Cleaning Seatbelts - steamer/extractor

P

pingable

New member
The seatbelts is probably the most NEGLECTED part of the my cleaning process...

With a dark interior, it's a moot point but my beige seatbelts could use some TLC.



Granted seat belts is such a Integral part of safety, it it okay to



a) mist some woolite and steamer on it and then wipe off any residue

b) treat it with some tlc and then run a extractor on it

c) just leave the damm thing alone ;-) Don't compromise or risk the integrity of the belt.....
 
chefwong said:
a) must some woolite and steamer on it and then wipe off any residue. This would be fine but you might want to flush out any residual woolite the steamer didn't take out.

b) treat it with some tlc and then run a extractor on it. This is actually my method. I take a clean heavy towel and fold it into 4ths and hold that behind the seatbelt while I run my extractor nozzle down the belt.

c) just leave the damm thing alone ;-) Don't compromise or risk the integrity of the belt.....I personally don't think you'll jeopardize the strength of the belt by cleaning it and I like to clean mine.
Click to expand...



I've been cleaning seatbelts for a few years now and like the look of clean belts.
 
On customer cars i rarely clean them for safety reasons. If they ask or have to be cleaned i go over the safety reasons with them and make them sign a safety statement on the bill.



A lot of times grease from the door jams or body oil is the stain and a mild solvent or heavy APC is needed to clean them. Then i re wet a few times with mild shampoo solution and suck out with shop-vac to remove as much residue as possible. Making sure to dry all that was done, even if i have to pull it out and wrap it around the steering wheel to dry.
 
I.M.O. the seat belts were designed with abuse in mind. For all the technology that goes into cars, you can be sure they think of safety as a priority, and they’re aware of every factor the belt is going to encumber. Body oils, sweat, grease from getting slammed into the latch mechanism, baby puke, teenage drinking puke, food, soda, alcohol, dog saliva and oils, among thousands of other things. (Hey, we could start a thread on to find out the grossest thing a detailer ever had to clean up.)

The seat belts are made with the same material I use to trailer-strap my car on the way to the track, and you see holding down pallets on flatbed trailers. There is little you can do to sacrifice the integrity of the belts other than sharp objects and friction, so don’t take a belt-sander or heavy duty brush to them.

I use a diluted solution (dependent on the stain/soil), spray the whole belt (heavily where filthy or stained), and with a soft brush work the solution into the stain from both sides. With the Shop-Vac, I’ll lift out the solution, and then run the belt through a towel for final dry. Like “SALTY� said, then stretch it out and hook it across something in the car while it air dries the rest of the way.

Never a problem. Hope it works for you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top