Mold on felt

[Willybob]

Hi. Willybob here. I need some advice from the FL brain trust. I recently wore my silverbelly wide brim Stetson in the rain, clearing gutters and drainage and it became soaked through and through. I made the mistake of setting it brim down on an oak steamer trunk and forgot about it. 2 days later, when I picked it up I found it was still wet and I found grey mold spots on the underside of the brim. This is not a high end beaver/rabbit lid. It's labeled xxxx for what's that's worth. I wear it in the weather as a work hat. Is there a technique for getting the stains out? Any advice would be very appreciated

 

[barrowjh]

I think I would vacuum the spot initially then use Coleman camp stove fuel (white gas, naptha equivalent) and dab the spot, may have to dab all around it to 'feather out' from the spot to avoid creating a moisture ring. Other basic household chemicals that would work on mold may be used, but water them down to avoid bleaching out the felt color. A hydrogen peroxide solution (half water, half hydrogen peroxide), or a similar solution done with ammonia, or maybe even white vinegar might work about as well.

 

[fedoralover]

I've used both naptha and the white vinegar. For the mold I'd recommend the white vinegar. It's not as toxic and will work just as well. As already suggested, you will have to wipe the whole hat down with it to avoid a ring. Your hat will smell like a pickle for a bit but it wears off.

fedoralover

 

[-30-]

White vinegar is generally available as regular, 5%; pickling, 7.5%; cleaning, 10%, any of which will kill mould.

I would, given the local weather, put the hat outside, brim-side up, in strong sunlight for a day, but not use

a vacuum, as it will contaminate same, as well as disseminate the spores through it's exhaust to the

surrounding area. Continuing the same day and outside, lightly spray the vinegar onto the

affected area; this being the entire underside of the brim, for if any colour change

does occur, it will be an even, not odd, match.

Take your time, as you will quickly notice the mould dying, so there will be no need to absolutely soak the material.

Also, if you suspect that the mould has affected the sweat band, give it a light wipe too. This is also an opportune

time to use the hat stretcher that you might have bought, not to actually stretch the hat, but to maintain it's size

after it having become damp/wet. Alcohol will also work as a sweat band resizer, as it is the "shoe stretching fluid"

that is actually that expensive potion; it too, may also kill mould.


Regards,
J T

 

[Willybob]

Excellent advice friends. Thank you. When I bought the hat at the feed store it had the standard ranchers crown and had that pink undertone in sunlight, as Stetson silverbellys do, so I re-blocked it with my Hat Shaper and coffee stained it to get rid of the pink. I think any color loss from treatment will be easily mitigated. Thanks again. As always the FL crew comes to the rescue.