What we can and can’t promise
Most food, drink and dirt stains come out with shampoo, steam and extraction. Some don’t. Ink, dye from clothing, and stains that have sat for years may lighten rather than disappear. We’ll tell you what we expect before we start, so there are no surprises.
Smells are the same. Cleaning removes most of what causes them. If smoke or a strong odor has soaked into the headliner and vents, an odor bomb treatment ($99) can help after the cleaning is done.
A few add-ons cover the tough jobs:
- Pet hair removal, $100 per hour, for hair woven into carpet and seats
- Excess soiling or stains, $100, for very heavy messes
- Extra shampooing, $100
- Odor bomb, $99
Kids, car seats and dogs
Family cars collect a special kind of mess. Crumbs and juice end up under and behind car seats, in the seat rails and deep in the seat creases. If you’d like us to clean under the car seats, take them out before we arrive, or ask us and we’ll work around them. Either way, we clean the cup holders, door pockets and seat-back pockets that collect the most.
Dogs bring hair, drool on the windows and that wet-dog smell. Short, stiff hair weaves itself into carpet and is the hardest to pull out. We use rubber tools and brushes that lift it out of the fibers before we vacuum. If there’s a lot of it, it’s worth adding pet hair removal so we have the time to do it right.
Folsom heat is hard on cabins
A car parked in a Folsom driveway in July can get far hotter inside than out. That heat dries out leather and fades and cracks dashboards over time. Conditioning the leather and plastic puts moisture back in and helps them last. A sunshade helps a lot between visits too.
Heat also bakes in spills. A dropped smoothie or a leaky grocery bag can sour fast in a closed, hot car. The sooner it’s cleaned, the better the odds it comes out with no trace. If something spills in summer, blot it up right away and book us sooner rather than later. Don’t scrub hard with a household cleaner first, since that can spread the stain and leave a ring.
Summer also means lake days. Sand, wet towels and sunscreen from Folsom Lake end up in the carpet and on the seats. Sunscreen leaves a greasy film on leather and door panels that a quick wipe tends to smear. We clean it off properly, then condition.
Drying and care after the detail
After shampoo and extraction, seats and carpets are damp, not wet. On a dry Folsom day they’re usually dry within a few hours. Leaving the windows cracked or parking in the sun speeds it up. In winter it can take a little longer.
To keep the cabin clean longer, use floor mats, shake them out each week, and wipe spills while they’re fresh. If you have kids or dogs in the car every day, a regular plan keeps it from building up again.
