Steam cleaner damage?

J

jdhutchin

New member
Are there any surfaces that you can't get with a steam cleaner? I tried doing the some plastic on the door and vinyl on my dash with a triangle attachment and a towel wrapped over it, and it seems to have a different look to it after I cleaned it.



I'm not using a powerful steamer (40psi, 220deg). So can I not use the steamer to clean dashes or other vinyl surfaces like that?



Thanks, Joshua
 
I'd avoid things that can melt or otherwise be damaged by heat. While it seems intuitively obvious, I learned jut how careful you oughta be the hard way, on a plastic hood-support rod clip :o



Likewise, I'd be care on leather until you see how it responds. But I've been pretty aggressive with vinyl dashes using a powerful steamer.



YMMV of course, so if in doubt err on the side of caution. I don't think anybody can guarantee what's safe/not until they've done the exact surface in question.
 
Its more than possible to damage vinyl surfaces w/ a steam cleaner. We had a Caravan in the shop a couple days back and the other fellow working on it had two different shades of blue by the time he was done working on the dash/console/door panel area. As Accumulator stated just take care when you're unsure.



Also, be careful with any VW since all the interior plastic has a seperate rubberish material/coating over the base plastic that will come off very easily. Ask me how I know :doh
 
Charlies02GLS said:
Its more than possible to damage vinyl surfaces w/ a steam cleaner. We had a Caravan in the shop a couple days back and the other fellow working on it had two different shades of blue by the time he was done working on the dash/console/door panel area. As Accumulator stated just take care when you're unsure.



Also, be careful with any VW since all the interior plastic has a seperate rubberish material/coating over the base plastic that will come off very easily. Ask me how I know :doh
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I wouldn’t use steam that close to the surface as you indicated. On dirty leather we coat with Woolite 6 to 1 then steam at a about three to four inches away from surface with single head attachment. Then we wipe with MF towel. Same procedure with plastic surface. Always test first!!!
 
doged said:
I wouldn’t use steam that close to the surface as you indicated. On dirty leather we coat with Woolite 6 to 1 then steam at a about three to four inches away from surface with single head attachment. Then we wipe with MF towel. Same procedure with plastic surface. Always test first!!!
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That's the same way I do it personally (hold wand above surface) but the shop I work for isn't really the highest quality by any stretch of the imagination so the other guys just scrub away. Guess I should have been clearer in my post.
 
Charlies02GLS said:
That's the same way I do it personally (hold wand above surface) but the shop I work for isn't really the highest quality by any stretch of the imagination so the other guys just scrub away. Guess I should have been clearer in my post.
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Ya, one of my helpers was a pretty smart guy at one time but received a head injury in a car accident and developed short term memory loss. We don’t let him use the steamer or the rotary.
 
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