How to Clean a Car Interior: Top Five Car Interior Cleaning Tips
When you drive your car frequently, it will inevitably accumulate dust, grime, mud, stains, food crumbs, pet hair, and other matters that can end up ruining the interior look and diminishing your driving pleasure. That is why it is necessary to buy the best cleaner for car interior and clean your car every few months. By cleaning your car interior at regular intervals, you can help it retain the new car look for many years, and that may prove financially beneficial if you decide to sell or trade-in the vehicle.
Cleaning materials and equipment
You can expedite the car-cleaning process by having these cleaning materials and equipment ready at hand:
Vacuum cleaner: A vacuum cleaner with hand-held attachments, an extension hose, and a steam-cleaning facility is ideal for cleaning car interiors.
Cleaning products: You can research online to find the best cleaner for car interior. It may be necessary to get different products for cleaning leather, vinyl, or cloth upholstery surfaces and carpets. Get products that are right for your vehicle, and it might be a good idea to do a spot check in inconspicuous areas to ensure that the products will not blemish or stain the car’s interior.
Brushes and sponges: It may be necessary to get soft-bristled and stiff-bristled brushes of different sizes to clean floor mats, air vents, and other car interior spaces. Such brushes can be particularly useful for cleaning hard-to-reach places. You may also need sponges to wipe and mop surfaces.
Wiping materials: Keep an assortment of rags, towels, and microfiber cloths at hand to clean and polish the car interior. Check that the cloths do not have residual chemicals and are soft enough to avoid scratching the car interior surfaces.
Top five tips for cleaning your car interior
The following five tips may help to keep your car interior clean:
1. Clear all items and trash from the car
The first step in cleaning a car interior is to check it thoroughly and remove all unwanted items and trash. Clear out food wrappers, plastic bags, bottles, tissues, coins, papers, toys, and so on. Make sure to look under the seats and move them about to check between seat crevices. Check on and in the dashboard and in cup holders and car door pockets.
2. Remove and clean the carpets and floor mats
After removing them, shake the dust and dirt out of the carpets and floor mats. You may also need to scrub them with a stiff-bristled brush and vacuum between the grooves. Wash them with an appropriate detergent or other cleaning product. If there are hard-to-remove spots and stains, you may need to use professional strength cleaners. Next, use an absorbent towel to mop excess moisture and leave the carpets and floor mats to air dry.
3. Vacuum and clean the car interior
You can get rid of a lot of surface dust and dirt by vacuuming the car floor, ceiling, sides, seats, and dashboard. Use cleaning products that are compatible with the type of interior surfaces you have. For instance, you may need different products to clean glass, plastic, leather, vinyl, and fabric surfaces. Be careful about using liquid cleaners for seats, as excessive use could dampen them, and if you cannot completely remove the moisture, you might have to deal with mold and musty smell issues.
4. Wipe the car interior
Once the cleaning process is complete, you can use rags, towels, and microfiber cloths to wipe all the surfaces. That may help to remove any remaining spots and excess moisture. It may be necessary to clean everything twice and use a new wiper each time. After all the interior surfaces are clean and dry, leave them to air dry further.
5. Use a freshener to remove odors
A thorough cleaning of your car interior can remove unpleasant odors, but you can also take additional steps to ensure your car is fresh-smelling. Sprinkle baking soda on the car floor and seats and leave it for a few hours to absorb any lingering odors. You can then vacuum it away. Additionally, you can hang a car deodorizer on the rearview mirror or place a charcoal container with air slots under the car seats.