Salt

[ShaneB]

So its that time of year for those of us in the northern states. Well, probably a few weeks in now. People want their interiors cleaned up after a long winter. What is there on the carpet and floor mats? SALT! Deeply embedded and hard to remove.

I typically go at the salt buildup with brushes, sometimes pretty aggressively. Add a little blue coral upholstery cleaner and it helps break it up. Still think there has to be an easier way to get this stuff out. I thought my shiny new steamer would help blast through it, but the heavy stuff just laughs at it.

Whats your process to remove heavy salt buildup? Any tips or suggestions for products? There has to be something out there made to break up the salt buildup.

[RDKC]

Havent tried it but it looks promising and its cheap.

This warm winter and large amounts of rain have made for a pretty salt free winter here... its been pretty nice.

[dcjredline]

I brush and scrub and brush and scrub and brush and brush and brush. Then scrape with a plastic scraper or the back of the brush and vacuum like a mad man while scrubbing/brushing to get the majority of it out DRY. Then I use 3D Orange 88 and that seems to break it up really well. Then I dry with either a WHITE terry towel or high GSM microfiber towel.

Ill have to try Larrys method. Im not keen on using vinegar cause it STINKS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD.

[RDKC]

I brush and scrub and brush and scrub and brush and brush and brush. Then scrape with a plastic scraper or the back of the brush and vacuum like a mad man while scrubbing/brushing to get the majority of it out DRY. Then I use 3D Orange 88 and that seems to break it up really well. Then I dry with either a WHITE terry towel or high GSM microfiber towel.

Ill have to try Larrys method. Im not keen on using vinegar cause it STINKS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD.

I use vinegar for a lot of things (mostly household stuff). Its cheap, kills almost as much as bleach, its safer (for you and most materials) than bleach, and has a very wide range of uses.

IME, as long as you dont overdue it, the smell dissipates quickly. Could also go over a second time with an APC to remove the vinegar odor maybe?

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[Accumulator]

I use vinegar ...

Yep, me too.

Combined with heat (e.g., the steamer or a hot-water extractor).

And use an extractor to truly suck that [stuff] out.

Still running the original dark blue carpeted floormats in my wifes A8. EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR since late 99 including every Ohio winter. Still OK other than where the edging is simply wearing out.

[parttimer]

Vinegar should dry odor free.

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[John U]

I soak the mats on the driveway, spray on "All Wheel & Tire" tire cleaner, scrub away and rinse until the soap is out.

[Accumulator]

Vinegar should dry odor free...

Operative word there is "should". Mine doesnt always so I rinse thoroughly.

[David Fermani]

Perfect use for a steamer. Salt breaks down with heat much easier than scrubbing it with a chemical not really designed to clean this types of soiling. Theres a product called Whips Road Salt Remover specifically designed for this: Whip`s Wax - Autoality Incorporated

[parttimer]

Ive tried whips several times, never does it for me. In fact I just did salt today, literally soaked it with whips, scrub and vac, carpet was still like cardboard. 50/50 vinegar and hot water, spray soak and vacuum. Gone.

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[ShaneB]

I think ill try the vinegar. Ill deal with the smell.

I typically dont have too much issue with some salt residue. Thats easy enough to clean. The problems I have are the areas of heavy buildup that is like trying to grind down rocks. Even my steamer doesnt touch it with a stiff nylon brush attachment.

Thanks!

[OpenRoad]

Excellent video, RDKC. Havent lived for a couple decades with road salt, thank Gawd. Some of this sounds like chemistry tme, but I dont have a degree in "Chem". My father did have a degree in chemistry (+ another degree). He thought I was a continual failure as a chemist. Me thinks him right?

"Ammo" might be a "basich-high-pH" product to neutralize the acidic qualities of the vinegar? A generous sprinkling of plain ol cheap baking soda might neutralize the vinegar? Think...MORE vacuuming afterwards, when the mats a fully dry (also difficult in cold/damp environs?).

Just a thought. Please run your own tests. Additionally, Sweet PDZ Stall Refresher might also help "desiccate & sop up moisture" from wet mats? Unfortunately, a lot MORE vacuuming involved to remove the "volcanic desiccant".

Please conduct your own tests on UNimportant floor mats. Do a trial, and I will not promise guarantees. Might NOT work. Just a thought.

[Lonnie]

I think ill try the vinegar. Ill deal with the smell.

I typically dont have too much issue with some salt residue. Thats easy enough to clean. The problems I have are the areas of heavy buildup that is like trying to grind down rocks. Even my steamer doesnt touch it with a stiff nylon brush attachment.

Thanks!

Those of us who live in the upper Midwest who deal with salted roads in the winter are well aware of all the problems associated with it on vehicles, both externally (rust and corrosion) and internally (Crusted fabric floor mats and carpets).
One solution to the fabric floor mat problem is to swap them out for vinyl floor mats. Sounds simple, even common sense, BUT I have not done this with my Subaru fabric mats for its 12 years of life in the shadows of the Frozen Tundra of Lambeau Field, and yes, they do get crusty. And yes they do look, well, worn! (Or as early 20th century satirist Will Rogers said, "I guess common sense isn`t so common!", which according to my wife, applies to me as well)

For those really rock-hard spots on friends and family vehicle winter-neglected carpets I have taken a flat-tipped screw driver and literally "chiseled" those areas trying not to break or go through the carpet backing. Some of you are wondering how this forms in the first place, but unless you`ve lived in a cold-weather area that used salt or calcium chloride to deice road and parking lots, you cannot imagine how much melted snow sticks to your shoes or boots and is brought into you vehicle when you get behind the wheel of your vehicle(yes, I religiously practice tapping my shoes together to loosen the sticky snow BEFORE swinging them into the car), especially when its super-cold and/or snowy for an extended period of winter weather. Add the ventilation system heater turned on HIGH for that same time, and leave it melt the dragged in snow (water evaporates) and dry the salt residue (gets baked repeatedly), and voila, you have the crusty mat and carpet. Here in Green Bay, WI, winter starts in late November and ends in early April (no wonder no professional football player in their right mind likes it here! It`s like a prison sentence in Siberia!) Most people living here do not get their interior cleaned (at ALL) during this time. Hence the crusty mats and carpets we see in mid-to-late April when the weather turns nice enough attack a winter-driven vehicle.
I also do use a vinegar-water mix that I heat to boiling in a quart Pyrex measuring cup in the microwave. Hot water and acetyl acid work wonders on salt and scrub with a bristle brush or old stiff bristle tooth bush. Just be careful not to scald yourself (I wear insulated rubber gloves). Rinse repeatedly with (lots) of water and blot/wipe dry with cotton towel or microfiber. Scottwax had the idea of pressure washing the REMOVED mats from the vehicle, but I do just spray them with the hose from the municipal water supply pressure. For carpets, since they cannot be removed (easily) from the vehicle, it will require a more judicious (AKA lighter) application hot water-vinegar and rinsing and a more vigorous brushing. To reduce the vinegar smell, I follow up with some Megs D101 All-Purpose Cleaner (4:1 dilution) (but the smell still lingers).

[richy]

I`m so glad that sh1t is done for another year! Bring on the challenges of Spring and Summer!!

[RaskyR1]

I`ve always just used steam, extraction, APC, and a carpet brush. Always open to trying better methods but so far this works for me, just takes a bit more time on these nasty jobs. This one actually had WeatherTech matts in it too!!!