Is your car making you sick??

[rzatch]

Does your car or the car you just scheduled to detail have the potential to make you sick? This is a question I imagine not many have you have ever thought of and to be honest in my 30 years of detailing I never did either. We put more thought into making paint shiny or getting that stain out of the seat or carpet than we do protecting our self from getting sick in the process.

It didn’t take much surfing to find out that the inside of your car or the car your about to detail is a breeding ground for germs and in a lot of cases more germs infested than a public toilet seat. And then one of the detailers from the Face Book group I belong to Detailer Buddies got sick this summer from a dirty interior he detailed and spend several days in the hospital and the question was answered. Yes its needed.

So all gloved up and armed with your favorite APC and micro fiber towel you jump in and start on your transformation to turn the interior to a like new condition but what you may not think about is who was in the car before you: Were they clean? Were they sick? And could that make you sick?

One of the reports I read was by Jeff Rosen of Today News. In his report they tested six rental vehicles and in some of them they found visible filth, including mystery stains as well as a hairball.

They hired scientists from a certified laboratory. Armed with gloves and goggles, they swabbed every car from top to bottom: the steering wheels, gearshifts, door handles, even the GPS units. One of the minivans they tested showed dangerous bacteria, including something called human bacteroides all over the steering wheel. Translation: Human fecal matter.

A rental car seat they tested tested positive for sewage contamination. While this report is about rental cars the car your detailing is essentially that, your rental car for the day that you’re going to clean and potentially be exposed to all these same germs.

Another report was by Health 24 website in their report they state the average vehicle has approximately 283 different types of bacteria in every square centimetre, according to a study from the Aston University. The gear stick was said to be home to approximately 356 different germs, while your trunk, where you normally place all your groceries, contains about 850 bacteria.

And another study, found that married people have more bacteria in their cars than single people. The same study found that females have more bacteria in their cars than males and cars that transport children on a regular basis had more bacteria than cars that did not carry children.

The car is consistently dirtier than the home, having 1700 times more bacteria, according to a study. The cup holder in a car has 228% more bacteria than the average toilet seat.

Odor Aid is clinically proven to eliminate the following Bacteria and Viruses:

Staph
Strep
MRSA
Influenza type A / Brazil
Norwalk
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
Herpes Simplex Virus Types 1&2
Human coronavirus
SARS associate coronavirus

The Odor Aid name gives the impression that it is going to be some type of air freshener type spray. In actuality it has a very light clean fresh smell to it that doesn’t last very long at all after the product has fully dried. It is also a mildewstat and will effectively inhibit the growth of mold and mildew and the odors caused by them when applied to hard surfaces. With its non-aerosol bottle and 360 degree sprayer it effectively targets hard to reach places. Spray directly onto any hard surface and wipe off. The spray head provides a very fine atomized mist and there is no residue or change in appearance to the surface where it was applied.

Conclusion:

Personally I have no idea if the APC’s I was only using as my go to cleaners for cleaning interiors is killing all the germs or not, I seriously doubt it. But I do know I have changed my approach to cleaning interiors and maintaining my own cars and now use a product designed to kill germs along with those to clean interiors. My method for doing a detail car is the same as I did on the minivan we rented this summer. Real simple, put on some gloves and coat every surface, if I can reach it, it gets sprayed. I did the van in the rental lot before I ever got in to drive it.



Interesting product, for more information or where to buy do a Google search.

[Stokdgs]

Great write up and thoughts here..

I have always wondered about how really dirty it is in there and that was one of the drivers in deciding to get a Steamer hot enough to kill those things..

I am glad there appears to be products that can kill germs in a more convenient fashion that using other machines, etc...

I just have to wonder how this one product can do so many things - including mold and mildew..

I once Detailed an Explorer that had been left outside for a few years and had a water leak.. The entire Interior was growing this mold everywhere, and I had to get a couple gallons of really strong mold killer and inhibitor to get it out and keep it from coming back..

Even being very careful inside there, this bad boy made me sick for about a week, and then I was fine again..

Stunning to read how really dirty some Interiors are and from some of the pictures posted here, I am amazed that people are actually driving themselves and their babies, kids, etc., in there at all !

Im thinking that a lot of really dirty nasty stuff also comes from animals in the car, and while this was not specifically mentioned in the info you posted, I am pretty sure there is more nastiness coming from animals in vehicles than I think from people..

In any event, will do more research into this and again appreciate your taking the time to do yours and then posting it up here..
Dan F

[ShaneB]

All the more reason I primarily use steam to clean interiors.

