...while we're drying it now, what product on the market is best to fend off mold/mold smell?
Son left rear window open, 3" rain last night...
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Do you have a shop vac? Suck out as much water as you can.
If you have a carpet extractor I'd use that with some detergent and clean up the area.
If you have a carpet extractor I'd use that with some detergent and clean up the area.
gathermewool
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I had a similar issue, and running both a ceramic heater with another small fan with the windows cracked was all that was necessary.
+1 might take few days.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
I had a similar issue, and running both a ceramic heater with another small fan with the windows cracked was all that was necessary.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
I had a similar issue, and running both a ceramic heater with another small fan with the windows cracked was all that was necessary.
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Newspapers suck up a lot of water from the carpet. Good for initial drying.
Air flow is what you want next -open windows, sun, and a fan if possible.
An air ionizer can help, as does Fabreeze spray for smells.
Air flow is what you want next -open windows, sun, and a fan if possible.
An air ionizer can help, as does Fabreeze spray for smells.
When you drive the car, use the ac on recirculation mode. AC removes humidity.
Originally Posted By: oilboy123
+1 might take few days.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
I had a similar issue, and running both a ceramic heater with another small fan with the windows cracked was all that was necessary.
+2 I have had to use this process in the past with good results.
+1 might take few days.
Originally Posted By: gathermewool
I had a similar issue, and running both a ceramic heater with another small fan with the windows cracked was all that was necessary.
+2 I have had to use this process in the past with good results.
Take it somewhere professional and get it steam cleaned.
I have never done it but there are almost always drain plugs on the bottom on floor which are accessible from the bottom on the car. These are there in case of excess water in the car from flooding or windows left down after heavy rains. Not sure how hard they are to remove and reinstall though.
I would remove the rear seat, or at least the bottom portion of it, remove the trim and door sill covers and lift the carpet up at least in the back seat footwells and see how wet the carpet and the jute underneath it is. If the moisture is confined to only one small area, pull the carpet back, prop it up out of the way and dry the floor pan with towels. Remove the floor pan drain grommet if there is one. Leave the windows open, let the car sit in the sun for a few days to dry the carpet and jute. You can direct fans and hair dryers into the wet area to speed the process.
If the wet area is bigger, you may need to remove the console and front seats too, so you can lift the carpet up and dry the entire area. If the carpet and jute is extremely wet, you may have to remove all seats, trim, console, kick panels, etc so you can lift the carpet out in one piece. Lay it out on the ground on a tarp or clean cardboard and let it dry in the sun.
Be sure the carpet and jute are all 100% dry before reinstalling the carpet set. You can spray the carpet and jute with Lysol to help prevent mold and mildew. Spray it, let dry and spray again, do that several times. You have to be very thorough with this to prevent mold and mildew. Mold can ruin the carpet and worse yet, it can make you very sick, causes a lot of respiratory problems.
If the wet area is bigger, you may need to remove the console and front seats too, so you can lift the carpet up and dry the entire area. If the carpet and jute is extremely wet, you may have to remove all seats, trim, console, kick panels, etc so you can lift the carpet out in one piece. Lay it out on the ground on a tarp or clean cardboard and let it dry in the sun.
Be sure the carpet and jute are all 100% dry before reinstalling the carpet set. You can spray the carpet and jute with Lysol to help prevent mold and mildew. Spray it, let dry and spray again, do that several times. You have to be very thorough with this to prevent mold and mildew. Mold can ruin the carpet and worse yet, it can make you very sick, causes a lot of respiratory problems.
Thank you for the quick replies.
So far, we used a bunch of rags/towels to suck as much water out of the carpet as we could. Still some in there. I'll try the fan trick in the garage and use the A/C often this week.
If the above doesn't work, taking the carpet/seats out will be the next step.
The last time this happened to me was in '88 on my old '86 Prelude Si. It stunk for weeks before the smell finally went away. I don't recall what we did/used to finally get rid of the smell as it was so long ago.
