Salt build up removal.

Generous amounts of water while scrubbing with a stuff brush should help. I agree with the power washer. But the more water the better would be better based on personal experience. I use clear plastic mats now in my new car and they are great. I couldn't afford the weathertecs. They are awesome. But these work well. The picture makes them look really obvious, but I assure you they blend in well. View attachment 26017
 
I live in Pittsburgh PA so dealing with floor mats that are covered in salt is nothing new. My plan of attack for these items is take a Shop Vac with a stiff brush attached to the end and vacuum as much of the salt off of the mats as possible. Its been my experience that it is much easier to get the chunks/layered salt off of the mat while they are 100% dry. If your brush is stiff enough and your shop vac strong enough you should be able to get just about all of it off of the mat. Now what remains I remove using the hand tool portion of my Bissell DeepClean Liftoff carpet cleaner. As far as cleaning solution goes I like to use a product called Natures Miracle Deep Cleaning Carpet Shampoo, this is an enzyme based cleaner (uses living bacteria). I found that not only does it work really well on removing just about any kind of smell you can think of it also works well on floor mats covered in salt... You can find this product at most major stores, but if you have issues locating it go to some of the major pet stores. The only downside to this product is the cost it is a little on the expensive side for carpet cleaner.

Also salt/calcium chloride (most commonly used in road treatments) is freely soluble in water, so the use of items such as vinegar and carpet cleaner should not be needed. That being said you will need the carpet cleaner to remove the other grime that is on the mat.


Off topic, but if you encounter a customer with an odor issue I would recommend using this product for that as well. They also have another cleaning solution that is not for use in carpet cleaners, but works a lot better for removing odors and makes for a good pre- treater that is worth checking out. Both of these products leave little to no odor after use.
 
To add to my last post it also helps to realize that there is a lot more on those floor mats in the winter then just "salt"... None of which is very good for carpet and if not removed rather quickly can/will cause permanent damage to the mat.

Chemical treatment materials include:
Sodium chloride
Calcium chloride
Potassium chloride
Magnesium chloride
Ammonium nitrate
Ammonium sulfate
Potassium acetate
Urea
Propylene glycol
Calcium magnesium acetate
Sodium ferrocyanide
Methyl alpha-D-glucopyranoside

Inert spreadings can be:
sand
brash, rubble, crushed slag, etc.
slag
wood ash
sawdust

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
RubbishReview said:
I live in Pittsburgh PA so dealing with floor mats that are covered in salt is nothing new. My plan of attack for these items is take a Shop Vac with a stiff brush attached to the end and vacuum as much of the salt off of the mats as possible. Its been my experience that it is much easier to get the chunks/layered salt off of the mat while they are 100% dry. If your brush is stiff enough and your shop vac strong enough you should be able to get just about all of it off of the mat. Now what remains I remove using the hand tool portion of my Bissell DeepClean Liftoff carpet cleaner. As far as cleaning solution goes I like to use a product called Natures Miracle Deep Cleaning Carpet Shampoo, this is an enzyme based cleaner (uses living bacteria). I found that not only does it work really well on removing just about any kind of smell you can think of it also works well on floor mats covered in salt... You can find this product at most major stores, but if you have issues locating it go to some of the major pet stores. The only downside to this product is the cost it is a little on the expensive side for carpet cleaner.


Off topic, but if you encounter a customer with an odor issue I would recommend using this product for that as well. They also have another cleaning solution that is not for use in carpet cleaners, but works a lot better for removing odors and makes for a good pre- treater that is worth checking out. Both of these products leave little to no odor after use.
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I have used this also with our DOG accidents. Works great and nothing left for our dog to find a again :)
 
I use hot water in a spray bottle to break down the salt. I then use a microfiber to "blot" up as much as possible. I repeat until no more residue can be seen. then I extract. works every time.

The key is getting the salt off the carpet. if you just wet it down it will continue to spread to other areas
 
1kwikf said:
I use hot water in a spray bottle to break down the salt. I then use a microfiber to "blot" up as much as possible. I repeat until no more residue can be seen. then I extract. works every time.

The key is getting the salt off the carpet. if you just wet it down it will continue to spread to other areas
Click to expand...

I agree. Important to remember that salt/calcium chloride (most commonly used in road treatments) is freely soluble in water, so the use of items such as vinegar and carpet cleaner should not be needed. That being said you will need the carpet cleaner to remove the other grime that is on the mat.
 
KBsSS said:
I have used this also with our DOG accidents. Works great and nothing left for our dog to find a again :)
Click to expand...

Yes, that is what I had originally purchased the product for as it was said to be the best at removing per stains and odors. Then one day I decided to try it in the car and discovered that it pretty much works on every stain you can think of. Really is a great product cant say enough good things about it.
 
wait until you have some warm weather, take them out and hose them out as much as you can, then use apc and dawn generously and scrub well with a stiff bristle brush, then rinse with the hose, extract and hang in the sun to dry for a day.
 
cplchris said:
wait until you have some warm weather, take them out and hose them out as much as you can, then use apc and dawn generously and scrub well with a stiff bristle brush, then rinse with the hose, extract and hang in the sun to dry for a day.
Click to expand...

Warm weather ????

Whats that :)
 
MMartin I read what you wrote about caked on salt and here is a method that I discovered recently – it works!


Caked salt removal - waterless pulverizing

Got salt?
Have you got salt hardened on your fixed-in-place auto carpets?

Reading about how to remove caked on salt that had dried on the fixed-in-place auto carpets, I found most, if not all, used water which I knew that was "wrong.."

Yesterday, faced with that job, and fuelled in part by a healthy dose of raw greens, I used my engraving tool in conjunction with the vacuum for pulverizing the caked salt into a salt powder that was easily vac'd from the carpet.

Begin to end time: about 1 minute per square inch.
My carpet: 144 square inches, two hours complete.

No drying time!
 
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