If there is one thing that everyone loves to do on a hot day it is to go to the beach. Being at the beach means it is cooler, you can go for a swim, have ice cream and play some games. While that sounds like the formula for the perfect day, it comes at a price. The worst part of going to the beach is the sand. Sand gets everywhere and it feels like it is coming out of your hair in the shower for the next few days. However, it seems to stick in your car for far longer. One trip to the beach and you are finding particles of sand in your car for months. While it is tempting to always take your friend’s car the real solution is to clean your car well straight after that beach trip. Today we want to tell you how.
The most obvious solution is to bring your car to a professional. After all,you want your car clean and that is what car washes do, they clean your car. We would advise against it. There are so many horror stories about car washes from the strong washes that damage mirrors and doors, to debris from the last dirty car that scratches the paint of your car, to the strong chemicals they use permanently that leave a strange appearance on your glass. It is highly likely they won’t clear out all the sand and will instead take such a sub par approach that they end up embedding the sand in your carpets for good. No. If you want to clean the sand out of your car you will just have to do it yourself.
To start with we will ignore the carpets. They are the big job and we will return to them shortly. However right now we want to deal with the sand that is hiding in all the nooks and crannies of your car. If you have a small brush – like an old toothbrush you can start to sweep out the different small areas of your car to ensure you are finding all the sand. If you don’t have a toothbrush spare then covering a screwdriver with a cloth works well too. The best solution we have found is to actually use a small can of compressed air. This allows you to blow air with force into the small cracks and remove all the sand and other small particles that have built up.
Once this is done you will find you now have more sand on your upholstery and carpet. It is time to deal with it. Start by taking the mats out of your car and shake them strongly. If they are carpet material then you will likely need to beat them off the ground to get rid of the sand properly. Make sure that the surface you are beating them against is clean or you will just end up with more problems.
Take a vacuum and use it on all the surfaces in your car including the seats and floor. You will find that this should remove the majority of sand if your vacuum is powerful enough. There will be some sand left behind. You need a coarse brush to tackle this and our favorite is something with horsehair. This will really take the sand and free it from the carpet strands. Now all you need to do is take a microfiber cloth and run it over the area. It will pick up the excess sand and you will soon be sand-free.
Getting your car to be sand-free is certainly a lot of work. The best form of protection is prevention. Try and always park somewhere that has a hose or tap nearby so that you can wash off any sand. Have a large bucket in your car to carry everyone’s dirty clothes. This should set you up for success every time.
