Help! I have a mildew problem

[Patrick L]

You guys are all the best source of information for everything concerning gun care problems, so let me lay this on you.

In a nutshell, my M1 carbine has been getting white fluffy mildew spots on the stock, web sling, and buttstock magazine pouch. The gun is stored in a Browning safe that has a Goldenrod dehumidifier in it. Actually my first thought was that the Goldenrod had died, but it is still warm to the touch. I have had this safe and dehumidifier for over ten years and never had this happen. None of the other guns in the safe(about 20 long guns and 9 handguns) have any mildew on them. In fact, I have had this particular gun for about 5 years and only this past summer has this happened.

It occured to me that maybe the problem is that I store this particular gun tight to the wall of the safe. I actually have it running behind the guns on the left side of the safe, sort of in the front corner. I did this because all of the slots are full. However, like I said I have had it like this for 5 years now, so why suddenly the problem? I also thought the problem was that this gun is too far from the Goldenrod, but then why is there no mildew on the stocks of my handguns , which are further away on the top shelf?

Anyone have any ideas? This is sort of freaking me out. I'm about to start spraying Lysol into the safe to kill everything.

[felix]

I DO NOT know what to do about decontaminating the guns SAFELY for the guns. Use watered down chlorox without the smellies to kill everything in the safe. Dilution set at the rate you can MINIMUM tolerate according to smell. Let safe sit for three days if chlorox used is full strength (6 percent). If much weaker, then redo the safe daily over a week's period. Then neutralize the chlorox (smell) with a vinegar solution, followed by clean water. Then WD40 the safe, wipe it down, and then followed by some rust prevention oil that evaporates. Safe now ready for restocking. But first, must clean the guns, but with what? ... felix

Chlorox = sodium hypochlorite (any brand)

[bowenrd]

Mildew will not grow on a clean surface. I suspect the M1 Carbine is what needs a good cleaning. $.02 worth.

[Dutchie]

throw the rest in your freezer , mildew dies.

mildew is carried by air.

goodluck.

[williamwaco]

Mildew will not grow on a clean surface. I suspect the M1 Carbine is what needs a good cleaning. $.02 worth.

1+ here.

I would try lysol followed by a good clean and relubing.

[30calflash]

I've had a similar problem this year, it's been especially humid and rainy. Mostly on military wood. Could be dirt on/under the finish.

I wiped them down with a diluted bleach solution, wiped dry and it lasted several weeks before it started to come back on some of them. Washed them again, keeping an eye on them still.

I think in most cases it's the humidity combined with lack of air movement. The air gets stale and your nicely sealed up safe is a great place for this to start. Heat from the goldenrod won't help, it may make it worse. Warm and damp. Just my $.02.

I wish I had a better answer for you on it, maybe after a thorough cleaning and airing they could be resealed with a different finish besides BLO or tung oil.

[TCLouis]

Get the sling off and treat it separately. I think I would try alcohol soak in a zip Lock bag for a few days.

I had that issue with a Hakim stock.

I kept rubbing/washing down the stock with isopropyl alcohol and after several years got it stopped.

Not sure the source, but I was afraid it would spread to other stocks.

[lavenatti]

"Heat from the goldenrod won't help, it may make it worse. Warm and damp. Just my $.02."

Agreed, the warmer the air is the more moisture it can hold. I never understood the reasoning behind these warmers. They don't dehumidify the air and they don't do anything a light bulb with the same wattage rating wouldn't do a lot cheaper.

[marvelshooter]

Agreed, the warmer the air is the more moisture it can hold. I never understood the reasoning behind these warmers. They don't dehumidify the air and they don't do anything a light bulb with the same wattage rating wouldn't do a lot cheaper.
I am pretty sure it has to do with the fact that moisture is attracted to and condenses on a cooler surface. Kind of like taking a beer out of the fridge and soon it is dripping wet. We are doing the opposite. I have a Golden Rod and a 40 watt light bulb going all the time in my vault. The air and everything in it is 20 degrees warmer than the air outside and I don't have any moisture or mildew or rust problems. I first got the idea from a place I worked at that stored moisture sensitive welding rods in an old refrigerator with a light bulb going.

[captaint]

I'm GUESSING your carbine stock/sling are holding the moisture. It's in the wood/sling. I might try to arrange the carbine right over the goldenrod. I have basically the same setup you have, and have not had any problems. I also keep a hygrometer?? in the safe just to keep an eye on humidity levels in the safe. Mine stays at high normal - always.
You might try to deal just with the carbine. Try taking the sling off and wiping the stock with odorless paint thinner a few times. Good luck.. enjoy Mike

[Echo]

Warmer air will hold more moisture, but with a constant amount of moisture in the air, warmer air has a lower relative humidity, and so is less likely to condense out. That's the philosophy behind the heater, be it Golden Rod or 40W bulb. Or so I have heard...

