Cleaning a vehicles seats, carpet etc....

Knucklehead

Having kids you can imagine the abuse a cars interior takes. Question: What is the best method for getting stains out of fabric seats, carpet and what not? Thanks, David

cnh

I wouldn't know. But what I do know is that there are people, businesses, that will clean your car from bumper to bumper at a decent price...I did that a couple of years ago and those guys can get out almost everything. The car almost seemed 'new' after they were done!


cnh

wutadumsn23

+1 on C's comment. It may seem like the easy way out, but after the cost of supplies, materials and equipment, you could have just brought it to a detail shop and had it done for you. They have all the gizmos and tricks to get it done, and probably with better results. If you want to do it yourself though and have a steam cleaner, use it's couch attachment and see how it works.

-Jeff

VR3

When I go to get stains out - a good carpet cleaner and alot of elbow grease goes a long way....

Most carpet cleaning companies will clean your car for a small amount of money

jdwmap

303 Products makes some good cleaners if you can find it in your area. My wife started using it for the laundry as well.

http://www.303-products.com/shop303/index.cfm/category/68/303-cleaner-and-spot-remover.cfm

Fireman32

The Bissell little green clean machine is great for cleaning the seats. You can get it for under 100 bucks at alot of places.

concealer404

I actually use the blue scrub home carpet stuff (Blue Coral?). Now... i don't know what the quality or toughness of the material in your car is, because that scrubber is fairly harsh...

For instance... i wouldn't hesitate to use it on the seats or carpet in the Celica or the MX6, but i wouldn't use it on the seats in the Escort, probably tear them up.

But it DOES work great, in my experiences.

grimmace19

My advice is to go to a Dollar Tree or Family Dollar and get this stuff called LA's Totally Awesome Spray... its a yellowish color and works wonders. It's the only cleaner I know of that you can use on any surface with amazing results... pet stains, juice stains on counter tops, car seats, and ANYTHING else.

kevhed72

2 of my kids have already blown chunks all over the backs seats and floors of both of our cars. Luckily, I own a Bissell carpet cleaning machine with the hand attachment, which shoots hot water / soap on the stain, scrubs it, and then sucks it out of the seat fibers. The Bissell has paid for itself numerous times since I bought around 10 yrs ago.

Sherardp

Steam clean will bring them back to life. You may have mobile detailer in your area that come to you and do it. Check your local phone listings. To answer you though, steam clean is the very best way to get the seats and carpet back to excellent appearance.

steveinaz

You may want to try OxyClean. Bev & I were at a wine festival in Elgin when she spilled a red wine on her (you guessed it) WHITE top. Oxyclean got it out completely, we've been sold on it ever since.

nadams

I use my carpet cleaner with the upholstery attachment.

One thing my dad did in our family fan when we bought it new, was bring home carpet remnants from work (he works at a carpet factory), take all the seats out of the car, and put down a layer of carpet on top of the factory carpet. Trim around all the holes for the seat mounts, and voila!

We pulled that carpet up before we traded the van in 10 years later, and the factory carpets were still like new. I know my dad spilled his "too big for the cup holder" coffee mug more than once up front, and there was nothing to show for it!

Knucklehead

Thanks for the suggestions guys....I was hoping to avoid taking it to a pro detailer as Im a cheapskate. I just know as soon as I spend $100 + on a detailer it will get screwed up again. I guess ill try some of the store bought suggestions first and go from there. Thanks, David

Huck344

Fireman32 wrote: »

The Bissell little green clean machine is great for cleaning the seats. You can get it for under 100 bucks at alot of places.

+1 The little green machine is awesome. Great for the car, or small areas on carpet. I think they sell them at Costco. If you have kids or pets, this thing is a must!

NJPOLKER

Knucklehead wrote: »

Thanks for the suggestions guys....I was hoping to avoid taking it to a pro detailer as Im a cheapskate. I just know as soon as I spend $100 + on a detailer it will get screwed up again. I guess ill try some of the store bought suggestions first and go from there. Thanks, David

Hey Dave,
Spend less time for one day listening to your system and get the elbow grease going

Knucklehead

NJPOLKER wrote: »

Hey Dave,
Spend less time for one day listening to your system and get the elbow grease going

LOL..I wish that was the case....trying to work some overtime and bad weather:o. excuses..excuses.

Danny Tse

Fireman32 wrote: »

The Bissell little green clean machine is great for cleaning the seats. You can get it for under 100 bucks at alot of places.

Agree. I have one of these Bissell machines and it is amazing how clean it can clean the car seats, carpeted floormats, and the actual carpeting of my Toyota Highlander. I have an Old English Sheepdog and he has already "marked" upon most of the Highlander's interior, but the Bissell has always been able to work its magic. You can pick one up at your local Target or Walmart.

concealer404 wrote: »

I actually use the blue scrub home carpet stuff (Blue Coral?). Now... i don't know what the quality or toughness of the material in your car is, because that scrubber is fairly harsh...

I used to use the Prestone branded car carpet/upholstery cleaner but since I can no longer find it, I've switched to Blue Coral branded version. I generally use this before breaking out the Bissell mentioned above. Works great for home carpeting as well.

BeRad

If you have a Ziebart near by, stop in and ask some questions regarding the cleaners they have. I'm pretty sure they exist in the USA as well.

When I used to work there we had specific cleaners for each type of stain. Foods, inks, paint, general mud and dirt, grease. etc. Maybe a place like that would sell you a small bit of the cleaner on the cheap.
That being said, we also used boiling hot water with a dual-vac extractor to get all of the cleaner out after the scrubbing was done. You don't want to leave any kind of detergent or soap to dry up in the fabric because it could harm it.

I'm sure that if you wanted, you could probably get a pro to just take care of the few problem areas really quickly (shouldn't be more than 10 minutes or so) for 25 bucks or so, and then finish the rest yourself.

Polkersince85

Just open all the doors and use a yard blower to hose the interior down. Won't be a speck of dust left. Then spot clean the stains.