Aniline Leather Couches - cat urinated on over a year ago - was peed on again.

Dear Mr. Koh,

I seek your help in knowing which of your products to buy. I have two aniline leather couches to clean, both of which our cat urinated on over a year ago. He peed on the black leather couch was peed on again the day before yesterday. It is still damp.

Before I found your website a year ago, I consulted a local leather expert, who works with Fibrenew, who advised me to use Nature's Miracle Urine Destroyer. I did and it has taken away the smell of the urine almost entirely, but of course, it left the leather dull and stiff. It is this man who informed me that both couches are aniline leather. I don't know what sort of finish they have.

Neither couch shows any stain. I am attaching pictures of each so you can see what type of aniline finish each has. The black couch with red trim looks a lot like the black leather pictured at http://www.leatherdoctor.com/aniline...atin-finished/. The couch with grey trim also does although the leather is more creased and the grey trim has a dull, soft finish.

I need to mention that I the foam interior of each couch holds some residual sweet urine odor. I can replace the foam cushions, but I cannot remove the interior of the black couch along its back (sort of a leather blanket that drapes over the fabric-covered cushion), which poses the issue of how to remove what remains of the now-sweet urine smell. More Nature's Miracle would work, but I don't want to further hurt the leather.

Here is one list I found on your website about what to buy based your chart at this URL (http://www.leatherdoctor.com/aniline...atin-finished/) and a read through the forum.:

Eraser-4 (for dry soil? What is dry soil?)
CleanUrine-1.5 or d'Urine 2.1 (is this for smell as well as stains?)
Acidifier-2.0
Rinse-3.0.
KillBacteria-3.7 (for smell?)
Hydrator-3.3.
Fatliquor LS-5.5.
Protector-B+, D+, S+ or W+. (optional?)

Elsewhere I read about a kit that has these and d’Protein-10 for stain, but as I said we have no visible stain on the black leather. So I don't think there has been any oxidized chrome tanning of the leather, except possibly along the red piping on the leather couch, which has turn darker red. So I do not think I need the products in line #15 at http://www.leatherdoctor.com/aniline...atin-finished/)

I apologize that my photos are out of focus. The lighting indoors today is very bad. First 4 photos in this email and the next are of the black and grey couch. Last two are of the black couh with red piping. The second shows a cushion with hardened leather. More photos to follow.

The first two photos show the dry, dull leather of the corner of what I am calling the leather blanket part of the couch. The third photo shows the fabric bench from underneath the pillows that has absorbed the urine that dripped down between the cushions and needs treatment for its bad smell. The fourth photo shows you what I mean by the leather blanket that makes part of the back of the couch. The padding of this portion of the couch is stitched into it without a zipper.


#1
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#2
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#3
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In fact the three photos of the second email you should receive are of the black and grey couch. The two here are of the black and red couch with the second showing a cushion with hardened leather.


#4
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#5
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>>> I have two aniline leather couches to clean, both of which our cat urinated on over a year ago. He peed on the black leather couch was peed on again the day before yesterday. It is still damp.

Urine:
Urine is a compound waste discharge, comprises of urochrome, uric acid and the ammonium salt to deal with. When deposited urine attracts the natural bacteria from the atmosphere and starts to ferments, a putrid odor will develop from the protein component of the urine and ammonic odor will develop from the ammonium salt. When ammonic odor becomes present, the pH of the contamination would have shifted to 10. Such high pH above the neutral average 3 to 5 of leather causes the amphoteric protein fiber to shift ionic negative (-ve); that causes the protein fibers to repels its other ionic negative (-ve) constituents like the tanning agent, fatliquor and dyestuff. Behaving just like the attraction of a magnet, like poles repel. When the leather constituent breaks hydrogen bond with the protein fiber, the leather starts to denature and revert to rawhide. A typical appearance of an aged or compounded contamination is a darkening effect from the fugitive tanning agents, a whitening effect from the fatliquor. Fugitive dyestuff or bleeding is only apparent from a white towel detection and yellowing from the urochrome. The denaturing or reverting to rawhide effect of the leather is further confirmed by tackiness or in worst-case sliminess in the present of moisture. The leach out fatliquor results in stiffness and fugitive dyestuff results in discoloration. A systematic sequence of decontamination approach includes surface residue removal with CleanUrine-1.5 (pH 1.5), and rinse with Acidifier-2.0 (pH 2.0) recharging the protein fiber ionic positive (+ve) and neutralizing the ammonium salt with KillUrine-2.1 (pH 2.1). Utilizing such a low pH treatment retards bacteria activities from off gassing putrid odors, a natural pH control without the need to use bactericide or fungicide for mold prevention. Therefore, urine is a type of soiling that will require a biochemistry approach to decontaminate it. Restoring the leather begins after decontamination with Hydrator-3.3, a pH 3.3 multifunctional product that has ionic positive (+ve) charging abilities, an active surfactantcy essential for foreign water movement within the inter-fibrillary spaces to redistribute the leather constituents and purging foreign contamination to resurface. This is the last of the wet cleaning process to remove suspended urochrome yellowish compound through visible white tissue paper as an extension of the leather in the wicking process as the leather dries naturally. Only then, without a trace of the urine stain that Fatliquor-5.0 (pH 5.0) replenishing commences. The emulsified fat and oil encased water molecule breaks free when hydrogen bond attraction takes place between the fat and oil with the protein fiber, leaving a breathing space essential for leather transpiration to function naturally. The fat plumps the leather with fullness from easily collapsing into creases and wrinkles during stress or flex, while the oil lubricates the fibers so that they slide over one another like millions of inter-connecting hinges with smoothness. One important unique characteristic of leather is suppleness with strength and much depends on the fatliquor, in this holistic approach to effective leather urine decontamination and restoration. For severe neglected cases with finishes damages, refinishing commences after leather suppleness restoration.