[Patrick L]

Actually, as I understand it, the safe is NOT airtight, the goldenrod heats the air and that causes the moisture to bake out. Like Arizona, its a dry heat! I have no idea if its true or not, but that's how it was explained to me.

Thanks for all the suggestions; I think I'll wipe it down with some chlorox, remove the web stuff and treat that separately, and move the carbine to a spot right near the goldenrod.

[Bullwolf]

I had an old refurbished M1 Garand that had the same problem.

White mildew would show up on the wooden stock, when it was stored in my warmer indoor gun safe. I would clean it off time and time again, but it would just return later.

I never really liked the inexpensive wood, or the stock finish on my M1 Garand. I think if it had been sealed better, perhaps with a lacquer, or a linseed oil type of finish, that it would not have been quite as susceptible to the mold and mildew.

Eventually I got tired of the white mildew, and I replaced the wooden stock with a synthetic one.

(I know, a plastic stock on a M1 Garand - blasphemy!)

Maybe down the road I will pick up one of the nice, but expensive hardwood American Walnut replacement stock sets for it.

Until then, the synthetic stock is mold and mildew free. It is also quite serviceable, even if it does garner me the occasional dirty look at the public range.


- Bullwolf

[zuke]

What about just wiping it down with the WWII bore solvent?
Anti corrosive ammo and stinky stuff.
I'm willing to bet it was done a couple time's in the field.

[30calflash]

Petroleum based oils and solvents weaken the wood and may not treat it. If it's an original stock it probably has a lot of oil and solvent in it already.

I'd think that cleaning, neutralizing and finishing it would do it. And keeping an eye on it in the future.

[Patrick L]

Just an update.

I cleaned the carbine stock, 1st with isopropyl on a rag, the wiped down with Lysol disinfectant. I also swapped places in the safe, put the carbine right near the goldenrod and put my 10/22 in the corner. I'll have to keep an eye on the 10/22.

Also, I found another piece of mildewed wood in the safe. I keep a bore mop on a homemade wooden handle up on the piece that has all of the notches for the gun barrels. The handle was covered with little mildew spots.

[jhrosier]

I wonder if the carbine stock is finished with linseed oil. That might support the growth of mildew more than some other types of finish.

Jack

[Char-Gar]

Yes, stocks finished in natural vegatal oils like linseed and tung are much more prone to develop mold over time. If it continues to be a problem, the only long term solution is to strip the old oil from the stock and use a mild solution of bleach and water to kill what is in the pores and then refinish with oil or a substitute.

This stuff also grows better in the dark. If you can rig a small light in the safe, the light and extra heat will do a good job of chasing the mold.

[shotman]

are you sure the GR is working ?? Get some ---oil dry-- from auto parts store and keep some in a container in safe. DONT use kitty stuff as some has chlorine to kill smells

[XWrench3]

IF you can actually get the stock dry, a good coat, or two of Johnson's Paste Wax will PROBABLY keep it from happening again. i do not know for sure if this will work, but my idea to get the stock as dry as possible, without anything elaborate is remove the stock from the rifle, get a large plastic bag, two large silica desiccant bags, seal it up as tightly as possible (duct tape?), and put it in the sun for a few days to a week. the heat from the sun should help evaporate the moisture, and the silica bags should absorb the moisture and hold it. then apply the J.P.W. while the stock is still warm, fresh from the bag. that is how i would attack it. of course, the really elaborate, sure fire way would be to put it into a vacuum chamber under 30 inches of vacuum for a day or two. water in a vacuum will boil out, and be evacuated off. but very few of us have access to a vacuum chamber at all, let alone one large enough for a rifle stock.

[1Shirt]

Felix has it right. As a safety director at a university, I supervised mold and mildew removal on more than one occaision. Recommend desicant of some type as well for your safe.
1Shirt!:coffee:

[happyret65]

I had a saddle that really old and the fenders would mold bad. Murphy's soap would cure the problem whenever it came up. Works for both wood and leather.

[30calflash]

I had a saddle that really old and the fenders would mold bad. Murphy's soap would cure the problem whenever it came up. Works for both wood and leather.

Would the oil soap work on canvas also? What about plastics? It ahs been a tough year with moisture!

What I've found recommended a mild bleach and water solution or an alcohol and water solution.

What can be used as a preventive measure so it doesn't come back? Air circulation would be great but sometimes it's not possible. Do any furniture sprays with lemon or ? help?