So far, we used a bunch of rags/towels to suck as much water out of the carpet as we could. Still some in there. I'll try the fan trick in the garage and use the A/C often this week.
If the above doesn't work, taking the carpet/seats out will be the next step.
The last time this happened to me was in '88 on my old '86 Prelude Si. It stunk for weeks before the smell finally went away. I don't recall what we did/used to finally get rid of the smell as it was so long ago.
If this is your daily driver, the air conditioner compressor is your friend.
Just make sure the air conditioner compressor is running when driven. If you need heat on, run the compressor & heater at the same time. The residual water will gradually get condensed on the coils and drip out of the system. When you park it, make sure the vents are open to outside air, so air can circulate. If you don't, and leave it set on "recirculate" as soon as the air in the car gets saturated with moisture there is no more evaporation.
This happened to me a few years ago when I was in Tonopah, Nevada; I forgot the sun roof was open and a lot of snow got in the car, all over the place. I have had my bottles of distilled water leak too. I use these techniques and they work fine. Any mold takes several days to develop, so if you dry it before that happens you are OK.
Make sure that all the upholstery and carpet is open to air circulation. You might want to unfasten the seats a little and put wood blocks or such under them to provide an air flow path. The objective of all these things is to get the water to evaporate and find its way out of your car. If you can park it safely at night with a window open a little that is OK if you are in a low crime area.
Just make sure the air conditioner compressor is running when driven. If you need heat on, run the compressor & heater at the same time. The residual water will gradually get condensed on the coils and drip out of the system. When you park it, make sure the vents are open to outside air, so air can circulate. If you don't, and leave it set on "recirculate" as soon as the air in the car gets saturated with moisture there is no more evaporation.
This happened to me a few years ago when I was in Tonopah, Nevada; I forgot the sun roof was open and a lot of snow got in the car, all over the place. I have had my bottles of distilled water leak too. I use these techniques and they work fine. Any mold takes several days to develop, so if you dry it before that happens you are OK.
Make sure that all the upholstery and carpet is open to air circulation. You might want to unfasten the seats a little and put wood blocks or such under them to provide an air flow path. The objective of all these things is to get the water to evaporate and find its way out of your car. If you can park it safely at night with a window open a little that is OK if you are in a low crime area.
Don't let your son borrow the car again.
Quick trip to Phoenix, leave windows open for two days...problem solved and good vacation.
Not that I've ever done it but, I'd put our portable dehumidifier in the car, windows up, and let it run for as long as possible. It would: A. dehumidify, B. move air, C. add warmth. Moving air is critical to drying.
Or the Phoenix idea (Arizona has many interesting attractions), but that does seem like a bit of a drive.
Or the Phoenix idea (Arizona has many interesting attractions), but that does seem like a bit of a drive.
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I'd rent one of those commercial carpet cleaners, it will do a good job of extracting the moisture and cleaning the carpet. Parking in the garage with windows down and a fan inside (if an option) will help keep air circulating.
Originally Posted By: ddean
I have never done it but there are almost always drain plugs on the bottom on floor which are accessible from the bottom on the car. These are there in case of excess water in the car from flooding or windows left down after heavy rains. Not sure how hard they are to remove and reinstall though.
Those guys also help at the factory when they do the "zinc dip" so it all flows out when the naked floorpan is lifted out of the vat of primer. I have seen those plugs in the "Help" section of the FLAPS.
I have never done it but there are almost always drain plugs on the bottom on floor which are accessible from the bottom on the car. These are there in case of excess water in the car from flooding or windows left down after heavy rains. Not sure how hard they are to remove and reinstall though.
Those guys also help at the factory when they do the "zinc dip" so it all flows out when the naked floorpan is lifted out of the vat of primer. I have seen those plugs in the "Help" section of the FLAPS.
1. shop vac the seats & carpet
2. leave the windows down at night in the garage
3. leave the windows down on the next several sunny days.
2. leave the windows down at night in the garage
3. leave the windows down on the next several sunny days.
Yeah right! Blame it on the kid!!! You dirty dog!
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