When it comes to cleaning floor mats and carpets, it's not enough to presume it's a one-and-done deal with your vacuum cleaner. There's a lot of preparation involved when dealing with proper interior cleanup of your car floor.
For example, a responsible motorist will first remove objects such as junk food wrappers, papers, and coins that have accumulated from down below.
Afterwards, in order to properly clean the floor with no obstructions, you should slide your seats forward and backward. Even better, learn how to remove your seats altogether so you won't miss a thing when cleaning out all that dust and debris on your car floor.
Steps to Follow When Cleaning Your Vehicle's Floor
- Remove the Floor Mats: The floor mats should be the first ones to go when cleaning down below. Because they're always underfoot, most mats in cars receive the brunt of the abuse from the dirty soles of your shoes on a regular basis. They're as well-worn as your typical doormat, if not more so. Regardless, it's easiest to deal with them separately, hosing them down then drying them up or simply putting cleaner on them like KevianClean Interior Defense.
- More Reminders Regarding Mats and Covers: Lift the floor mats at the front and back seats of your vehicle then set them aside for cleaning. Double-check to see if you've worked the floor mats out of any eyelets, hooks, or snaps that might be securing them in place. Some floor mats are affixed unto the vehicle floor so that you won't accidentally displace them with your feet. Others are like regular house mats without any hooks on them. Don't forget to get other covers and mats, like removable trunk liners.
- Vacuuming Your Carpet 101: Most carpets are affixed unto your car, serving as cover for your bare metal floor. Therefore, you can go ahead and simply vacuum the carpet after vigorously agitating any caked dirt on it loose with a stiff brush. Many car vacuums come with various nozzles and brushes of different shapes and sizes to enable you to clean out all sorts of crevices. The brush attachment is basically the thing you need to loosen any contaminants that have bonded with your carpet and won't easily be removed by suction.
- Vacuum with the Right Vacuum Cleaner: You can either use a vacuum that hooks onto your cigarette lighter receptacle or get a regular vacuum that's hooked to an extension cord leading to your nearest socket. You can even opt to utilize a wet vacuum so that you can wash and dry out your carpet at the same time, but those are expensive. An external vacuum will keep you from having to use your car battery to power them, but a car vacuum that hooks into your car lighter socket allows you to vacuum your car on the go, even when away from home electrical outlets.