Great info you have there though. Ill be sure to be a little more careful now after reading that

[Lou Bunn]

I`ve had a few nasty interiors but I could identify the issues: spilled coffee, soda, juice, and the french fry that missed your mouth - months ago, dirt, sand, beach sand - yes - a league by itself, red clay, grease, gummy bears, melted chapstik, cat/dog hair, and bubble gum. The rule I have is YOU, Mr/Mrs Customer MUST remove anything that didn`t come with the car or else it gets thrown in the trash by me, that elimates a lot of problems right there, seems like once they start really looking - they get ashamed and like the lady that cleans her house BEFORE the maid service cause she didn`t want them to think she was a slob!
This year I added a new policy, that benefits me and the customer. If you have really nasty carpet and cloth seats, I sub the work to a buddy that runs a large carpet/rug cleaning business. The 40K dollar machines in his vans will do a MUCH better job than me with my cleaner, brush, wet/dry vac and terry cloth towels.
Maybe some day, I will plunk down two grand for that sweet carpet extractor I want, but I`ll have to do a lot more details to justify it.

BTW - anybody see Top Gear UK when they have their used cars analized by the "CSI" like team and get the reports of boogers, lady fluids, poop etc
Enough to make you a germaphobe!

[mrclean81]

I`ve done several vehicles in the past that have made me sick for a few days. I don`t doubt these disgusting findings one bit. Great read Ron

[Stokdgs]

Great idea, Lou Bunn !!!
I wish I knew someone in that bizz years ago before I finally was able to cost justify my Mytee extractor..

It IS all about water pressure, water temperature and most of all, water LIFT, that really gets all the dirt out of the bottom of carpets, along with someone who really has studied out the process and works hard at it...

And I am with you, and absolutely hate sand in mats... It is almost impossible to remove, but I have found it easier when it is dry and air pressure is applied to it, or in the case of floor mats, turn them upside down and hitting them flat against the driveway...

Its just too heavy to move easily...

Dan F

[RaysWay]

[Pockets]

Natural Look and our Air Fresheners contain Biocides for this very reason =)

So grab a cotton cloth and some Natural Look and go to town!

[KillaCam]

All the more reason I primarily use steam to clean interiors.



Great info you have there though. Ill be sure to be a little more careful now after reading that

Steam isn`t always safe. If you aren`t getting the surface hot enough it isn`t going to kill the bacteria and all it ends up doing is turning it to water vapor that gets inhaled through your nose.
I steamed an SUV about a year ago and it was pretty nasty. Woke up the next morning with very bad stomach cramps and threw up all day. I would recommend wearing at least gloves and a mask if you are going to steam.

[RaysWay]

Natural Look and our Air Fresheners contain Biocides for this very reason =)

So grab a cotton cloth and some Natural Look and go to town!

That`s good to know! I had no idea Poorboy`s air fresheners contained biocides. Now I have to decide which one to use...

[512detail]

Great info about natural look. Probably will add some air freshener to my next order, been using ozium but it can be pretty hardcore...to the OP,
This is exactly what I was wondering yesterday as I stared at the worst looking interior I have personally worked on...

Thank god for steam! I wore the big ole dishwashing gloves for this nasty vehicle. Couldnt imagine what was brewing in there.



I informed the customer upon delivery there was no hope for this carpet short of hot water extraction. As I thought, I have the money to get one, but I don`t want to have to seek out jobs this disgusting to make my money back.

[Lou Bunn]

You know, Ron White said,"You can`t fix stupid", and to carry that thought forward, you can`t fix people that treat their vehicles like a trash can/hog pen/kennal.
I had a neighbor about 5 years ago want me to detail her new Tahoe. This was the mac-daddy top of the line model with autoride and every option button selected. She trains some kind of herding mutts -excuse me, pricey pooches and would drive through narrow trails in the woods to get to the training field. OK, the sides and top were scratched to hell and back, most so deep it would take a re-spray to fix. The interior stank of dog piss and the leather seats had the color taken out of them in several places. Note to self - dog pee removes leather dye from factory seats, file under ways to get back at folks that do me wrong. Now, moving along, we have a 1 year old SUV that costs 50K or better, that I would rather walk down the rode dragging the body of a dead hooker in front of a police car than ride in.
The amazing thing was that after I did all I could for her, the owner couldn`t understand why the scratches wouldn`t "wax" out and why the seats needed professional re-dyeing.
She probably didn`t like my comment that she would have been better off buying a $1200 POS truck and using that instead of ruining that Tahoe. I don`t care, she was a cheap-arse.

[Swanicyouth]

I think my car is making me sick...sick in the head.

I can`t stop washing it and waxing it.

[Stokdgs]

Lou Bunn -

Thanks for the comments regarding the Tahoe -
I am totally convinced that Female Dog Pee can easily kill most things it lands on..

And yeah I agree with you - You Cant Fix Stupid - Some people just dont get it, God bless `em...
Anyone who allows animals to defecate in their car - well - what more can be said...

Im just glad you survived that HazMat nightmare and lived to tell about it !!!
Dan F