DetailingWiki Newsletter
    Get free and automatic updates on new articles
    We respect your privacy. No data is used for anything other than sending the newsletter!

    Advertisement

Deep cleaning fabric

Written by:

There are 2 general ways for deep cleaning fabric. Using a damp cloth or vacuum cleaner (just removing surface dirt), or using a steam cleaner or wet/dry vacuum cleaner (deep clean the fabric). When you deep clean fabric, you need to take into account that you will spent a lot more time on it.

Contents

Why deep clean fabric

When a fabric becomes dirty, the dirt can sink into the fabric. When you vacuum the interior, you only remove loose surface dirt. To remove the dirt that has sunk more deeply into the fabric, you need something more then just a vacuum cleaner.

An introduction into deep cleaning fabric

A simple thing to keep in mind when cleaning fabric is to understand how cleaning liquids work. A cleaning liquid mixes with water, lowers its surface tension (surfactants) and adds certain ingredients that help to loosen up dirt like sand and dust, but also to weaken the bonds of oily contaminants. The result of this is that it becomes very easy to mix the water with the dirt you want to remove. If the water and the dirt have mixed, you just need to remove the water/soap/dirt mixture. Which is actually easier then just trying to remove the dirt alone.

The steps

The steps below are just a guide, you might need to adjust your approach depending on the cleaning product you use, your tools and even the surface you are working on. But this general guide will give you a good direction to start with. It is not made to be the “one and only” technique, but to help you on your way and possibly to evaluate your current steps.

  1. Spray some water on the surface you are going to clean, don’t get it soaked, but allow it to get wet
  2. Spray your cleaning product (very likely to be a (low foaming) APC) on the wet surface and leave it to soak for a few minutes
  3. Use a soft haired brush to agitate the cleaning product
  4. Spray the surface again with water
  5. Use your wet vac (preferably with the carpet-cleaning attachment) to suck up the moisture
  6. If your wet vac also has a waterpump, you can use the spray to wet the surface while moving the wet vac attachment over the surface
  7. You might need to spray more water over the surface, and suck it up, before the water looks less soapy
  8. Stop spraying water on the surface and slowly go over the surface with the wet vac until it doesn’t seem to suck up any water anymore
  9. You might need to repeat steps 1 to 8 until the water is clear and the stains are gone
  10. Leave the product to dry, although it might feel reasonably dry to the touch, it will take hours for the inside of the fabric to fully dry
  11. If you are in a hurry, you can use a hair-dryer or a pet-dryer with heated-air to speed up the drying
  12. For very stubborn stains, you can use an engine bay cleaner, however you should try it out on a small patch first to see if it doesn’t stain or bleach the fabric!
  13. To speed up the cleaning, you can use a brush mounted on a backing plate to use with a Dual Action

Tools and products to use

There are a few products and tools that might help to get the best results

Tools

  • Wet and dry vacuum cleaner (preferably one that is designed to be used as a carpet cleaner)
  • Steam cleaner
  • Attachment for carpet cleaning
  • Soft hair brush
  • A few spray bottles
  • Microfiber (drying) towels
  • Hair dryer or pet dryer with heated air
  • A Dual Action polisher with a brush mounted on the backing plate
  • A tornador can help you dry and remove the surface dirt

Products

  • Low foaming APC (you don’t want to much foam, or the wet vac will get clogged or starts to drip)
  • Water
  • Engine bay cleaner

Things to keep in mind

  • Don’t work in direct hot sunlight, the product might dry to quick and leave stains
  • It is not recommended to leave fabric out in the hot sunlight to dry, it might cause the water to evaporate to quickly, which might results in patches and mineral desposits that make the fabric harder then it should be
  • As long as the water is dirty, the fabric isn’t clean. Check the color of the water you are sucking up often to get a good indication

Work without any tools

Although tools are not mandatory to do this task, it will make your job a lot easier and will help you to get a much better result much easier. Working without tools will also mean that it is very difficult to get deep into the fabric.

Different related articles

  • IGL Coatings
    Manufacturers
    IGL Coatings was founded in 2014 in Malaysia, and offers coatings with the aim of combining eco-friendly properties with high-perfomance properties. The brand is available in many countries worldwide via a network of distributors....
  • Kamikaze
    Manufacturers
    Kamikaze is a Japanese manufacturer of high-end coatings that offer outstanding protection for paintwork, glass, trims, wheels and other surfaces. The brand offers a small range of premium-quality products....
  • A guide in detailing Steps
    Guides
    There are many different steps you can take while detailing. A maintenance wash has different steps than a deep-clean wash or a 3 stage polish. In this guide I will give a very general idea on the order of those steps. More in-depth articles regarding every step will follow. This articles serves to give people a quick overview....
  • What is metal polish
    Correction
    There are several different types of metal polish in the huge world of automotive detailing. Apart from the polish for paintwork there is also polish specifically for metal. These are mostly used for chrome bumpers, chrome trims, metal hubcaps, untreated metal wheels, exhausts and even engine parts....
  • How to remove dried up polish
    Washing
    Dried up polish can be very unattractive. It is also a hardened substance that can cause surface damage when rubbed over the paintwork. Although the detailer should have removed this, it can be encountered on some jobs. Dried up wax residue can generally be approached in the same way....
  • How to protect leather
    Detailing Miscellaneous
    When leather is new, damaged, re-painted or cleaned thoroughly, it might be necessary to add a new layer of protection. This protection prevents the leather from drying out, cracking, fading or suffering to much from general wear and tear....

Links to this article

There are no external links to this article. Yet.
Sidebar



Stay up to date with our free newsletter
Always be the first to know about new updates, articles and other informative content.
Don't miss out, opt in!
We respect your privacy. No data is used for anything other than sending the newsletter!