Cleaning auto carpets ...

GON

GON

$100 Site Donor 2024
Joined
Nov 28, 2014
Messages
7,769
Location
Steilacoom, WA
... maybe a spray bottle of cleaner and water, brush, and super suck vacuum at car wash beats portable carpet cleaning machine?

I have about a half dozen car carpets I need to deeply clean. Earlier this morning I searched Amazon for different portable carpet cleaning machines, and looking at the reviews in depth, all had like complaints about the portable machines. Hose to short, suction not so good, suction head to large for automotive carpet cleaning, etc.

Came to think, why not just buy cleaner in bulk and put in a spray bottle, have distilled water in a spray bottle, various scrub brushes, and do the carpet cleaning at a car wash that offers free vacuum with wash purchase? Some of these places have monster suction vacuums, designed for auto carpet maneuvering. Might be able to remove dirty water better with the car wash vacuums than portable carpet cleaners?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Are those monster places wet vacs? It's going to cost you a small fortune in tokens to run that vac with all the stat stopping.
How convenient is it? - It's not.

I would just buy a Bissell Spot Clean pro for $150 and call it a day.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
Are those monster places wet vacs? It's going to cost you a small fortune in tokens to run that vac with all the stat stopping.
How convenient is it? - It's not.

I would just buy a Bissell Spot Clean pro for $150 and call it a day.
Click to expand...
X2 We have 3 of the Bissels and love them....between the pets, cars, boats and airplane they get a workout. As far as a lot of the online complaints and bad reviews, like many other tools; RTFM.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
Are those monster places wet vacs? It's going to cost you a small fortune in tokens to run that vac with all the stat stopping.
How convenient is it? - It's not.

I would just buy a Bissell Spot Clean pro for $150 and call it a day.
Click to expand...
I would avoid the car washes too. Just buy a good wet-dry shop vac. FWIW having one here in Florida is a necessity IMO. I have to clean out the drain lines from the AC system at least once per year or mildew will grow in it and plug it up and cause the condensation to leak inside of the main AC unit. I'm amazed at how many people don't understand that and every year I have to go over and clean the drain lines for many family and friends. My point is that a decent wet-dry vac is a good investment, for a lot of reasons, if you don't already have one.
 
Fla said:
I would avoid the car washes too. Just buy a good wet-dry shop vac. FWIW having one here in Florida is a necessity IMO. I have to clean out the drain lines from the AC system at least once per year or mildew will grow in it and plug it up and cause the condensation to leak inside of the main AC unit. I'm amazed at how many people don't understand that and every year I have to go over and clean the drain lines for many family and friends. My point is that a decent wet-dry vac is a good investment, for a lot of reasons, if you don't already have one.
Click to expand...
They do make a special chemical that you used to keep the mildew away. Check Supply House for best prices!
 
I use a small Bissell Spot Clean Pro model for auto upholstery, but it doesn't hold a candle to pre-treating highly stained carpets with Folex and scrubbing with Oxy-Clean dissolved in water. A high performance wet-dry vac will have significantly more suction than any portable extractor (including my Mytee commercial carpet extractor). I recommend any of the RIDGID 6.0 Peak HP models available at Home Depot:

1686669574123.png
 
Last edited:
M.A.D. Detailing on YouTube is my favorite out of Florida. He doesn't cut any corners. Make sure to put the periods in the channel name otherwise a similar detailer will appear.
 
  • Helpful
Reactions: GON
Nukeman7 said:
I use a small Bissell Spot Clean Pro model for auto upholstery, but it doesn't hold a candle to pre-treating highly stained carpets with Folex and scrubbing with Oxy-Clean dissolved in water. A high performance wet-dry vac will have significantly more suction than any portable extractor (including my Mytee commercial carpet extractor). I recommend any of the RIDGID 6.0 Peak HP models available at Home Depot:

View attachment 161022
Click to expand...
Agree on the Rigid series. I have one and it‘s phenomenal. What stain/soil you’re trying to get up will also determine what chemicals you use. For 95% of what I need to bring up, Tuff Stuff works for me. I’ll use Oxy-Clean as well (in addition) if it’s a more stubborn job.
 
LazyDog said:
They do make a special chemical that you used to keep the mildew away. Check Supply House for best prices!
Click to expand...
A lot of people just used diluted Clorox and that's what one of my ACs calls for. But other people have warned me that using any kind of chlorine product will attack aluminium so I don't use it. But I found that using a chemical still doesn't completely eliminate the clogging problem. Now I always keep a clean dry wet-vac onhand, that I use ONLY for cleaning AC systems, and I'm so used to fixing these now that I can clean a system in just a coupling of minutes so it's no longer any bother.
 
Fla said:
A lot of people just used diluted Clorox and that's what one of my ACs calls for. But other people have warned me that using any kind of chlorine product will attack aluminium so I don't use it. But I found that using a chemical still doesn't completely eliminate the clogging problem. Now I always keep a clean dry wet-vac onhand, that I use ONLY for cleaning AC systems, and I'm so used to fixing these now that I can clean a system in just a coupling of minutes so it's no longer any bother.
Click to expand...
The drain on my A/C unit is all PVC and has an access port in the air handler closet for pouring bleach down the drain. It never touches anything but PVC and the black poly pipe outside.
 
jhs914 said:
The drain on my A/C unit is all PVC and has an access port in the air handler closet for pouring bleach down the drain. It never touches anything but PVC and the black poly pipe outside.
Click to expand...
Mine has one too but the fill port is the highest point in the system and if the outside drain is plugged, or even just slow draining, then the cleaner will back up into the AC unit and leak out into it. IIRC the instructions say to dump in 1/2 gallon of half water and half Chlorox and that's more than enough to overflow the drain pipes. Killing the mildew isn't the same as getting it out of the system and I preferr to just suction it out once per year or when necessary.
 
Fla said:
Mine has one too but the fill port is the highest point in the system and if the outside drain is plugged, or even just slow draining, then the cleaner will back up into the AC unit and leak out into it. IIRC the instructions say to dump in 1/2 gallon of half water and half Chlorox and that's more than enough to overflow the drain pipes. Killing the mildew isn't the same as getting it out of the system and I preferr to just suction it out once per year or when necessary.
Click to expand...
If you have so much mildew that you have to suck it out you are not treating it with bleach proactively. Vacuuming it out doesn't kill the mildew, it leaves spores on the walls of the pipe. Bleach kills it. I run bleach through mine at the beginning of summer and again in September.

My unit has a safety switch that has a float which will block any overflow back into the unit and will shut it off when activated.
You can see the service cap for adding bleach above the safety switch.
AC drain.jpg
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
The Ultimate Car Cleaning Process?
Replies
10
Views
2K
bcossa2020
xgmad
Cleaned van carpets
Replies
13
Views
853
LostInTransit
xgmad
How to make carpet foam
Replies
4
Views
961
xgmad
C
Windshield Fluid That Doesn't Belong
Replies
7
Views
684
SHOZ
D
Painted Caliper Safe Cleaning Product ?
Replies
7
Views
2K
RamFan
Back
Top