I thought the PNW would be the best area of all to ask this question. I don't think pine needles are an issue at all anywhere else or at least not as much as a problem.

How on God's green earth do I get the pine needles out of the carpet in our Scions? They don't stick to the stupid floor mat, just the actual car carpeting (as though I need to explain that to you all, right?). Maybe some of you don't have as big of a problem with it as I do, surrounded by trees and all. I've probably got 14 billion of them on the driver's side alone.

And "you got to get down there and pick at it" is not an acceptable answer, lol. Surely there is a magic trick... right?

 

Picture this..

Todd and tweezers, pulling each one of the stupid little things out one at at time.

I've tried the super suck shop vac--- no good
I tried breaking them and then vacuuming---- no good
I beat the mats across a support poll, then tried to vacuum them--- no good


tweezers... it was the only remedy I could come up with.

 

that is about the only way and you are right, Tweezers are about the only way I have found as well unless you want to really do it the old school way and that is with a very stiff wisk Broom and sweep the heck out of it and then groom the carpets when you are done, used to be what my Dad did.


But heck with that it is to much work

 

just dont drive the car with pine needles on the ground!

 

Bah, pick at it with tweezers? Well, I guess that is better than unsuccessfully using my fingers!

I can't even sweep my driveway as it's gravel. I can blow it off in a few months or so, I guess.

If my butt is out there tweezing out pine needles, my butt will also be covering that area with plastic wrap or something, lol. I'll put that on my list of mods in my profile.

 

Ya, I've got two huge firs directly around my house also and a gravel driveway.. Pine needles all year.. Pollen here in the next month or so that should turn everything yellow and then sap all summer long. And I don't care how far ya park away from the tree's.. the wind will get the sap on your car some how.

I think the worst part for me is the needles under the screens by the wipers... That drives me absolutely crazy.

 

Yeah, having to go pick them out of the wipers ticks me off too.

Having them in the house doesn't bother me anymore. We don't even wear shoes in the house! I can't sit there and vacuum the place 4xs a day... so we just live with it. I can't put a stupid door mat at our back door either as it swings out and the deck is built so high that the door hardly clears it.

We don't have a sap problem though... odd. Pollen, yes.

 

I feel for ya..

I've gotten pretty proficent at reaching out the window and grabbing the wiper blade to dislodge a pine needle that's stuck under the wiper blade, at 60 mph.

 

thats true skill.

 

That is skillful, lol. I will have to try that (at a slower speed) and see if my short girl arms can reach.

 

Jenna, this is just a random thought, since i don't have pine needles that bad... would one of those shirt rollers work? The ones with the sticky paper things? I have one at home that seems to almost pull the shirt right off! Just a thought.... good luck though. I sure as heck wouldn't wanna pick those buggers out with tweezers. I bought some plastic floormats off ebay.... just take 'em out and windex it and i'm good to go

 

Nah, the rollers or any tape wouldn't work. They're embedded into the carpet too well. And the floor mats are fine... it's just the blasted xB carpeting. I feel like a jerk for shooting down your ideas, lol. I do appreciate them though!

I like your new screen name! Is His xB ever going to post?

 

I'm afraid there is nothing other than tweezers that works on the xB OEM carpeting. (Same for xAs.)

I suspect that aftermarket fitted carpet would cost a whole bunch, if it were even available.

I live amidst a bunch of pine, fir, etc. and there is just no avoiding those needles. They weave themselves right into the loops in the carpet. Be nice if the carpet was a bit different texture that didn't absolutely lock the needles in.

Oh, well.

Tom

 

some tall **** carpet would hide those needles..lol...


you could work this a different route... Next time your kids get in trouble, the punishment could be.."Get the tweezers and pull every single pine needle out of the cars' carpet!!!"..

Or, you could pay them like 2 bucks per footwell..

 

The only suggestion I have is to use a dull (restate: DULL) razor blade. It works better if it's in one of those blade holder things. Anyway, you have to hold it very firmly and scrape along the carpet. Make sure the blade is perpendicular to the carpet. Keep scraping and it will loosen the needles to where you can probably pull or vacuum them out.

There is no easy way to remove them. No matter what you do, you'll be down there pulling away. But this will at least help loosen them to make it a little easier.

Don't forget. DULL!

Oh. There are a few things that you can do to help reduce the amount of needles that you get in y our car. You can always get the all weather mats. You don't have to keep them in the car all the time, just when it's "pine needles everywhere" season. Or, when you get in the car...before you put your feet in, kind of tap them together to get as much off the bottom of your shoes as possible. The same way you would when you have mud or snow on your shoes.

Anyway, I hope the (DULL!!!!!) razor blade thing helps a little.

 

Dull... gotcha! Kids doing it for me... gotcha!

Two both GREAT ideas! I razor blade (dull or not, someone will come out cut up) and then find something naughty my children are doing and punish them with needle picking. Yes!

BCS... all weather mats? Do they cover further around than the regular floor mat does and where my problem is?

 

They are the kind that aren't carpet. They are usually made of a vinyl or something. Then you just take them out and shake them off unde rthe same tree that gave them to you.

Let me see if I can find a picture or something...


Here...something like this...

http://www.autoanything.com/floor-mats/64A1463A0A0.aspx

Or better yet, this:

http://www.autoanything.com/floor-mats/64A1456A0A0.aspx

 

BCS, I think I know what you mean. I don't that is my problem too much though as my floor mats are okay and vacuum up well and never embed a pine needle, it's just everywhere else that collects them.

I wondered if maybe they originally land on the mat and then gradually migrate off to the side. Is that what you're thinking too?

Ack, maybe there are nicer ones than the ones I've seen?

 

Yeah, the floor mats don't really have a big knap...so the needles will basically just slide right off. That's why I said the second link is even better. It has edges around it to keep them from even getting to the carpet. I mean...it won't completely eliminate them. Bt maybe this way you'll only have 1.7 million of them.

 

I know this might sound odd...but sometimes I've taken a hairbrush (with the plasticy nylon bristles) and just brushed the carpet...then vacuum...then repeat as neccessary.

It doesn't do any real harm to the loops (please brush soft) but it loosens them enough to get them out of the piling most of the time.

Then, alas...tweezers for the difficult ones!