7 mistakes when washing a car interior

7 mistakes when washing a car interior

Image by Borko Manigoda from Pixabay

Being in a clean and tidy car interior is a pleasure. This helps to increase the level of concentration of the driver on the road, and driving brings only positive emotions. Stains and streaks on upholstery and seats, as well as a dirty windshield, usually cause irritation to drivers. To make driving enjoyable, the interior needs to be washed and cleaned regularly, and in this article, we will analyze how to do it correctly. However, if you have an old car for which you want to find a junkyard in Palm Bay or in another city, contact JunkCarsUs for help.

How not to harm the interior of the car when cleaning

While washing a car from the outside is not difficult, cleaning up the interior is a lot more troublesome. Many drivers wash the interior on their own without contacting service specialists, but they don’t always do it right. Mistakes can be costly for both the car and its owner. Let’s look at the most common wrong actions when cleaning the interior.

Wrong choice of chemical cleaners

A lot of special products are sold for cleaning upholstery, leather seats, plastic parts, windows, and screens on the dashboard of a car. Professionals use concentrated products that are diluted with water, and for ordinary car owners there are many ready-to-use sprays.

It should be understood that effective professional tools are not cheap, so some car owners prefer not to spend money on such purchases, but to use improvised means. Often they try to clean the interior with:

  • ordinary soap;
  • hair shampoo;
  • dishwashing detergent. 

And the stains are removed with: 

  • medical alcohol;
  • gasoline; 
  • acetone.

As a result, significant damage is caused to the car, since all these products are not designed to clean leather and plastic. The surface of the upholstery is destroyed, the plastic decomposes, and the stains only increase after such treatment. To wash the interior well, you need to use only special products, which are plentiful on the market, and the prices for some of them are very affordable.

Incorrect ceiling cleaning

The interior of the car is professionally cleaned in a certain sequence. First of all, the professionals wash the body of the car so that dust and dirt from it do not get inside the car. With the help of a vacuum cleaner, they remove all debris from the cabin and trunk.

Next, the ceiling is cleaned, then the driver and passenger seats, doors, and plastic on the control panel are cleaned. In the end, the floor of the car and the luggage compartment are cleaned. The cleaning of the interior is completed by professional drying with special equipment.

Drivers who choose to clean their own car interiors most often try to get the job done quickly, without spending a lot of effort picking up chemical cleaners and re-treating stains. Often they don’t even remember about the ceiling, but a lot of dust and dirt with microbes accumulate there. In addition, a high-powered washing vacuum cleaner should not be used to clean the ceiling, otherwise, sagging ceilings can be obtained.

Cleaning that makes stains even bigger

Almost all types of stains (food, coffee, juice, technical liquids) can be handled by professional cleaning products. However, sometimes it is necessary to treat the contaminated site several times. For this purpose, a cleaning foam is applied and left on the upholstery for 3-4 minutes, then wiped off with a microfiber cloth without using water.

However, many drivers choose a different path. They use hand tools. If the stains on the seat upholstery are old and deep, then such products will not cope. Moreover, after trying to remove the stain, it may turn out that it has become even larger.

Improper leather treatment

Leather upholstery requires special attention when washing the interior. On the one hand, the skin does not absorb dirt deeply, and it is not difficult to remove it from the surface. But, on the other hand, the skin needs special cleaning agents. Leather upholstery is not enough to clean, it must be maintained in good condition even after cleaning. Conditioners work for this, softening the skin, and making it smooth and durable.

The interior of the car does not dry out after washing

A very serious mistake of an inexperienced washer is to close the car after cleaning with water or steam and prevent the interior from drying out well. As a result, mold appears in the car under the rugs, condensation, as well as a musty smell that is difficult to exterminate.

Poor polishing of plastic parts

Often, car owners who independently wash the interior are limited to simply wiping the plastic from dust, sometimes with detergent. In this case, it is not possible to maintain the original luster of the plastic – dust particles settle on it, penetrating into the surface structure.

In another case, car owners can, on the contrary, carefully polish plastic parts. However, after such actions, the details fade over time, become dull and lose their gloss.

Cleaning of displays and screens is carried out aggressively

When washing the interior, you need to pay special attention to the screens on the dashboard. Even experts can make this mistake. If treatment is carried out with a tornador, then everything is cleaned with it, including the torpedo. Water under strong pressure will certainly penetrate under the plastic of the speedometer or tachometer, and flood the buttons and control sensors.

This will lead to a malfunction of the on-board computer, which the owner will discover during the further operation of the car. To avoid such problems, you need to ensure that water does not get on the electronics and dashboard.

Another mistake is to wipe the displays with paper towels, which have a rough texture. Active wiping with napkins leads to the destruction of the anti-reflective layer, and the appearance of scratches.

Wrapping up

Easy cleaning of the car interior is within the power of every car owner, you just need to use professional cleaning agents. However, if it is necessary to carry out a serious cleaning of the car interior using specialized equipment and chemicals, we recommend contacting specialists. If you have an old, neglected car that you want to get rid of and buy a new one, JunkCarsUS is one of the best companies in the US to do it. It buys old, non-running, and damaged cars at an attractive price.

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