How To Remove Stains From Plastic Dashboard

There are many activities or mistakes that could leave stains on your car’s plastic dashboard. Apparently, these stains can make your car’s dashboard look messed up and you don’t like that. Well, in today’s article, we’ll cover how to remove stains from plastic dashboards.

There are many ways to clean a car interior, whether it’s complete cleaning or you want to focus on a particularly dirty area.

However, before we discuss the many ways and products needed to remove stains from car plastic dashboards, let’s quickly look at the causes of those annoying stains on your dashboard.

What Causes Stains On a Car’s Plastic Dashboard?

You may be having a good time inside the car, enjoying some cool ice cream and burger, and then accidentally, the burger fall off your hand and drops on the dashboard before falling to the floor; the burger ingredients can leave a stain on your dashboard.

Dirt and dust that penetrated the car when the door is being opened and close can also be the cause of the stains. However, regardless of what led to the stains, the guide below would put you through the ways to remove stains from plastic dashboards.

How To Remove Stains From Plastic Dashboard

Since you’re going to clean the dashboard, it’d be great to also touch some other places and make sure that your car interior is looking clean and neat.

Things you need for this DIY:

• Mild soap
• Vacuum cleaners
• Microfiber towel
• Vinegar or baking soda
• Toothpaste
• A small brush

Step 1: Vacuum the car

First things first, pick large items such as plastic bottles, cans, grocery bags, and other stuff that you can find on the floor. Afterward, get a vacuum cleaner and vacuum the car. Ensure that you remove all debris hiding in different corners. The cleaning won’t be neat if you don’t vacuum properly.

It is advisable to use attach a soft brush to the vacuum’s nozzle to prevent scratching. Also, remember to remove the floor carpets and dust them, removing all the sands they may have contained. More so, while vacuuming, pay attention to knobs or vents; they are tender and can easily get damaged.

Step 2: Dust the plastic dashboard

After vacuuming, dust the plastic dashboard. To dust your car’s plastic dashboard properly, you’d need to wet the rag. Use only water for this purpose; dip the rag into a bucket of water but don’t allow it to be fully saturated; if it’s fully saturated already, squeeze it to remove water, then use it to wipe the place.

You can simply use a handheld dust mop or a small, soft-bristled paintbrush. It is recommended to use paintbrushes to clean crevices and tight corners (usually around knobs, gearstick, etc.). Ensure that you thoroughly dusted the dashboard before moving on to the next step.

Note: if you used a damp rag to wipe the dashboard, also get a dry rag to dry the dashboard. Water particles should not be left on the dashboard.

Step 3: Remove the stains

Now, it’s time to remove the stains. If you followed the previous steps, you would be left with a clean dashboard, and you can clearly see all the stained areas. You can use a stain remover compound or add vinegar to water in a 3:1 solution (3 gals of water to 1 gal of vinegar).

Also, baking soda can be used here, in a similar ratio as with vinegar. If there’s any other plastic cleaner compound you bought, you can as well make use of it here. However, read through the instruction on how to use the plastic cleaner compound you bought.

Most importantly, do not apply any cleaning compound directly to plastic. You must have to dilute or blend the cleaning compound with water, and then use a rag to apply the solution to your plastic dashboard.

We’d advise that you wipe down a stained area and wait for a while to see if there’d be any reaction. If there’s no reaction and the stain actually cleaned off, then you can continue to wipe other stained surfaces.

Each time you wipe a stained surface, turn the other side of the rag to wipe another stained surface; always use clean sides of a rag to wipe each new surface you’re working on; else, you’d end up redistributing dirt and stains throughout the dashboard.

Step 4: Apply a plastic protectant

After you have cleaned the plastic, apply a “Plastic Protectant” compound. You’d find this product in most auto care shops. Another important thing to note here is, if the plastic protectant is available as a spray formula – do not spray it directly to your plastic dashboard.

Instead, spray it to a clean rag and apply it to a clean surface. You should know that it is wrong to coat dirty surfaces; hence, the protectant should be applied after the dashboard has been cleaned. Additionally, you can get a plastic polishing compound and apply it on the dashboard to enhance its shine.

Important Tip: Each time you purchase an auto care product (remover compounds, cleaners, polishers, etc.), always endeavor to read through the instructions on how to use the product.

Some products require that you follow specific procedures and apply them in a special manner if you want the best results.

How To Maintain Your Car Interior

Maintenance is very important; if you want your car to be valued high, you must stick to a good auto maintenance plan. Here, we will share some general tips on maintaining cars’ interior to make them look neat always.

Tip One:

Go back and read your car’s manual. Yes, that’s where to start; different car components are meant to be treated in specific ways. If you do not handle them the way you should; you may be risking huge damage that would burn a hole in your pocket.

So, you should go through your car’s manual and note down every maintenance tip shared by the manufacturer. Also, some of your car parts may be sensitive to certain cleaning products; hence, you should use/follow the recommended tip(s) on how to clean such car parts.

Tip Two:

Clean the car every day. You should remove trashes and debris from inside the car at the end of your day. Also, you should have a flexible schedule on when to clean the interior of your car. It is recommended that you clean the inside of your car at least once a month.

However, if you’re chanced to clean more than once in a month, that’s not bad at all. Just ensure that you regularly clean the interior; it would help to keep out molds from the upholstery.

Conclusion

We’ve tried to explain the steps on how to remove stains from plastic dashboards. This guide applies to all kinds of cars, irrespective of the make, year, or model. Always remember not to spray or pour a compound directly to your plastic dashboard; use a clean rag, spray into the rag, and wipe the plastic.

Finally, set out a maintenance plan and abide by it. That’s one of the surest ways to keep your car looking clean and attractive at all times. If you find scratches or swirl marks on your car’s body, use a scratch removal kit or an auto repair kit to fix up the dent.