What lies beneath!!!

[GreenBrick]

Originally Posted by Model flyer

My foot wells became flooded due to sunroof drain blocked. I dried them by lifting carpet and laying old news papers on the wet area. Its amazing how much water they soak up. Use two or three folded newspapers at a time and change every day or so. Don't rush it and make sure it really dry before refitting carpet properly or it will continue to smell. Also driving with blower on full and leaving windows or doors open when weather permitted helped.

Just doing the same with two of my cars that got sodden over winter, didn't expect all the water that had condensed on the inside of the roof to all run off in one go, when I set off!
Newspaper, condensation traps and heat, and lots of airing out are my tricks.

[Simon Jones]

Given that you've got potentially unclean 'water' absorbed into the carpet, I'd start with a wet'n'dry Vax-type of system to wash the carpet & then remove the bulk of the dampness with the vacuum. We've a decent Vax carpet cleaner at home an you can wash the carpet in the evening and it's bone dry in the morning as its so effective at sucking up all the moisture.

[FIBAMAN]

Originally Posted by Big Ted

My front carpets got sodden. (Long story)
To remediate the soppyness, I put a small oil filled radiator in rear footwell and a small dehumidifier on a board on the back seat.
I then ran both of these for 24hrs, until no more moisture was extracted by the dehumidifier. (Doors and windows shut)
The car felt very toasty when I sat in in, but my eyeballs felt like they were drying out within minutes!

I didn't leave the stuff running overnight, but kept it going for 2 days.

No musty smell and no issues since then. Highly recommend this approach if you can get hold of the kit.

Nice one, good logic!

[FIBAMAN]

Originally Posted by canis

It's worth bearing in mind that warm air carries more moisture than cold. So typically what happens in damp cars, is people use the heater to get it warm, complete their journey, switch off and walk away. The warm ait then condenses on the first cold objects it can find, usually the screens.

The solution is to put the heater to cold about a mile from home, and run the fans at full speed. This blows the warm air out the vents at the back of the car, and a good amount of moisture with it. It'll take several goes, but it'll work in the end.

Silica gel absorbs moisture, but only to a point. Once it reaches saturation, it'll have no further effect. A spin in the tumble dryer works well, then it can be re-used indefinitely. It also has the advantage that is uses no power, and won't melt your upholstery like a portable heater might. It's not happened to me yet. Cardboard absorbs moisture quite well, and can be thrown into the recycling bin once it's become damp.

If your alarm will let you, leave the windows open a crack on both sides of the car. The cross-draught will take moisture away by evaporation. A very good method is to drive around with all the windows fully open. It's cold, and noisy, but it will exchange the air (and therefore moisture) in no time. As before, get the car warm for a while, then throw the warm air out somehow. It's how a tumble-dryer works.

The dehumidifier idea is a very good one, but I've not had the privalige of such technology.

you can buy cheap silica based dehumidifiers at places like caravan dealers, DIY stores etc. could do the job if its not swimmin

[mike rice]

Picked up car from md tonight all done, screen removed( in one piece ) and resealed, interior carpet removed dried good as new, thanks for all the advice.