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Thread: Zebra Skin Rug - Treating 40 year old Zebra Skin – it’s starting to stiffen up and appears to be drying a bit…

  1. #1
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    Question Zebra Skin Rug - Treating 40 year old Zebra Skin – it’s starting to stiffen up and appears to be drying a bit…

    I have a beautiful zebra skin that is in very good condition that just recently realized its starting to stiffen up and appears to be drying a bit. It has always been used as a decoration and never a rug. Its been draped over a railing in my loft for the last 15 years. I think the warmer temps up there are primarily the cause. Can you tell me how to preserve this skin. Thank you

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    Greater Vancouver, Canada.
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    There are both sides to the Zebra Skin or Hide.

    The Skin Suede Side:
    The stiffen-up is due to the diminishing moisture content of the skin known as fatliquor. The procedure is first to hydrate to relax all the stiffness by eliminating the creases. It is thereafter fatliquor, that is Fatliquor-5.0 is applied as the water contents of the Hydrator-3.3 dries. These two steps processes will soften up the hide as soft as you wish. Average tannery moisture level when dry averages 14%.

    The Hair-on Side:
    This is the hair side and the pH of hair averages 5.5. This side can be clean with a pH 5.5 cleaner and rinse with a pH 4.0 rinse follows with a silky feel and sheen to the hair against brittleness; with mothproofing as an option with a pH 5.4 moth repellent.

    Here's the Problem Solving Guide for Hair-on-Hide...

    Here's the Hair-on-Hide Care Kit

    Leather Doctor® Hair-on-Hide Leather Care Kit-H3

    [CENTER]Contents:

    Wool Degreaser-5.6 (120ml)
    It’s for Hair-On-Hide and Wool of Woolskin, Sheepskin and Shearling leather types.
    This is a pH 5.6 aqueous wool-safe degreaser. It’s for degreasing traces of lanolin that may yellow or attract soiling like a magnet. This is unlike other degreaser that once the grease is suspended it is rinse-free from being reabsorbed by the wool.

    Wool Cleaner-5.5 (250ml)
    It’s for Hair-on-Hide and Wool of Woolskin, Sheepskin, Shearling, Feather and all fabrics except rayon and silk.
    This is a pH 5.5 aqueous wool-safe mild disinfectant cleaner. It cleans gently by penetrating, lubricating and suspending soiling through chemical reaction.

    Wool Rinse-4.0 (250ml)
    It’s for Hair-on-Hide and Wool of Woolskin, Sheepskin, Shearling, Feather and all fabrics except rayon and silk.
    This is a pH 4.0 aqueous wool-safe rinse. It’s for rinsing, neutralizing and stabilizing wool and hair fiber pH chemistry integrity.

    Leather Scent-S (250ml)
    It’s a tactile silky-feel for Pure-Aniline, Nubuck, Suede, Hair-On-Hide and Woolskin leather types.
    This is a non-film forming, non-stick, rub-resistant protector that enhances a natural silky-feel, with a classic leather scent. It imparts a non-stick, breathable barrier, essentially to shield the detrimental effects of sticky soiling, including the nasty ballpoint ink. And it does help to release those tenacious dye-transfer stains, especially on light colored leathers easily, without resorting to costly color repairs. Its natural silky-feel protection increases the leather resistance to wet and dry rubs, thus reduce stretch, scuff and abrasion. And it reduces friction squeaks that wear the finishes when leather is rubbed against during movement.

    Hydrator-3.3 (250ml)
    This is a pH 3.3 aqueous leather-safe hydrator. It’s for hydrating dried, stiffed or shrunk leathers (to separates the crushed, stick together fibrils and relax them) prior to strengthening and softening with Fatliquor-5.0. And it’s also used for facilitating colloidal water movement within the leather structure capillary motion during the wicking process. That will cause suspended soil particulates to be moved to the leather surface to be extracted with absorbent towel while damp and erase with Leather Eraser-4 when dry. It’s for all leather types including: Pigmented, Aniline, Vachetta, Nubuck, Suede, Hair-on-Hide and Woolskin.

    Fatliquor-5.0 (250ml)
    This is a pH 5.0 anionic charged micro emulsion fatliquor leather rejuvenator. It’s for replenishing original fatliquor that diminishes thru sun-bleaching, ageing, heat and alkaline exposure or cleaning. It penetrates and lubricates the leather fibers so that after drying they will be capable of sliding over one another smoothly. Besides softening the leather with stretchability, compressibility and flexibility; fatliquor enhances its rip tensile strength greatly. Relaxes coarse breaks, creases and wrinkles to provide drapes, suppleness and prevents cracking. It helps to keep leather at its optimum physical performance and prevent premature ageing. It’s for all leather types including: Pigmented, Aniline, Vachetta, Nubuck, Suede, Hair-on-Hide and Woolskin. Video explaining Fatliquoring - http://videos.howstuffworks.com/disc...quor-video.htm

    Here' the optional Mothproofing...


    Wool, Hair & Fur Care (6)

    Leather Doctor® MothProof-5.4
    It’s for Hair-on-Hide, Woolskin, Sheepskin, Shearling, and Feather.
    This is a pH 5.4 aqueous leather and wool-safe mothproofing agent.
    It works by being absorbed into the skin and will slowly release vapors
    repelling insects causing damages.

    Roger Koh
    [email protected]
    Last edited by Roger Koh; 05-16-2011 at 02:42 PM.

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