How to Steam Clean Car Seats in 5 Easy Steps [VIDEO]

Knowing how to steam clean car seats comes in handy when your budget won’t allow for professional services. Aside from being eco-friendly, steam cleaning effectively removes dust, dirt and harmful bacteria. It is also economical in the long run. So, how should you do it? To help you out, we are sharing five easy steps that will keep your car seats looking great during lean periods.

List of Essentials

Here’s a list of what you need:

• A steam cleaner
• An upholstery shampoo/cleaner
• A pre-conditioner or soil emulsifier (optional – for extra dirty upholstery)
• A fan (optional)

TIP: Most of the items above may already be in your home maintenance tools. For items that you don’t have, you might consider renting or buying from car wash consignment shops.

How to Steam Clean Car Seats in Five Easy Steps

1. Wear Safety Gloves

Never attempt to steam clean car seats without wearing heat-resistant safety gloves to protect your hands from scalding. Choose a pair that fits your hands snugly yet does not hamper your movements.

2. Open All Car Doors

Opening all car doors allows free flowing air into your car during the process. Otherwise, steam will be trapped inside, making it uncomfortable and unhealthy for you.

3. Pre-condition and Shampoo

Pre-conditioning is necessary only if your car seats have stains or excessively dirty. For best results, choose a pre-conditioner that is specifically made for the material of your car seats and follow the directions on the label. This is also the best time to remove any stains on your car seat like ink or coffee. After pre-conditioning, shampoo the car seats and give your car seats a good washing.

4. Steam Clean

Use the upholstery attachment of your steam cleaner to remove water and dirt from your car seats. Keep in mind the proper method of how to use a steam cleaner in cars. To help with the drying process of the car seats, try to remove as much of the water as possible by using the steam cleaner. Move the steam cleaner along the entire surface of your car seat. Pay attention to all the crevices and harder to reach areas.

5. Brush and Dry

Depending on the type of upholstery that you have, you can use the dry brush for the car seats. This technique is good for more cloth based car upholstery (not so much for leather). By gently brushing the upholstery in different directions, your car seats will have a smooth and brand new look. Don’t spend a lot of time on this, just give each area of the seat a quick gentle brush.

You can use your fan to speed up the drying process. If you do not have a fan, a blow dryer will work just as well. If you have more time on your hands, then you can always leave the seats to fully air dry. Just know that this will take a considerable amount of time. The car doors need to remain open for the entire drying process.

Using these five easy steps on how to steam clean car seats, you can go ahead and give it a try. You can even check out our blog on how to steam clean your car exterior in five easy steps if you are up to it. These are quick DIY projects that you can perform in between your routine professional detailing. If you’d like to get a professional deep steam clean of your car, call a car detailing expert  to schedule an appointment. Here’s a video that shows what we can do:

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