There are many dangers, including compromising your car safety with excessive water inside your vehicle. Water damage can cause corrosion and rust, which can be costly to repair. Water can also destroy many parts of the interior fittings, and wiring, along with the perfect starting point for mildew & mould.
Mould is also bad for your health, along with those who travel inside the car.
Why are the footwells and mats soaking wet?
There are a few places that water can ingress to a footwell from a broken seal, a blocked air conditioning drain or a damaged heat exchanger. Over the past few months, with the snow and driving rain, we are finding this the most likely cause of water inside the footwell, especially with owners accidentally leaving the window slightly open for a period of time whilst away.
Why does my car smell after a rain shower?
If you have a musty odour inside of your car after a rainstorm, the most likely cause is colonies of fungus releasing spores into the air. This can nearly be traced back to excessive moisture with over 50% humidity, providing the perfect breeding ground for nasty mould & mildew.
Why you must try and dry the seats and carpets
If your car carpet or material seats are left wet and unable to fully dry or air out, you are making the perfect environment for mould to grow inside a closed and sealed car.
Also, leaving standing water to air dry may stain the seats or carpet with the minerals left behind.
What is the best way to dry the interior of your car?
First, make sure that all your car’s windows and sunroofs are properly sealed. Check all the seals around the windows and doors and replace any worn-out or broken sections. Next, check for any leaks or openings in the car’s body that could allow water to enter. If any are found, plug them up with some sealant or epoxy. If you find that water is already inside your car, here are the steps you can take to try to remove it.
- Using a wet & dry hoover, extract as much water as possible within the material seats and carpets. Please note: do not use a regular household hoover as they are designed not too used with water.
- Use microfibre towels to wipe & mop the seats, and carpet until the water is fully absorbed into the towel.
- If you have access to a professional touchless car air dryer, you can use to this to blow dry the surface of the material seats & carpets.
- Place a portable dehumidifier inside of the vehicle with the doors closed and windows fully up. This will help remove moisture from inside of the car.
- Use the car as much as possible and keep the warm air blowing to heat the car to help evaporate the excess water with the window slightly open.
- If you have access to a garage, place a dehumidifier inside the car with air fans running to try and take out as much moisture in the air as possible.
- Purchase a dehumidifier bag that is easy to access online; these bags absorb moisture, condensation, mist, dampness and light odours leave inside the car or next to the windscreen to help reduce misting.
- Now that you have fully dried the interior, please keep an eye out for mould or mildew appearing, maybe with a lingering odour again. This will need to be addressed straight away, do not leave. Seek professional help.
Finding water inside your car isn’t as bad as it sounds as long as you follow the basic steps to dry the car interior. and hopefully, you should be able to avoid causing any permanent damage to the car. So far, we have only talked about fresh rain or snow water entering your vehicle. If your car has been flooded by the sea, river or another water source, the car will need a lot more attention than just drying out the interior. Please seek help. Car contamination and mechanical and body damage will all have to be professionally assessed.
