Best way to remove road salt

Floor carpeting in my vehicle took a beating this winter… what’s the best way to throughly clean?

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I bring mine to a local detailer for a small fee and he cleans all interior and does the carpet as well.

Stiff brush and a vacuum.

My recommendation is stay in Florida a few more months. But having repaired rusted floorboard for years. The salty water soaks straight through the carpet and pad. Direct to the metal. You may get some soaking and vacuuming. But likely not much of it. Carpet cleaner will clean the carpet, but not the pad and under. With 2 sided galvanizing on the floor board. Rust out shouldn’t be an issue if you trade before it’s 7 or 8 years old. Get it dry asap when it gets wet, it slows the salt corroding on the metal.

WeatherTech mats, one reason I purchased them

Craig Sery wrote:

WeatherTech mats, one reason I purchased them

Me to but the crap still gets under. Looking at the pic I assume he runs some kind of floor mats

Look up some detail videos on YouTube. Meguiars all purpose cleaner and some drill attachment brushes should get it out

water brush and a shop vac oh ya and elbow grease

Craig Sery wrote:

WeatherTech mats, one reason I purchased them

I actually have them. While I was in Florida this winter – my son (Bigfoot) drove my car. The salt stains are mostly right behind where the Weathertech liner ends. Great kid but doesn’t take care of things like I do.

Best way is to eliminate the use. Ban the crap!

Randy Wieland wrote:

Best way is to eliminate the use. Ban the crap!

I’m with Randy on this one.
There would be a lot less road damage if we went back to studded tires.

I’m not sure how road salt has held on this long. It literally costs the US billions in collective damages to infrastructure, vehicles, lawns, watersheds, and so on.

Ban it!

buckybadger wrote:

I’m not sure how road salt has held on this long. It literally costs the US billions in collective damages to infrastructure, vehicles, lawns, watersheds, and so on.

Ban it!

$$$$$$$$$$$$

Randy Wieland wrote:

Best way is to eliminate the use. Ban the crap!

It’s a big money maker for somebody! Not to mention all the pollution in the water. They blame it on water softeners.

You have to suck the stuff out of carpet or try to dilute it. It just wrecks everything it touches.

maybe a little more prevent cleaning thru out the winter, also i try to kick my shoes together before them come in the truck

Randy Wieland wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>buckybadger wrote:</div>
I’m not sure how road salt has held on this long. It literally costs the US billions in collective damages to infrastructure, vehicles, lawns, watersheds, and so on.

Ban it!

$$$$$$$$$$$$

Sand, learning to drive and maintaining your vehicle worked for years and doesn’t destroy metal and the environment.

jim Van Schoick wrote:

maybe a little more prevent cleaning thru out the winter, also i try to kick my shoes together before them come in the truck

I do this, am a bit anal about keeping cars, boats, etc. clean. Unfortunately, my son isn’t and when I was gone 2 months this winter he used my Jeep the whole time and he has big feet and doesn’t take care of things.

I went to the local car wash/detailer this morning. They said they haven’t been able to employ a detailer for over 6 months and closed up that part of their shop. Didn’t sound like they plan to re-open. She said it would be $150 to detail/shampoo the carpets. Ouch ~

Bearcat89 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Craig Sery wrote:</div>
WeatherTech mats, one reason I purchased them

Me to but the crap still gets under. Looking at the pic I assume he runs some kind of floor mats

I used a black RTV to seal up the “snaps” on my weathertechs, which is one place salty boot runoff would permeate below the weathertechs into my carpet. My wife’s Tahoe has the older style weathertechs that are trul;y one solid piece and do not have snaps. These are the best and the fact that they changed this design is appalling to me.

Randy Wieland wrote:

Best way is to eliminate the use. Ban the crap!

Do you know who controls all of the salt in the US? Here’s a hint, they’re local, and they’re the largest privately owned company in the world. Good luck with any bans, the salt lobby will shut it down post haste. We’ll have to wait until metro area lakes are completely uninhabitable for freshwater fish (it’s coming, maybe 5 years or maybe 10, but we’re well on our way). There’s research on this topic, but it gets shut down real quick and the news won’t discuss it of course.

