Throwing up is never a pleasant experience, but we all do it sometimes. And for some unfortunate car owners, “sometimes” is more often than they’d like. About a third of people suffer from motion sickness, which can be triggered by riding in a car and all too often leads to what went down your stomach before you got in the car coming back up as you drive. Of course, throwing up is also common among young children and let’s face it…there will be times when you pick up people after a night on the town and they have an unfortunate vomiting incident in your car.
Whatever the cause may be, you now have vomit on your car seats or carpets. The question now is how do you remove it?
What You Absolutely Shouldn’t Do – Let It Sit
The good news – if you can call it that – with vomit is that the stench it produces is naturally going to make you want to clean it as soon as possible. Letting it sit isn’t usually an option, which pushes you to clean it up or get on the phone with a local car detailing company that removes throw-up. However, if the temptation to leave it for another day arises, we recommend resisting that urge for two reasons – stains and bacteria.
The staining will always be a problem. Throw up is a complex mix of acids, proteins, and the weird and wonderful colors produced by whatever the poor vomiter has eaten. All of that combines into a stain, with the acid potentially burning into fabric while the protein makes it easier for throw up to bind to car seats and carpets. If that’s not reason enough to clean it up quickly, then this is - vomit is a breeding ground for bacteria.
Leaving it to stain and seep into the crevices of your car seats only leads to more bacteria forming, turning your vehicle into a rolling health hazard. There’s also the prospect of the vomit itself containing a contagious virus. If the unfortunate vomiter in your car has norovirus, for instance, their throw up can contain the contagious virus for several days after it’s spilled. Don’t sleep on the dangers of this illness – norovirus accounts for 60% of the 19-to-21 million cases of vomiting and diarrhea illnesses in the U.S. annually and it kills 900 people per year.
So, throw up won’t only produce a nasty stain. It’s potentially harmful to your health if left and it needs to be removed quickly.
The Steps for Removing Throw Up From Car Seats and Carpets
Every minute you spend not cleaning the throw up from your car seats and carpets is a minute that nasty vomit can use to bind to fabrics and cause deeper stains. You need to clean it up, and these are the steps you (or your local car detailing company) should use.
Step 1. Get the Right Safety Gear
We told you earlier that throw up is a hive of bacteria and, potentially, viruses. This means you need equipment. Disposable gloves are a must because they protect your hands from making direct contact with the throw up. If you’re using a car detailer, they’ll often wear a mask and some form of eye protection, both of which stop what’s in the vomit from getting into their bodies. Take a couple of minutes to equip yourself first, then it’s on to the stain.
Step 2. Gather Your Cleaning Supplies
Once you’ve protected yourself, you need the following supplies to clean the throw up:
- Absorbent Materials – Cloths, old rags, and paper towels can all work here. You just need something that soaks up the liquid (and some of the chunks) in the throw up so you can get to the stain.
- Odor Neutralizers – You have to use something to get rid of the dreadful smell vomit creates, and odor-neutralizing sprays are the answer.
- Cleaning Solutions – You can get away with using a mild washing detergent to clean away the vomit. However, we recommend specialized carpet and car seat shampoo to get the job done properly.
- Other Implements – Grab yourself a soft-bristle brush or a scrubbing pad.
Step 3. Blot…Don’t Spread
The instant reaction for most people when they come across a stain is to try and wipe it away. Don’t do that. Use your absorbent materials to slowly blot the throw up. Apply a bit of pressure when you come across some chunks. The idea here is to allow your materials to absorb as much of the liquid as possible, leaving you free to scoop up the larger chunks once the liquid is gone. Throw all of this – absorbent materials included – into a bag for disposal.
Step 4. Apply Your Cleaning Solution
Use your cleaning solution (ideally car seat shampoo to remove stains & throw up) along with a clean cloth or sponge to disinfect the stain. Gently dab or massage the solution into the stain – again, no big sweeping wipes – and wait for a few minutes to allow the solution to do its job.
Step 5. Scrub and Rinse
You can finally get to scrubbing with your soft-bristle brush once your cleaning solution has bedded in. Don’t scrub too hard, or else you risk damaging your car seats or carpet. When you’re done with scrubbing, rinse the stain with clean water and a cloth. If there’s anything left over, repeat Steps 4 and 5 until the stain disappears.
Step 6. Spray Your Odor Neutralizer
Spray away inside your car to get rid of the lingering vomit odor. You should use a car-specific odor neutralizer for this task, with a specific focus on the area around the stain. Don’t be shy with your spraying – use as much as you need to get rid of the smell. If you’re able, we also recommend leaving the car’s windows open for a while to ventilate and allow some fresh air inside.
