an insider's guide to interior design for small spaces

cleaning the interior of my caris as important to me as the exterior, because when i'mwith my car, i'm mostly inside behind the wheel. i want the cabin to look, smell,and, more importantly, feel clean. for today's interior detailingepisode, we're going to cover a variety of techniques. some are very basic and easy andcan be done for under $20, while other techniques are moreadvanced and will require

additional cleaning tools. we're going to go over a lotof information today, so be sure and check out ammonyc.comfor a free a downloadable pdf with a listing of thesestep-by-step instructions. having the right tools is keyto doing an interior detail. on this side here, we havemicrofiber towels. we have brushes and, of course,a few products. this would be considered theweekend warrior side of the detailing tools.

over here, we haveour professional. we have big, heavy vacuums,ozone machines. we have porter cables withbrushes on them, steam machines, and hotwater extractor. whatever tool fits your budget,time, and the amount of cars and condition thatyou're working with, these are all great options for yourinterior detailing. once all miscellaneous items areremoved from the interior, the first and most basictechnique for cleaning

leather, plastics, and vinyl iswith a designated interior cleaner and a microfibertowel. apply a few squirts to aclean microfiber towel. then wipe away the dirtwith medium pressure. in some cases, this may beenough to clean the material you're working. however, this lexus requiresanother few steps because of its heavy dirt and grime. for step two, add your interiorcleanser to a soft

bristle brush and agitate untilfoamy lather is created. unlike painted surfaces, circlescan be used on leather with your interior brush. don't allow the cleaner to dryon the surface, as the dirt is suspended within the latheryou've created. immediately wipe witha microfiber tower. after step two, most interiorsare back in shape. but in rare cases, techniquethree may be required. although this section of theside bolster looks much

better, there are small areasthat need a little extra help. for technique three, apply twosquirts of your cleaner to an interior scrub pad with lightpressure, and in straight lines, work the remainingblemish until the surface is perfectly clean. remember to avoid pushing toohard and be aware of old and brittle surfaces, as this isan aggressive cleaning technique reserved fordifficult stains. much like paint, always workyour way up from the least

aggressive technique until youfind the method that works best on that particularstaining or material. when cleaning most steeringwheels, i prefer to use the interior brush on wrappedleather because of the exposed stitching that is easilycleaned with the hairs of the brush. work in small areas to avoidpremature drying, and use a microfiber towel to grip thewheel and wipe it clean. it's common for the steeringwheel to feel slightly sticky

after it's been cleaned becausethe dirt and oils from the driver's hands have beenremoved, leaving behind a clean, non-greasy texture. when dust accumulates on thedashboard, simply add two squirts of the interior cleanerand wipe with a microfiber towel. in most cases, using a brush ora scrub pad is unnecessary. much like the steering wheel,the armrest contains the most body oils and sweat.

in this example, i used allthree techniques to show what can be achieved after just afew minutes of carefully lifting and removing embeddeddirt and oils. besides the obvious color changefrom dirty to clean, notice the differencein sheen. the clean side has a naturalmatte finish, while the dirty has a shiny or light-reflectivequality that's common on greasysurfaces. if you have access to a steamer,it can be extremely

helpful on center consoles, cupholders, and plastic seams because of the 65 to 70psi it creates with low residual water. a simple microfiber towel, alongwith your brush, is also an effective method for cleaningaround buttons, shifter booths, andcup holders if don't have a steamer. headliners can be tricky toclean because they are thinner and generally the most delicatematerial used on the

interior of the car. avoid oversoaking the headliner,as it can cause the fabric to sag by looseningthe glue. directly apply the cleaner to abrush or a microfiber towel before attempting to clean it. the goal is to lift the stainwithout tearing the liner or disturbing the fibers. lightly blot the stain, thencomb the fibers to help blend in the clean area with thesurrounding liner so it

doesn't stand out. make sure to take your time onthe driver's side door, as it typically accumulatesheavy dirt and oil from constant use. all three techniques may needto be used on the various surfaces that makesthe door panel. the door jam kick panels tendto be a harder plastic, so i like to use technique three andscrub with firm pressure to remove the common shoe scuffsfrom getting in and out

of the car. if you're a professional,high-volume shop, or simply love power tools, you canconvert a basic dual-action polisher to an interiorscrub machine. this brush is designed forleather because it's soft yet effective at lifting dirt. add a few squirts to the brushand the area being cleaned. notice i didn't oversaturatethe seat because of the perforations builtinto the leather.

add more cleaner as the areaneeds it and work the machine in a crisscross patternto effectively covers the entire area. wipe clean with themicrofiber towel. for the deepest clean, i usea steam machine with a microfiber towel wrappedaround the wand. step one is to heat the surfaceto open the pores of the leather while removing thetop layer of heavy dirt. while it's still hot, step twois to directly apply interior

cleaner and agitate withyour interior brush. you can also use the scrubpad if necessary. this technique is highlyeffective for deep cleaning and bacteria removal, especiallyfor abnormally dirty seats and whenmold is present. once all the leather is cleanedand the pores of the hide opened, it's essential tomoisturize or condition the material to avoid stresscracking or drying out. be sure to remove the excessresidue for a matte finish.

cleaning cloth and carpetcan be tricky. here are a few differenttechniques that you can use it based on the level of dirt,your comfort level, and machines you may own. no one method is always best,so use the one you're most comfortable with. for the first technique,presoak the carpet with fabric cleaner. then use the steamerand scrubber nozzle

to heat up the fibers. once heated, reapply anotherround of fabric cleaner and scrub with a carpet brush. finally, soak up with a cleanmicrofiber towel. if you don't have anymachines, that's ok. much can be accomplished with asimple bucket of hot water, carpet brush, and afabric cleaner. liberally apply your cleaner,then scrub in opposing directions with firm pressure.

once the dirt is lifted, wipeclean with a microfiber towel. for a professional deep clean,a hot-water extractor is a fantastic option because itremoves the loosened soils immediately without the need ofadditional an wet-vac step. i use a crisscross pattern toensure every fiber is heat treated from two differentangles so that nothing is missed. once all carpets are cleaned,i like to follow up with a final vacuum.

afterwards, i install carpetstripes for a fresh new car look and feel. start by brushing all thefibers in one direction. then use the width of the brushto point the pile in opposing directions, givingthe illusion of stripes. when i'm doing my finalcheckover, i like to bring my vacuum along with me to think ofanything i may have missed in the previous steps. be sure to pull open seat jamsand vacuum out seat tracks,

all the while visuallyinspecting your work for stains that may have reappearedas they dried, which is not uncommon. ok, we've reviewed a varietyof techniques and showed a range of tools that i've usedas a professional detailer. but at the end, use thetechniques that work for you in your situation and enjoy thesatisfaction that comes from driving in a meticulouslyclean interior cabin. for a downloadable pdf ofthese steps, check out

ammonyc.com. that's it for me, guys. thanks for watching anotherepisode of "drive clean" right here on drive network. [music playing]

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