s not Bicast leather, I believe it’s all real leather.
I had used Pledge on it at one point and ever since then, it’s had this silicone-like surface that’s sticky.
I’ve tried Lexol, Chamberlain's leather milk, and cornstarch, soap, and water. Nothing is really helping it. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Brian


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[Roger Koh]

>>> I had used Pledge on it at one point and ever since then, it’s had this silicone-like surface that’s sticky.
I’ve tried multiple cleaners and it’s still tacky.
I’ve tried Lexol, Chamberlain's leather milk, and cornstarch, soap, and water.
Nothing is really helping it.
Any suggestions?

What is the pH value of Leather?
Leather has a pH value of 3 to 5. Any liquid above the leather pH-neutral denatures the leather, even with clean water to a degree. Some of these products mentioned have a higher pH value than water, and when used frequently, compounded the tacky effect. When leather becomes tacky, it is slowly reverting to rawhide.

Why does leather become tacky?
Leather is an amphoteric or pH-sensitive protein material, and when contaminated with alkaline shifting sweat from our body influences the leather ionic attraction between the ionic negative (-ve) leather constituent like the tanning agent for preserving the leather from rotting. When the weakening hydrogen bond breaks, the tanning agent leaches out, reverse tanning the leather into tacky rawhide.

How to Solve this Tacky Problem?
A low pH balanced cleaner like Leather pH Balanced Cleaner 1.5 has a pH value of 1.5 that cleans foreign contamination and pH balanced at the same time helps improve the tacky problem.
Rinsing with a low pH Acidifier 2.0 helps to stabilize the pH imbalance for recovery from tackiness.
Deep hydration with Hydrator 3.3 further helps colloidal water movement within the leather structure redistributing the fugitive tanning agent and flushing out foreign contamination further helping stabilize the leather structure from tackiness.

One will experience the working effect when each of these products is put to work, using our hands to determine the working effectiveness. The longer the dwell time, the better the result to solve this tacky issue.

Products mentioned are found in this Leather Getting Sticky Restoration Kit L7
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https://leatherdoctor.com/leather-getting-sticky-restoration-kit-l7/

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Roger Koh
Leather Care System Formulator
Consultant / Practitioner / Instructor / Coach
web: www.leatherdoctor.com (http://www.leatherdoctor.com)
forum: www.leathercleaningrestorationforum.com (http://www.leathercleaningrestorationforum.com)
email: [email protected],
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phone: 604 773 1878