This may seem like one of those simple things, but getting the results you want when you clean something, all depends on the products and technique.

What you will need:



I used to detail cars back in College for a high end dealership. With all of the chemicals out there, nothing I have found beats "Resolve Spot & Stain" remover for carpets. This stuff will get out just about anything!

The carpet in the trunk, is all man made material. Nylon/Polyester fibers ect. It would take a LOT to damage and permanently stain the carpet. About the only thing I could think of that would be permanent is paint. With this in mind, it's just a matter of dissolving and getting rid of any dirt/grease/rust stains ect.


First, of course, remove the carpet, lay it out somewhere, and spray it generously with the Resolve. Let it sit for about 10 minutes, and then take a small scrub brush, with medium stiffness bristles. Too soft will not do much, and really hard bristles will not be easy to scrub the carpet well at all.

If you have any really bad stains, saturate them really well with the resolve, and work the area good with the brush.

When you have scrubbed all of the stains well, and a general brushing of the rest of the carpet. Rinse it off well. I HIGHLY recommend the "Ultimate Nozzles" that you can pick up at home depot. It is very surprising just how much pressure these put out! It is literally your own personal fire hose, even with just average water pressure. Well worth the $20 premium price for it in my book!

Spray the jet into the carpet well, a nice strong jet does best to get down deep to get all the loosened grime out. When you have rinsed it well, you may have noticed that some of the rust stains have not come completely out. This most likely is from tools left in the trunk Now use the CLR to saturate those areas well. I found it best to use the CLR full strength, in a spray bottle, and spray the area's well. Let CLR sit for about 5 minutes to dissolve the rust stains, and then scrub good with the brush. After a bit of scrubbing, you will see the rust stains start to disappear. You can then let it sit for a few more minutes to devolve any remaining rust stains. Now it is time for the final rinse. The carpet should look like, or close to, the day it was installed.

Of course, if there are severely stained area's, you will probably not get that completely out, but you can go a second round with the resolve and scrub brush to try.

When I did my carpet, I found a couple of spots that I missed, (It's surprising how, after the carpet looks so good, even the smallest stain will catch your eye ) I just hit them again with the resolve / CLR /brush, and rinsed it out again.

EDIT: In a post on the 2nd page of this thread, Fierobsessed said that he found a way to get out a very tough stain that was just not coming out. He said he used Carb Cleaner, wearing gloves, and was able to get that final stain out.

On a final note, if you have never washed the trunk carpeting, you are in for a bit of a surprise. The carpet drys REALLY fast! It is dry on the surface to the touch in just a couple of minutes! To dry it out thoroughly, just hang it over something. In my case, the gas BBQ grill served the purpose Hahah.

Unfortunately, I did not get a good picture of the carpet in my car before I cleaned it, but it was REALLY bad..... You can just see a portion of it here, with some rust stains, and grease/dirt in the corners. The bottom was just covered in grease and rust stains.

(Note: This the the day I got the car home on the flat bed, and opened the hood. NOT my doing, the engine has since been replaced, as well as the Tom Sawyer inspired intake )




This is the carpet, after cleaning it, as described above. It really does look brand new!



If you found this tutorial useful, please feel free to Click "Rate This Member" to the left... Thanks


Legal mumbo jumbo:
Follow the safe handling instructions on the cleaners. Wearing eye protection would not be a bad idea with the brush kicking up the chemicals and all.

Keywords: tutorial, cleaning, stain, removing, trunk, carpet, rust, grease

[This message has been edited by JohnWPB (edited 02-09-2015).]

------------------

[This message has been edited by JohnWPB (edited 01-15-2011).]