“Frydog quote”
I do this, am a bit anal about keeping cars, boats, etc. clean. Unfortunately, my son isn’t and when I was gone 2 months this winter he used my Jeep the whole time and he has big feet and doesn’t take care of things.

I went to the local car wash/detailer this morning. They said they haven’t been able to employ a detailer for over 6 months and closed up that part of their shop. Didn’t sound like they plan to re-open. She said it would be $150 to detail/shampoo the carpets. Ouch ~

[/quote]

Sounds like your son is the one that is out the money for a detail. At least if that was one of my kids they would be on the hook for it. Since you were nice to let him use it you should get it back better than he got it.

^^^^^

If your kid is old enough to drive he is old enough to clean up after himself.

Taking care of something someone let’s you borrow is a very important life lesson.

Have him soak the areas with water then shop-vac out. Do it a few times to get the salt diluted down to a negligible amount.

Wood ashes and a little sand are much more effective alternatives to road salt for most applications. They provide traction while the dark color absorbs light/heat and helps melt. The ash is also lightweight and easy to spread, doesn’t harm the environment, and is FREE. Not to mention it won’t do $20 billion of damage to infrastructure per year.

Rising salt levels in our local watersheds (especially near the Twin Cities and suburbs) will do more damage to fish and wildlife populations in the next decade than overfishing or any invasive species.

A little soapy water, a stiff brush and some elbow grease.

FryDog62 wrote:

Floor carpeting in my vehicle took a beating this winter… what’s the best way to throughly clean?

Great topic. Mine look almost identical. I also have weather tech mats but still have similar stains. Might be a good project for tonight.

I send many emails every winter to state officials,mndot,pollution control about all the salt dumped.Piles of salt sitting at intersections and in the gutters that did nothing to melt the snow or ice and obviously did not need to be put down.Rarely do I get a response.May not work but I think the only way to stop salt use is thru the use of class action lawsuits-environmental damage and property damage.

I’ve done this and it works well:
Mix equal parts white vinegar and water.
Spray or pour the vinegar-water solution into the salt-stained carpet.
Let it soak for 2-3 minutes. This helps to break down the crystalized salt.
Use a soft brush or damp cloth to rub down the affected area.
Blot with paper towels/dry towel
Leave to air dry.

There is no lingering vinegar odor once dry.

I often travel to Alaska in the winter and salt is not used. Ash and sand with a healthy dose of small pebbles are used. Studded tires are also legal. The two downsides to this approach is the amount of cracked windshields on vehicles, and the groves wore into the pavement. If anybody has driven through Anchorage you know exactly what I mean. I guess we all need to live south where there’s no snow to avoid problems to vehicles.

Fred Garvin wrote:

I’ve done this and it works well:
Mix equal parts white vinegar and water.
Spray or pour the vinegar-water solution into the salt-stained carpet.
Let it soak for 2-3 minutes. This helps to break down the crystalized salt.
Use a soft brush or damp cloth to rub down the affected area.
Blot with paper towels/dry towel
Leave to air dry.

There is no lingering vinegar odor once dry.

I think I will try this… assuming white distilled vinegar?

Correct, distilled white.
I used a spray bottle, applied a little heavier in the worst spots on the edge where the Weather Tech mat didn’t cover.
Spray 50/50 vinegar.
Wait up to 5 minutes,
Work in with soft brush.
Blot up with towel, spray clean water, blot up again and/or use shop vac.

Fred Garvin wrote:

Correct, distilled white.
I used a spray bottle, applied a little heavier in the worst spots on the edge where the Weather Tech mat didn’t cover.
Spray 50/50 vinegar.
Wait up to 5 minutes,
Work in with soft brush.
Blot up with towel, spray clean water, blot up again and/or use shop vac.

Udda Man Fred!