Cleaning Your Cloth Car Seats Like A Pro
Cleaning Your Car Seats
We spend a lot of time in our cars, so it’s no surprise that the car interior can get pretty dirty. We eat and drink in our cars, we track in dirt, and if you have kids, the chances of the car getting messy are high. This is especially so for the car seats as well. If you have cloth car seats, then messes might be something that you are concerned about as you would not want to end up with there being permanent stains being seen in your car. However, there is nothing to worry about, all these can easily be cleaned up! With these cleaning tips, you’ll have the car not only looking spotless but smelling fresh and clean as well. Consider getting customised car mats for your car for better protection against dirt.
Frequency Of Maintenance
Before we begin, we should understand a little more about cloth car seats. Cloth car seats should be vacuumed at least once a week to prevent dust and dirt from collecting. If there are any fresh stains, immediately clean them up to prevent a permanent stain. For a more thorough clean, this does not need to be done so frequently but it also is dependent on how often your car is being used.
Materials You’ll Need
When it comes to cleaning a cloth car seat, here are the things you will need:
A spray bottle
Vacuum with a hose
Microfiber cloths
Sponge
Bucket
Stiff bristled scrub brush
Water
Fabric protector
Oxygen-based bleach
Commercial carpet cleaner
Steps For Cleaning Your Cloth Car Seats
First things first would be to give your car seats a good vacuum. This helps to get rid of all the tiny dirt and dust particles that have collected in your car seat over time. In doing so, it will also prevent you from pushing the dirt further into the seat as you begin wiping the seats down. For the space between the back and the seat, get yourself a crevice tool to help you reach those areas. With an upholstery brush, lift the fibres of fabric out.
Then start pre-treating your stains. Doing so will help you receive better results at the end of the cleaning process. For food, drink, grease and mud stain, use the upholstery cleaner on these stains and use a scrub brush to work it in. do so for fifteen minutes before you start the actual cleaning. For dye-based stains, dampen the area lightly then add a mixture of dry oxygen-based bleach with a few drops of water over the stain surface area. This should be left for at least one hour. After which, use a vacuum to vacuum away all the powder residue.
When it comes to your upholstery cleaner solution, it is good to look at the instructions to see how much water should be used in the mixture. To have the best control over how much cleaner is applied to your car, it would be best to use a spray bottle as it makes it much easier to control. Beginning at the top of the seat, start to spray the entire surface area of the car seat. Once that is done, get yourself a scrub brush and begin working on the cleaning solution. Do make sure that you have covered and scrubbed every area of the car. A tip would be to start from the top so that the dirt would drip downwards, thus saving you the trouble of having to go over again. Also, remember to rinse your brush regularly as it will get stained as it cleans the car seat.
Once you are done scrubbing the car seat, get a microfiber cloth that is good at absorbing liquid to help remove any excess water. At the same time, it will also help to remove any matted fibres. After this is done, you may still see some stains here and there. If so, just repeat the process again till it is all cleaned up.
Do remember to give your car seats time to dry before using them again. This process of drying tends to take up to three hours. In the event that you would need to use the car urgently before it has dried out, you can use a fan to try and quicken the drying process. If your seats still feel a little wet, you can place a drying agent into the car to help trap the excess moisture.
To help ensure that dirt and stain will not settle into the fabric, we do recommend adding a protective coat over the car seats. Doing this will also help reduce the number of times you would have to vacuum your car because of dirt and dust. It will also make the cleaning process much easier in the future.
Tips For Keeping Your Cloth Car Seats Clean
Now that you know how to clean your car seat, here are some ways to ensure that your car seat can stay clean longer.
Place a towel under your seat whenever you choose to eat in your car. This is to ensure that if any food or sauce drops, it will be easily caught on the towel, reducing the chances of there being stains and dirt that you would have to clean up after.
Seal your cups of beverages when in the car to prevent any chance of spillage.
Remember to detail your car regularly. This is based on how often or dirty your car is every year. In doing so, the cleaner and upholstery will stay on longer.
Conclusion
In conclusion, whilst the act of cleaning your own car seats may seem troublesome and time-consuming, it actually is not that difficult. In fact, it can help you to save a lot of money by doing it by yourself. Additionally, there are many tips to ensure that your car remains clean by adding a protective coat to the car seats or having a towel placed under the seat whenever you choose to eat in your car. Another way to keep your car clean while also helping to save you time from having to clean so often would be to have an add on seat cover that can easily be hand washed or done in the washing machine.
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Published: 28-Mar-2022
Author: Jake Hughes
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