Basic and Deep Car Cleaning

There is a difference between basic and deep car cleaning that generally has to do with the timing, efforts, and technics to bring the condition of the vehicle up to the desired expectations and beyond. Regardless of the type of cleaning, it should lead to the same result: spotless. In my experience as a valet, the understanding of cleanliness varies widely depending on the individual. The simple truth is the dirtier car, the more time and effort it takes to clean it up.

Some car owners see the state of their messy cars as OK, while a pedantic driver may go above and beyond, requesting a thorough cleaning of the spotless little beast that rarely moves out of a parking lot. Sounds like a matter of personality, or the requirement for a certain standard of car care.

Basic or essential car cleaning of both the exterior and interior of the vehicle is a light procedure when tools such as a jet washer or waterless car wash equipment, wet & dry cloth, and a hoover are at hand. These tools work well enough to do a good job, and it should take approximately 30 minutes – 1.5 hours to complete. It is the cheapest and most popular car valeting option available at ‘Hand Car Wash’ centres and self-service points near petrol stations.

You know it’s time to get a thorough cleaning when simply wiping the areas of the vehicle does not remove stains and dirt that sits firmly in upholstery and carpets, on leather and plastics, or a surface of bodywork paint. I often get the cars where the basics barely make any difference. This is my kingdom.

See one of the examples for comparison. Attention has to be paid to the state of a footrest, pedals, and a carpet area.

It is an easy task and a quick process for basic valeting. Removing dried-up leaves, crisps, and other small bits from the carpet wouldn’t take longer than a minute. The job is done here, happy to go. However, the mud that developed within the pattern and rows on a footrest and pedals, and the dark stains on a carpet need separate attention. A wet cloth or simply vacuuming would not push the job any further. Welcome to the deep car cleaning!

The airline is a MUST magic tool that comes into action every time I start with the interior of any vehicle. When deep cleaning, it greatly helps to push out the mud from within the patterns and narrow rows on the pedals; it finishes by using some chemicals, a brush, and a dry cloth. It is an irreplaceable tool to remove dirt from the areas that are hard to reach – small gaps, under seats, around car seat rails, air vents, car door storage pockets, etc. And that’s an amazing tool to push the sand out from the bottom of the carpet surface layer. All of this is done before vacuuming takes place. If the air compressor, which is what powers the airline, stops working, I feel like a carpenter who’s lost his hammer!

While the stains on the carpet would definitely be removed during the Wet & Dry process, it still can be done in few different ways: both wet and dry carpet cleaners or using a steamer. Both of these would work, no doubt. However, proper chemicals are the key to reach good results. Here’s a picture of the final result:

So in comparison, I spent roughly three minutes for basic cleaning while a thorough car valeting in that particular area took me around 25 – 30 minutes to complete.

The happy customer now sees the difference. And I know that given more time, I could do better than that! ;)

Thanks for reading!