Car Seat Stain Remover

By Matt Oden | Comments | Furniture and Upholstery Stains → Car Seat

Even the best car seat stain remover products on the market can pose a risk to the upholstered or leather seats in your car. Removing these stains can help to restore your car to showroom readiness and just make you appreciate your car a lot more.

The type of car seat stain remover method that you use will greatly depend on the type of car seats that you have and on the type of stain that you are removing. Something important to keep in mind is that the sooner you treat a stain, the better odds you will have of completely removing it from your seats.

Car Seat Stain Remover Steps For Cloth

What You Will Need Before You Start

White vinegar
Baking soda
Corn starch
Clean absorbent towels
Stiff bristled brush
Handheld vacuum with attachments
Upholstery cleaner wet vac

The steps that you take to remove stains from your cloth car seats will be specific to the types of stains that you are working with. Some stains need to be blotted, some stains need to be scrubbed, and some stains need to just be attacked with an upholstery cleaning machine.

If you have spilled grease or oil onto your car seat, here are car seat stain remover tips to help you.

Sprinkle corn starch into the stain as soon as you can; speediness is key to lifting these types of stains.
Allow the corn starch to absorb all of the grease and oil.
Allow the corn starch to dry and vacuum up with your handheld vacuum.

If the stain still remains, then you should consider a solution of white vinegar in your upholstery cleaner to further work on the stain.

If you are working with bodily fluids, like urine or blood, then your best options will be to use your clean absorbent towels to soak up as much of the stain as possible.

Make a baking soda paste using one part baking soda and three parts water.
Using your soft bristled brush, work the baking soda paste into the stain.
Allow the paste to dry and vacuum up.

If the stain persists then you should consider repeating the process. A cleaning solution of white vinegar in your upholstery cleaner can also help to remove any linger odors. Just be sure not to mix white vinegar and baking soda as the combination can be quite volatile.

Car Seat Stain Remover Steps For Leather

What You Will Need Before You Start

Corn starch
Microfiber cloth
Handheld vacuum
Rubbing alcohol
Clean sponge

Leather car seats are typically a lot more resilient than cloth car seats but they can still be susceptible to certain types of stains, like grease and oil stains from the burrito or burger you had for lunch last week. Keep in mind that the sooner you work on cleaning the stains, the better your odds of completely removing the stain from your car seats.

Sprinkle enough corn starch on the grease stain to completely cover it. If you do not have corn starch on hand then talcum powder will do in a pinch.
Allow the corn starch to absorb the grease, for up to thirty minutes.
Vacuum up the corn starch.
Wipe the seats clean with a slightly dampened microfiber cloth.

Stains like mildew, rust, or even marker pens can be easily removed by dabbing a bit of rubbing alcohol onto a clean sponge and dabbing onto the stain directly.

Be sure that you condition your car’s leather seats with a good quality leather conditioner product. This will help to repel other stains and also help to keep the leather in good shape while preventing cracking in the leather.

Car Seat Stain Remover Tips For Kid’s Car Seats

What You Will Need Before You Start

Baking soda
White vinegar
Clean absorbent clothes
Soft bristled brush
Handheld vacuum

Children have a reputation for making all sorts of messes, wherever they go. Their spot in the car is one of the most likely places to be filled with an assortment of crumbs, toys, and stains. Keep their car seats, and your car, fresh and clean with a few car seat stain remover steps that can make light work of even the toughest kid stains.

Milk and juice stains should be mopped up as soon as you are able to, otherwise they could turn into sticky and smelly problems that even cracking a window won’t help you to get rid of.

Place the absorbent cloth on the wet stain to soak up excess liquid, for up to fifteen minutes.
Apply a solution of one part baking soda to three parts water to the stain and work into the fabric using the soft-bristled brush.
Allow the cleaning paste to dry thoroughly and then vacuum up.
If there is a lingering smell, you can use white vinegar to help lift up the smell. You can either apply the vinegar to the area with a spray bottle, or use it in a handheld upholstery cleaning machine.

Stains like urine, vomit, and other unspeakable things that children can leave behind in their car seats may require completely removing the seat from the car and hosing it down in your driveway. Remember that baking soda and vinegar are powerful deodorizers, stain removers, and disinfectants. Although, using them together as a part of your car seat stain remover process could result in a foamy mess.

Keeping your car spotless will not only make you feel a lot more confident about being a part of the carpool but will also help to maintain your car’s value when you get ready to trade it in. There are many car seat stain remover products on the market, but you can accomplish the same results using products you already have in your home’s pantry; for a fraction of the price.