Cleaning Car Floor Mats the Easy Way

Most people are very busy and taking time to clean stubborn stains from soiled floor mats may not be a pleasant way to spend your day. But making the job as easy and as pleasant as possible is worth the effort. If you’re like most people, you spend a considerable amount of your day in your car and having a clean interior makes that time more bearable.

Getting your car or truck’s mats clean is fairly simple. These guidelines will certainly help get them clean without damaging them if you’re careful and use a little common sense. and will get you on your way to keeping your mats fresh and clean.

Please understand that these directions are meant for nylon or Berber automotive floor mats. Rubber floor mats should simply be rinsed or soaked in clean water and dried.

After removing your nylon carpeted or Berber floor mats from your car or truck. Place them in a large container, a large CLEAN garbage can or even a bathtub. After filling your container with water, add one cup of a liquid non-chlorine detergent. (Laundry detergent is fine) Mix the detergent and water thoroughly prior to soaking the mats.

Place the mats in the container making sure to completely submerge ALL your car’s floor mats. You should never use a washing machine to clean your floor mats. Immerse your floor mats completely in the soapy water for and let them soak for around 12 hours.

If you find that your mats are seriously stained, you should remove the mats after 12 hours of soaking and CAREFULLY scrub the stained portions of the mats while still wet and soapy. You can use a stiff (non-metallic) brush but be careful not to stretch or snag any of the carpet’s threaded loops. The brush can damage your floor mat’s fabric. Mat fibers can catch in the bristles of a metal brush, so it’s best NOT to use a metal brush. It is better to use a nylon or other soft bristle bush. Carefully scrub the stains and when finished place them back in the soapy water for further soaking (12 more hours.)

Once you are satisfied that the mats or sufficiently cleaned, remove them and rinse with clean water. A garden hose works well. Continue rinsing until ALL the soap is rinsed from the mats.

You now need to air dry the mats. Do not use the electric dryer. That’s for laundry – not floor mats. If you allow the mats to dry outside, ensure that there will not be blowing dust or other contaminant in the air. A car or two driving down a dusty road can really muck up a pair of drip-drying mats.

Hanging mats in direct sunlight is preferable as long as you don’t forget about them. Floor mats can fade if left in direct sunlight for too long.

You can also hang the mats inside but it may take a little longer to dry. Also be aware wet floor mats will probably drip quite a bit, so hang them above a tub or sink to avoid puddles in the house.

After your floor mats are dry, they are ready to put back in your car. You should vacuum your car’s interior carpet area before the mats are repositioned in the car.

Return the newly cleaned and dried mats to your car and you’re done. You can now enjoy fresh, clean floor mats. Now if you could just remove that dirt ring you left around the bathtub.