hey i was wondering what i should use to clean my interior carpet. my dog took a ____ on my mats and barfed on the carpet after i took the mats out -_- i need to clean my seats too. what should i use to make it look new again?

 

You live in Ca. so hopefully it is pretty sunny. Warm weather is better to do this. What I do is first take out the seats and then spray them with that foaming carpet cleaner stuff. I let it sit awhile then I take a soft nylon brush, you can get one at Home Depot, with a bucket of water. Dip the brush in a bucket and shake it out. Scrub the foam stuff into the seats. Then scrub again with just water to keep getting the foam out. Ideally it will dry in the sun, sometimes I take paper towels to speed up the process. They will draw the water out. Obviously don't go crazy with the water (like using a hose). Damp, not wet.
The carpets, the same way. After you are done, they make doggie odor remover that you can spray on, they have it at big pet store chains.
Your car may smell different for a while after you are done. Leave the windows open for a while to air out. Good luck.

 

Go rent a machine called "the rug doctor" from your grocery store. I bought one 3 years ago because I am a freak about cleaning my carpet in my house, AND car interiors. They cost about $550 to buy new. You should also buy "RESOLVE" carpet cleaner for the machine (about $10 for a small bottle, enough to do your interior about 14 times or so).

The machine should come with a hand attachment (it sprays the formula, scrubs with the hard brushes, then sucks it back up).

What you want to do is add HOT WATER to the machine for the solution, and mix in like 2 cups (dont do too much!) of cleaner solution.

Hook the wand up (hand attachment) and spray enough to get your seats/carpet DAMP. (Not soaked). Let it sit for 5 mins. This stuff will also put a scotch guard coating on your seats and carpet, so stains cant get in and stain as easy.

Now, go back and re-do everything you dampened with the brush/wand attachment. Its just like a vacuum but with water.


I GUARANTEE the when you dump the water out of the machine, it will be brown like mud. Your interior will smell fresh again and look BRAND NEW.

As a side note, since you rented it for the day, you may want to clean your carpets on anything else you own - it also does chairs and couches. You may be the cleanest person in the world, but I guarantee when you steam clean your stuff it will amaze you how dirty it was.


Last tip - keep your windows cracked overnight to remove any condensation. Air dry your car properly - park your car in the sun if you can, to assist in drying. You dont want to steam clean your interior, then keep the last bit of water remaining in the car - it could mold up.

If there are any questions on how to do this, go to youtube and type in rug doctor.

 

Here - this is exactly what I am talking about.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpYIW4QsX5k

 

LMFAO! I sure hope you were on your way to the Vet office.

If you dont wish to rent a cleaner. Go buy some carpet stuff at the auto parts store, i have had success with that and a medium bristle scrub brush.
Maybe some near boiling hot water would help too.. Then top it off with Febreeze.

 

I've done it the same way Torque has described.....brand new!

 

I also agree with torqueTc.

A rug doctor machine is the way to go. If you are going to spend the time cleaning your vehicle's upholstery....do it the right way the first time.

 

wow talk about some bad luck lol

 

Im sure rug doctor can do a decent job but the only reason that water is so dark is because of the material he was cleaning. Suede tends to peel and shade. Either way, I would use the rug doctor on the rug, not seats. Modified mag talked about a steam machine. I forgot what the machine is called but they used it and it yield great results.

 

the reason the water is DARK is because of dirt, SWEAT, dead skin cells, pollen and other forms of dirt. Go view any number of rug doc vid's on youtube and look for the end, the water is always NASTY.

Use the rug doctor on the whole interior. UNLESS you have first hand knowledge, I would not tell members to do something your NOT familiar with. I have done over 30 car interiors with my Rug Doc, and SEVERAL different carpets (Homes).

I use my rug doctor on my couch and loveseat - Which is a premium microfiber material and ALL my carpeting in my house. I would heavily encourage anyone to try and find something that works better, cheaper, and faster. You do realize that you need pro-grade chemicals right? Your not just using soap and hot water. The chemicals penetrate and break down the soiled areas and TREAT the surface to repel stains, and make the next cleaning that much easier. Get the stuff at lowes or home depot, or the place renting the machine has the chem's.

That being said, because its a chemical, I would do a test area first if you are unsure. The main thing is to not go overboard with more chem solution. (More chem doesnt make something more clean!) Use 2 cups per fill of the rug doc, thats IT. NO MORE NO LESS. You cant mess this up.


For those saying just get carpet cleaner and brush it in.. man, thats nasty, your just pushing the dog poop stain further in your interior. The rug doctor soaks the material your cleaning, and chemically breaks it down, then sucks it back out. I have even cleaned my neighbors car after she spilled a whole coffee in her subaru. It came out 95% of the way on her tan interior, to the point that if you didnt LOOK for it, you wouldnt see it. And thats freaking black coffee.

 

Steam is definately the way to go....easy to clean with and SANITIZES!!!! Seriously try it.

 

ima go rent one next week torque! :D