Update on My Sunroof Leak
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Update on My Sunroof Leak
Dear All,
I had to change my username because I switched e-mail accounts, but this is the original sublimeswell, who had posted about a bad sunroof leak a while back. Well, I have finally solved the problem. I had to spend lots of money, but here is how I did it. All of the work was performed by my upholstery guy, who I now believe is a master. I can't wait to have him re-do my leather seats as my car ages. Here is what he did. The musty smell of mildew / mold is gone for good.
1) Put in brand new, wider, open-ended drain tubes for all four pillars.
2) Removed and threw away all of the old floor carpet, as well as the carpet mats. To do this, the seats had to be removed as well.
3) Once exposed by removing the seats, disinfected the bottom of the car with a commercial mold and mildew killer (I can get the brand for you if you need it; just make sure it's a commercial type and not household).
4) Painted the bottom of the car with Rust-Oleum anti-mold paint.
5) Temporarily put the seats back into the car, then performed six ozone shock treatments, two hours each (you can buy a smaller-type ozone generator from Amazon for around $100). I did this two times per day, setting the timer on two hours each time. The car must be parked outside, with the AC off, windows closed (except for where the cord goes in to power the generator). You want to make sure the car is as sealed as possible--no major openings.
6) After treatment, put a commercial fan inside the vehicle to blow out excess ozone. Three days of fan-blowing.
7) Installed the new carpet and original seats.
Needless to say, this process was expensive: $1100 for the new carpet (with installation); $200 for the ozone generator (I admittedly paid too much for this one); $300 for the new drain tubes; several tips to the upholsterer of about $50 to $100. I'd say about $1,700 total, start to finish.
However, the smell is definitively gone. In particular, the ozone treatments are what killed all living organisms. I had no visible mold or mildew, just a musty smell; but since I had just bought the car, I wanted to be absolutely sure there would be no more leaks and no more smells. I am happy to say that the problem has finally--after two months--been resolved.
--2008 Volvo S40, silver exterior / quartz interior, 108K miles.
I had to change my username because I switched e-mail accounts, but this is the original sublimeswell, who had posted about a bad sunroof leak a while back. Well, I have finally solved the problem. I had to spend lots of money, but here is how I did it. All of the work was performed by my upholstery guy, who I now believe is a master. I can't wait to have him re-do my leather seats as my car ages. Here is what he did. The musty smell of mildew / mold is gone for good.
1) Put in brand new, wider, open-ended drain tubes for all four pillars.
2) Removed and threw away all of the old floor carpet, as well as the carpet mats. To do this, the seats had to be removed as well.
3) Once exposed by removing the seats, disinfected the bottom of the car with a commercial mold and mildew killer (I can get the brand for you if you need it; just make sure it's a commercial type and not household).
4) Painted the bottom of the car with Rust-Oleum anti-mold paint.
5) Temporarily put the seats back into the car, then performed six ozone shock treatments, two hours each (you can buy a smaller-type ozone generator from Amazon for around $100). I did this two times per day, setting the timer on two hours each time. The car must be parked outside, with the AC off, windows closed (except for where the cord goes in to power the generator). You want to make sure the car is as sealed as possible--no major openings.
6) After treatment, put a commercial fan inside the vehicle to blow out excess ozone. Three days of fan-blowing.
7) Installed the new carpet and original seats.
Needless to say, this process was expensive: $1100 for the new carpet (with installation); $200 for the ozone generator (I admittedly paid too much for this one); $300 for the new drain tubes; several tips to the upholsterer of about $50 to $100. I'd say about $1,700 total, start to finish.
However, the smell is definitively gone. In particular, the ozone treatments are what killed all living organisms. I had no visible mold or mildew, just a musty smell; but since I had just bought the car, I wanted to be absolutely sure there would be no more leaks and no more smells. I am happy to say that the problem has finally--after two months--been resolved.
--2008 Volvo S40, silver exterior / quartz interior, 108K miles.
Last edited by sublimeswell2; Feb 24, 2018 at 05:32 AM.
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