The Best Ways to Deep Clean Your Car Floor Mats

Dirt, grease, oil, and every other unmentionable substance that gets stuck to the bottoms of your shoes will inevitably end up on your car’s floor mats. Over time carpeted mats will grow dirty, start to turn black, and lose their visual appeal. Making your floor mats look best is easy when you clean them regularly, as they won’t be as hard to clean.

How to Clean Your Car’s Floor Mats

Cleaning your car’s floor mats is best done in a series of steps. The goal is to not only get the mats and your carpets clean but to also make them easy to keep clean. Before you introduce soap and water, you want to make sure nothing else is standing in your way. Then you want to protect your clean mats from future filth. Follow these easy steps for the deepest clean.

1. Vacuum- Always start by vacuuming the carpet to remove crumbs, dirt, dog hair, and anything else that may be cluttering up the carpet. The more dirt you remove when you vacuum, the less dirt you have to try and remove with soap and water.
2. Wash- The next step is to wash the floor mats. You have your choice between scrubbing them with a soap and water solution, using a steam cleaner, or finding another washing method that you are comfortable with. Some may choose to use a high-pressure hose or similar method.
3. Dry- Let the floor mats dry completely before you put them back into the vehicle. Hang them up or lay them flat to dry in the sun. Dry them somewhere clean, so they do not pick up extra debris if they fall or touch the ground while wet. Wet floor mats will attract more dirt and grime, and in turn, will help to clean off the bottoms of your shoes. If you put your floor mats back in while wet, they will likely become soiled faster from your feet, and eventually be more soiled than when you started.   
4. Consider a guard- There are many types of fabric and carpet guard products on the market that are safe for your vehicle’s carpet and floor mats. You may want to consider applying a water and stain resistant guard to the floor mats to make them even easier to clean next time. Again, always check the products details and make sure it is safe for the material that makes up your floor mats.

Tips for Cleaning Your Car’s Floor Mats

Your floor mats can be tricky to clean because of the road grime that ends up getting smashed into the carpet. Grease and oil from cars is hard to clean off in the first place, and even harder to get out of carpet-like materials. You may want to find a product to clean your floor mats that works well as a degreaser. Always make sure to test the cleaner in an inconspicuous place, in case it has an unwanted effect on your interior’s color or texture. Laundry detergents and dish soaps are commonly used.

If this is your first time trying to clean your floor mats, or you are facing a particularly stubborn stain, you may want to try a variety of tools. Try several different types of brushes and sponges in order to draw out the stain or dirt. Be careful not to mix cleaning products unless you are completely sure that they are chemically compatible.

Stubborn stains may need to be treated overnight or for a few hours. Chances are some of the stains on your floor mats have been there for several months, and it will take more than a couple of minutes to dissolve the stain. Soak the entire floor mat in cold water to help break free and help dissolve some of the ground in dirt and grime.

You can always skip the entire process and choose to hire a professional mobile car cleaning service. Instead of doing the scrubbing yourself, let someone else fight your floor mat stains for you. Contact your local mobile car washing experts at Fresh Car Detailing to learn more about personalizable services and how to schedule. Fresh Car Detailing knows how to clean your car perfectly inside and out. Schedule an appointment while you are at work, school, home, or the gym, and save yourself time and stress.