Gas spill

I

icvci

New member
First let me say, this sucks.



I was transporting a 1.5 gallon gas can containing 2 stroke oil/gas mixture to my moms. On my way home the can spilled about 16 ounces of gas in the rear of my Protege5. I have a plastic liner for the hatch area but the gas ended up everywhere.



Needless to say, my car reeks. After a week of leaving the windows opened it still smells. How can I clean this up? I'ts mostly a smell problem but, I can see some very minor staining.



HELP!



:nixweiss
 
I don't have any experience with this exact problem, but I will try to give you a hand, here.



If there is no visible stain by now, then you are probably safe from that concern, and the smell will probably go away eventually on its own.



But, if it were me, I would rent a carpet cleaner and maybe use Dawn with it. Dawn is pretty good about breaking up petroleum products and you are going to need something that will deep clean, because the fuel probably soaked into the backing of your carpet.



Good luck! I feel ya, because I hate that smell.
 
Is your hatch carpet removable? If so, you could take it out and spray it down with the hose to get any liquid out, then use a product like Folex to clean what is left. Spray the cleaner on the carpet and agitate it well with a stiff bristle brush, you may have to do this several times. Once you are satisfied with the results, rinse the carpet again, and let it sit in the sun to dry. Any interior fabric that is affected can also be cleaned with the Folex and a brush. Use a damp towel to help remove any residue from the cleaner.



Folex is available at Wal-Mart in the housewares section on the cleaning aisle.
 
I agree that an "extractor" type carpet cleaner will probably work pretty well.



If the carpet can be taken out of the rear of the car, that will be your best bet.



Then you can thoroughly FLUSH it with lots of water, the extract it, then air dry it outside for about a week.



Meanwhile you should clean the area under the carpet if possible.



I spilled some baked beans in the trunk of a car once and I couldn't get the smell out no matter what I did. HAD TO SELL THE CAR!!!!



Good luck.
 
The charcoal may help. If not, try to find a cleaning company that does clean ups from fire and smoke damage. They will use an ozone generator that does a killer job of removing odors.
 
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