REMOVING CAR ODORS

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REMOVING CAR ODORS
I get a lot of questions about removing smells. The most common questions are "How do I remove the smell of cigarette smoke?" and "My child vomited. How do I get rid of the smell?" Most bad smells in cars are organic (e.g., food, urine, vomit, tobacco, grass, mold, mildew, etc.). I recently had a professional detailer tell me a client had spilled fish in his car, which I know from experience is not pleasant. As a teen I hid an open can of sardines under the seat of a neighbor's car. They had to sell the car to get rid of the smell!

Odor problems are pretty easy to take care of with some of the new cleaners on the market. If you need something in a hurry, try "Kids & Pets Brand Stain & Odor Remover" by Paramount Chemical Specialties. This cleaner, and others like it, use enzymes, a surfactant and denatured alcohol to remove stains and kill odors. The enzymes kill odors in their tracks by stopping the organic material from decomposing. So, when your kid or the dog throws up all over the backseat, spray Kids & Pets Brand Stain & Odor Remover, and the mess and stain will go away. Don't use it, and you'll be smelling that odor for a long time. The problem with this cleaner is that it is heavily perfumed. I don't recommend it for more than a localized problem, such as vomit or urine.

Tobacco smoke is one of the most difficult smells to remove from a car. The smoke permeates everything, including the foam rubber used in seat cushions. You can successfully remove most of the tobacco smell by thoroughly shampooing the carpets, upholstery and headliner. After cleaning thoroughly, use Total Release Odor Eliminator to complete the job.



CAR AIR CONDITIONER ODORS
Another common source of interior car odors is the air conditioning (A/C) system. That foul smell from your car's A/C is not only offensive, but it can also be bad for you. The air entering into your car passes over the A/C evaporator (the cooling element). When you operate your car's A/C, water condenses around the evaporator coils. The moisture on the evaporator makes it a magnet for air pollutants, including dust, dirt, grime, pollen, spores and germs. These pollutants form bacteria, dust mites and fungi, which all add up to create the bad smell that often occurs in A/C systems.

Most luxury cars now offer filter canisters to remove pollutants from the air entering the car. However, the smell may still remain. In any case, it's still a good idea to treat your car's A/C each year with a quality odor remover. The product I prefer is Total Release Odor Eliminator. Simply spray the product into the exterior air intake vents and the inside heat and A/C vents. It eliminates odors caused by bacteria, fungi, mildew and stagnant water.