>>> I seek your help in knowing which of your products to buy.

I recommend this Kit-L5.uk - Leather Urine Odor Killer Kit
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/kit-l5-...or-killer-kit/
Attachment 8225

>>> The couch with grey trim also does although the leather is more creased and the grey trim has a dull, soft finish.

Topcoat refinishing with Kit-A6.tc - Aniline Leather Topcoat Refinishing Kit.
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/kit-a6-...finishing-kit/


>>> I need to mention that I the foam interior of each couch holds some residual sweet urine odor. I can replace the foam cushions, but I cannot remove the interior of the black couch along its back (sort of a leather blanket that drapes over the fabric-covered cushion), which poses the issue of how to remove what remains of the now-sweet urine smell. More Nature's Miracle would work, but I don't want to further hurt the leather.

To clean fabric follows this CleanUrine-1.5 > Acidifier-2.0 > KillUrine-2.1 > Rinse-3.0 system and it will be safe when comes in contact with the leather.


>>> Eraser-4 (for dry soil? What is dry soil?)

Soiling that becomes dry, may need some traction to remove then using a detailing horsehair Brush-1.
Eraser-4 and be used alone to remove soiling or it could be used in conjunction with products like CleanUrine-1.5 (Use alone for "dry" cleaning and in conjunction with wet cleaning for better traction of greasy and gummy soiling.)


>>> CleanUrine-1.5 or d'Urine 2.1 (is this for smell as well as stains?)

CleanUrine-1.5 is use as a “pre-cleaner” follows with Acidifier-2.0 to remove as much soiling prior to treating it with CleanUrine-2.1 (http://www.leatherdoctor.com/cleanurine-1-5/)
d’Urine/KillUrine-2.1 is for neutralizing the urine and control leather from denaturing.


>>> Acidifier-2.0

Functions with Rinse-3.0 are the same, with 1 pH point more power.
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/acidifier-2-0/


>>> Rinse-3.0.
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/rinse-3-0/


>>> KillBacteria-3.7 (for smell?)

For organic decay or killing bacteria activities in the presence of urine. In urine cases the KillUrine-2.1 is the used rather to control leather from denaturing or damages.
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/killbacteria-3-7/


>>> Hydrator-3.3.

One function is to soften up the stiff leather prior to fatliquoring (replenishing the loss fat and oil for suppleness when dry).
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/hydrator-3-3/


>>> Fatliquor.LS-5.5.

This is the leather-scent version of Fatliquor-5.0
http://www.leatherdoctor.com/fatliquor-ls-5-5/


>>> Protector-B+, D+, S+ or W+. (optional?)

The “+” sign is the leather scented version of the 4 different “feels” - B for Buttery, D for Draggy, S for Silky and W for Waxy. Recommended the B+ for urine contaminated aniline leathers.

>>> Elsewhere I read about a kit that has these and d’Protein-10 for stain, but as I said we have no visible stain on the black leather. So I don't think there has been any oxidized chrome tanning of the leather, except possibly along the red piping on the leather couch, which has turn darker red. So I do not think I need the products in line #15 at http://www.leatherdoctor.com/aniline...atin-finished/)

d’Protein-10 is replace with CleanUrine-1.5 as a pre cleaner in this kit
I recommend this Kit-L5.uk - Leather Urine Odor Killer Kit mentioned above.


Roger Koh
Leather Care System Formulator
Consultant / Practitioner / Instructor / Coaching
web: www.leatherdoctor.com
forum: www.leathercleaningrestorationforum.com
email: [email protected]