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mysterious white powder

Jake14

Well Known Member
lately been seeing some white powdery areas on the rug. Usually but not always under the panel. Can't figure out where it's coming from. Anyone else seen this? Hopefully it's not related to some kind of corrosion...

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Possibly aluminum oxide? Investigate directly above the location for signs of corrosion and fretting. Is moisture getting up under your panel? Could something be fretting against a powder coated item? Dirt from your shoes? Might the angles in that location be scraping away a portion of your flying shoes? (Are they white?)

I know this might not be helpful but I'm just asking questions that I might investigate if I were there....
 
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Consider condensation. Then look for enter granular coroshion. Nasty thing that. Only way to get rid of it is replacing the hole part. It’s incedius and once it starts it’s like cancer. Catch it early and it’s just the one affected part. Wate too long and other parts will be included. The powder is like a contagious disease. So clean everything that has powder on it thuraly. Don’t just vacuum it up and think it’s ok.

RD
 
I'd remove that carpet to have a look. If it's clean beneath, put it back and look elsewhere.

Are you sure that it's not mold?
 
Any chance it could be ABC fire extinguisher powder. Has someone shot odd an extinguisher in the past, hope not.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions...I'm trying to eliminate all the possibilities and currently leaning toward some kind of mold. The airplane's parked outside and it's pretty wet around here. Trying to find some way to test for mold....
 
Looks like Powdery Mildew to me. It can occur anywhere the humidity is too high. Dehumidifier in the airplane and/or small oscillating fan. Good luck.
 
Wouldn’t mildew have a strong odor? I would stick my nise down there and give it a wiff (no not kidding). But this looks quite unusual so my money woukd be on fire ext. if yours is nearby and dry chem. I can’t see why corrosion would show up in the carpet and if it did why would yours be the first with over 10,000 rvs flying.
 
I'm going with white mold. Like I get on the leather handle of the k-bar knife I leave in the hangar.
 
heard the one about the football team that called in the police and dogs for a mysterious white powder they found? it was the goal line.
 
Thanks for all the great (and entertaining :) suggestions. I don't have a dry fire extinguisher, so I'm guessing it's mildew or mold of some kind. I vacuumed it up and sprayed with mold remover...will see if it comes back...
 
thanks for all the replies. I took the carpet out to clean it and just sprayed water on it in my driveway. An amazing amount of soapy water was the result. I guess there's some sort of treatment or chemical applied to the material for some reason. this was apparently the 'white powder' I saw

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Perhaps it is some form of "fire resistant" chemical treatment for the rug/fabric?
 
I've seen that

I have a bunch of new airline carpet..enough to carpet a B777 for real. It does the same thing when it gets wet. I use it for hangar floor, garage floor,ect, and when it gets water spilled or dripped on it, white rings/powder will form. I pressure wash it, and it looks like soap foam big time. I assumed it was a fire blocking substance, and oddly, in 42 years of working airliners and seeing "in service" carpet get cleaned with Stanly Steemer type equipment I never noticed it.
 
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