Every Spring I get calls about mulch stain removal. We all love to go to the local garden center to stock up on bags of mulch to give the yard that new, fresh, look. It smells good, looks good, and can transform the appearance of your home. Mulch is great, until one loads the bags of mulch in the back of the car. “The mulch is sealed in bags, what’s the problem?” The problem is the bags have holes in them, I have never saw a bag of mulch that didn’t have a hole, somewhere. Mulch is damp, and with a leak, big or small, it looks terrible on a vehicle upholstery or carpeting. About the only vehicle good enough to haul mulch is is a pick up truck. Last week I had a call from another customer who made the mistake of hauling bags of mulch. Look at the photo above and you’ll see how it ruined the general appearance of the back interior of the car. This vehicle had a lot of small stains like this one, but I took the photo of only one to show you the processes I use to remove the stain.
The back of this Ford Explorer has a carpeted floor that covers the spare tire. I was able to slide the floor to the side for better access to the mulch stain. I then sprayed some Meguiars All Purpose Cleaner Plus to the surface and let it sit for a few minutes. The solution is diluted 4 to 1 and it’s a very strong solution. It’s my go to product for standard shampooing. I also use a vapor steamer with a triangular brush to agitate the area. The 320 degree heat literally melts the stain away in no time. Just a few seconds of agitation and the stain is ready for extraction.
I use a heated carpet extractor remove dirt, grime, and stains for auto upholstery and carpeting. Water is injected at 210 degrees Fahrenheit into the affected area, then is immediately sucked in to the extractor recovery tank. Just a few quick passes of this process and it makes quick work of the former mulch stains.
The three step process, shampooing, steaming, and extraction is an excellent way to remove a mulch stain from a car. Actually, mulch stains come up rather quickly, and when one calls with the situation, I usually jump at the chance to help. The best advice I can give you, is to not haul mulch bags in your vehicle, ever. They will leak! However, if you do, call me, I can help.
Thanks for reading!
-Clint
