Mobile and brick and mortar detailing operations alike must deal with stains on carpets and seats, and they can always create a challenge, said Michael Pennington, global director of training and consumer relations for Meguiar's Inc. The stains continue to be a problem as they resoil, come back, turn brown, create residual odors, crusty carpets, etc.
Many detailers may typically clean carpets and cloth seats with an all-purpose cleaner diluted down, sprayed, vacuumed and scrubbed until it goes away, noted Pennington. However, an all-purpose cleaner actually will leave the carpet in a high pH mode, which encourages resoiling.
Pennington said detailers should rethink how they deal with stains because when detailers generally clean an interior, there are a lot of good processes. Whether that’s leather, vinyl, etc., detailers should implement a new process for stains. "I think that's the big tip of the day," he said.
For carpets versus seats, since it is often the same stain, the products will stay the same, but the cleaning process may change. Make sure you do not over-wet any of the seats or carpet. The process you use may change some, but the main point is to not over-saturate or use too much product.