Last Updated April 29, 2022
The CDC says washing your hands and disinfecting high-traffic surfaces are the best way to keep COVID-19 out of your car’s interior. But you don’t want to run in blind and panic wipe everything. There are specific precautions and practices to use when keeping a vehicle germ-free. So how can you know you’re cleaning the right way? Well, we’ve put together guidelines for both the enthusiast and the professional so you can easily keep your car free of coronavirus.
For Enthusiasts
- Wash your hands before and after driving with a premium handsoap
- Disinfect non-porous surfaces before and after driving
- Use alcohol-based wipes with at least 70% alcohol to ensure viruses and bacteria are killed.
- Use surface-specific cleaners on leather, fabric & microsuede
- Leather and fabric can be delicate, so be sure to avoid heavy scrubbing.
- Use a leather conditioner to restore material after cleaning
- Avoid ammonia-based cleaners on touch screens and tinted windows
- Ammonia based cleaners can damage anti-glare/anti-fingerprint coatings
- Dr. Beasley’s Glass Cleanser is a good non-ammonia alternative
- Limit number of passengers while driving
- The less passengers you have, the less vectors for virus transmission.
- Consider having a professional steam clean leather & fabric
- Steam cleaning gets hot enough (245 degrees!) to kill viruses.
- Consider having a professional treat your vehicle with ozone
- Ozone is a reliable virucide and will rid your car entirely of harmful organic material.
For Professional Detailers
- Ensure that yourself and any staff are trained in using CDC-recommended disinfecting practices
- Wash hands between vehicles
- Disinfect non-porous surfaces
- Disinfect keys
- Steam clean fabrics & leather
- Wear masks and gloves when entering customers’ vehicles
- Display signage listing precautions being taken for safety of customers
- Customers are more willing to patronize businesses that have clear and defined cleanliness practices
- Offer an ozone treatment service (if you don’t already have one)
- Ozone treatments destroy any organic material lurking inside a vehicle and are therefore the best line of defense against germs
- Keep any interior doors open to avoid viral transmission from door handles
- Consider closing your waiting area (if applicable)
- If this isn’t possible for you, ensure all surfaces in the waiting area are regularly disinfected.
For drivers and professional detailers, following these best practices could be the difference between health and sickness. So stay alert, stay diligent, and above all, stay safe!