We have all experienced the horror of that friend who has the “smelly car”. No amount of persuasion can keep him from driving, and for some indiscernible reason his car is simply too smelly to stand. However, what is even worse than having the friend with the smelly car is realizing that you yourself are in possession of such a vehicle. While this is not the only solution, many smell problems in vehicles come down to mold or mildew growth somewhere within the car. The growing of these fungi can really stink up a car, and do it fairly fast as well. Thankfully, there are ways to get the mold and mildew out of the car, and all it takes is a trip to the auto parts store and an hour or so of time.
Remember that mold or mildew can even be a health hazard, or at least has the potential to make your allergies act up, so it’s important to get it out of the car as quick as possible.
The first thing that has to be done is simply locating the mold. This may seem like a stupid step, but often mold can hide under seats, behind cloth fabric, or in any given number of places. If you are simply suffering from mold on the carpets on your floor, than this should be an easy problem to fix. If the area is in a harder to reach spot, you may have to do some creative thinking as to how to reach the afflicted areas.
The next step involves finding the proper cleaning agents. Any type of carpet soap should work. Also, a mixture of water and vinegar is a great “preliminary” cleaning agent, which will kill the mold before you attempt to scrub it out. Also, many auto parts stores have cleaning agents specifically formulated to get mold out of cloth surfaces. Just pick your favorite product (or combination depending on how bad the condition is) and start cleaning. Do not apply the cleaner too liberally, simply spray a little and scrub. Remember, as when working with all cleaning products, stay in a well ventilated area and keep your car doors open. Ideally, this project should be done on a nice sunny day, but we’ll get to why that’s important later. After frequent application and scrubbing, remember to start drying the cleaning solution. If you let the seats become wet, your just going to have the same problem all over again. Preferably, after you get all of the mold out, obtain a wet-vac or something similar and dry off all of the excess water or solution left.
Remember to double-check your vehicle for any additional locations where the mold may have taken root. Also, if you have floor mats of other such car accessories, which have become moldy, do not attempt to clean them, simply get some new ones. After the cleaning is complete, park your car in a place where you can have the windows open, and open up everything you can, sunroof, doors, trunk (if mold was present in the trunk), and let the car sit of a little bit to make sure that everything dries off and that the mold is gone forever.
If you follow these few simple steps, you should be able to get the mold and mildew out of your vehicle in no time at all. Just remember not to rush it, to use a well ventilated area, and be careful about getting up all of the excess moisture you leave behind while cleaning. Celebrate your accomplishment with a new air filter, and congratulations, you have successfully de-molded your car!
